Jake
16-06-08, 20:16
To everyone following the Jester Challenge to the Azores, here is a very brief update.
After departing on Saturday 31 May, the first single-handed sub-30ft yacht arrived in the Azores on 11 June. Frenchman Dominique Katan in Nea Kameni, a 25ft Mistral 7.50, arrived at Tercia at 1106 GMT after 'a fantastic trip.'
So far, a total of 17 yachts have arrived safely, with some skippers describing the trip as 'boisterous'. Calmer conditions should make the arrival of the smaller and slower yachts a bit easier. To the delight of the non-organisers, both Russians are safely accounted for at the finish; Vitaly Elagin in Zeelanna, an Amigo 27 ( arriving on the 13th) and Alexei Fedorouk in his wooden Dragon, Fason (arriving on the 14th).
Fason was bought as an abandoned wreck from 'the state', and painstakingly rebuilt using parts machined on spare lathes in a missile factory! Alexei has a great story to tell, and it's heart-warming to see his long-held ambition realised.
Retirements have been quite heavy, mainly through gear failure, noteably self-steering. A total of nine boats dropped out quite early on, retiring to Brest and other nearby ports.
Many skippers - several completing their first serious offshore passage, remarked that they had underestimated the effects of sleep deprivation, but had devised systems to work around it.
A total of 16 boats remain at sea, and are expected to make landfall in the next few days.
In what is becoming a truly international event, the fleet was made up of skippers from the UK, France, Belgium, Australia, Kenya, and Russia. One of the first boats home was skippered by a 71-year-old.
Jester never fails to surprise!
After departing on Saturday 31 May, the first single-handed sub-30ft yacht arrived in the Azores on 11 June. Frenchman Dominique Katan in Nea Kameni, a 25ft Mistral 7.50, arrived at Tercia at 1106 GMT after 'a fantastic trip.'
So far, a total of 17 yachts have arrived safely, with some skippers describing the trip as 'boisterous'. Calmer conditions should make the arrival of the smaller and slower yachts a bit easier. To the delight of the non-organisers, both Russians are safely accounted for at the finish; Vitaly Elagin in Zeelanna, an Amigo 27 ( arriving on the 13th) and Alexei Fedorouk in his wooden Dragon, Fason (arriving on the 14th).
Fason was bought as an abandoned wreck from 'the state', and painstakingly rebuilt using parts machined on spare lathes in a missile factory! Alexei has a great story to tell, and it's heart-warming to see his long-held ambition realised.
Retirements have been quite heavy, mainly through gear failure, noteably self-steering. A total of nine boats dropped out quite early on, retiring to Brest and other nearby ports.
Many skippers - several completing their first serious offshore passage, remarked that they had underestimated the effects of sleep deprivation, but had devised systems to work around it.
A total of 16 boats remain at sea, and are expected to make landfall in the next few days.
In what is becoming a truly international event, the fleet was made up of skippers from the UK, France, Belgium, Australia, Kenya, and Russia. One of the first boats home was skippered by a 71-year-old.
Jester never fails to surprise!