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Passage of the International Date Line, passage of the Pacific, passage of the front...

vendredi 5 avril 2002

Orange has started another symbolic day. The International Date Line symbolises the return to the West, the moment from when the sailors will be counting down the degrees that separate them from their goal. The Pacific is the other unknown immensity of this circumnavigation, an unending desolate back straight whose ultimate point is called the Horn. The passage of the front is almost humdrum for Peyron’s men in their incessant confrontation with the elements and in their never satisfied quest for the best routes between the masses of air.

Between New Zealand and Adélie Land, on the limits of the Antarctic convergence zone, Orange left the zone of satellite coverage today. So no Bruno for a chat session. Just a little laconic e-mail to describe the passage of the front last night, less active than forecast, "with gusts of 45 knots only !" In the north of a low centred around 60° South, the maxi-catamaran Orange passed through a line of squalls. The wind behind the low was unstable and the speed of the boat is oscillating between 14 and ? 37.8 knots in the surfs !" Still on port tack, Orange is already getting into place for the next difficulty : a veritable wall caused by a ridge of high pressure that is slowly but precisely descending towards the route of the Marseilles giant. Should they go under it ? Not much hope. The wind is strong and the danger is called "icebergs". Orange must curve her route to the NE and skirt the ridge from behind. The westerly wind will continue today and drive Peyron tomorrow to the edge of the high where the shift to the north will once again make it easy to rapidly descend again to the direct route in the heart of the Pacific.

"It’s starting to smoke from under the bows..."

"All’s well on board and it’s starting to smoke from under the bows... the boat is lighter now and behaving normally..." There’s nothing innocent about the information given by Bruno. The weight of food and fuel loaded on board has been slowing the boat down. It was also a moderating element in the rhythm given by the men to the machine. "Orange" lightened means motor ungoverned and behaviour favouring speed. On the edge of the windiest areas of the planet, this is just the sort of thing that the ace helmsmen on board are after.

Denis van den Brink / Mer & Média / Translation David Palmer - SeaSpeak / Orange

Map : Orange autour du monde



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