Geronimo Through First Tropic

The relative positions given this morning for Geronimo and Orange II require some clarification in terms of how far the two multihulls are from the Equator.

The Jules Verne Trophy route is marked by a number of theoretical waypoints, although none of them is compulsory. One of these waypoints is at the point where the Equator (0° latitude) crosses 25°W. This is agreed between Jules Verne Trophy competitors as being the average longitude used by previous attempts.

This waypoint is one way of allowing competitors to measure their performance against that of others and provide a common reference point when calculating their own “Distance from the Equator”.

On Day 4

– Distance to the Equator for Geronimo: 1,382 nautical miles
– Distance to the Equator for Orange II: 1,484 nautical miles
– 2002 Record set by Orange: 1.298.6 nautical miles

Geronimo is therefore 102 nautical miles ahead of Orange II and 83 behind the 2002 record.

Orange II meanwhile, after some difficult conditions on Saturday and Sunday, which forced her to hug the African coast, is now in the North East Trades she was hoping for and clocked a 500 mile day on day four.

Bruno PEYRON commented on the Canaries. “The Canaries were interesting! They marked the end of the rather extreme easterly course we were forced to take. We really didn’t have much choice in the matter.”

The amusing thing is, that extreme course seems to have paid off well and Orange II is now racking up the miles. Full positions on both boats are on their respective websites at the address below.