Geronimo – Los Angeles to Honolulu in less than five days
by Sam Crichton 18 Nov 2005 09:07 GMT
Onboard Geronimo the crew are now on track for a fast finish as they head towards the finish of their third sailing speed record attempt in six months. Mother Nature and the clock have tested every crew member to the max as they have negotiated their way across the 2225 mile transpacific course. A challenging start which had the first 120 miles of the trip sailing in very light breezes then rocketed the boat into the weather pattern that had them clocking boat speeds in excess of 30 knots.
Over the last 12 hours due to having to tack and head south east toward Hawaii the boat speed decreased and the atmosphere onboard has been tense as the crew have watched and waited. The latest report from onboard Geronimo is that they have hooked into the trade winds off Hawaii and because they are still north they have the optimum angle of sail to sail fast. They are currently travelling at 25 knots and have 250 miles to cover, on a direct course to the finish line off Diamond Head in Honolulu.
With approximately 250 miles to the finish line Geronimo’s arrival at Diamond Head Honolulu is estimated will be at approximately 1am local time (US Hawaii) Friday November 18 - 1100 UTC November 18.
Recent GPS for Geronimo is LAT: 22°16.39N LON: 153°20.06W UTC 18 November 2005 00:43
Tracking of the progress of this attempt for the Los Angeles Honolulu Challenge record by Geronimo can been seen at www.superyachting.com