Transat Jacques Vabre: Capsize

[Gary Baigent]

The multihulls sailed a much longer course, around 400 more I think, too lazy to look it up. But that changes the scenario a little, don't you think, jehardiman?

[Doug Lord]

370 more for multis: http://www.yachtsandyachting.com/news/?article=149432

[jehardiman]

Originally Posted by Gary Baigent

The multihulls sailed a much longer course, around 400 more I think, too lazy to look it up. But that changes the scenario a little, don't you think, jehardiman?

Not at all, if you consider that the extra distance is less than 10% (370NM out of 4800NM) of the rhumb line distance which much less than the actual distance sailed. If you go to the website listed by Doug in the first post, there is a track plot widget for all boats in the upper right corner. The Mulis had to go south of Barbados, where the monos could chose any passage through the windwards/leewards. The real difference is trivial because the extra distance is downwind in the trades where the mutlihull should have the advantage.

However, this race was decided in the first few days when it was blowing hard dead on the nose of both the rhumb lines. It looks like most of multis tried to gain too much southerning, where Crepes Whaou tacked away NW to the Azores to be with most of the monos (Region Aquitaine attempted to follow the monos in westing early but didn't have the weatherliness). The monos chose to go on the weather and gain thier westing then reach down across the trades. The tracks really show this difference and Crepes Whaou's tack away to join the monos is what really shows.