2018 Golden Globe Race
 | |
| Event title | |
|---|---|
| Edition | 2nd |
| Event details | |
| Venue | Les Sables-d'Olonne |
| Dates | 1 July 2018 – Summer 2019 |
| Yachts | 'Retro' fibreglass 32-36ft |
| Competitors | |
| Competitors | 22 |
← 1968 | |
The 2018 Golden Globe Race is a sailing race around the world which started on 1 July 2018 from Les Sables-d'Olonne, France. The race started fifty years after the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race and features yachts similar to those used at that time, with no modern technology allowed.[1][2]
Retro sailing
Entrants are limited to sailing similar yachts and equipment to what was available to Sir Robin Knox-Johnston in the original race in 1968–69. That means sailing without modern technology or benefit of satellite based navigation aids.[1] Competitors could apply to have their class of boat approved, providing it was in accordance with the following rules:[3]
- Of fibre reinforced plastic construction.
- Designed prior to 1988 and have a minimum series of 20 yachts built from one mould.
- Have a hull length of between 32ft and 36ft. Bowsprits, wind vanes and outboard rudders, boomkins, pushpits and pulpits are not measured.
- Have full-length keels with rudders attached to the trailing edge.
- A minimum design displacement is 6,200kg.
Twenty-two classes were approved, with one exception to the rules made for a wood-epoxy Suhaili replica.[4]
Route
The race started on 1 July 2018 in Les Sables-d'Olonne and will lead around the world eastward, leaving Cape of Good Hope, Cape Leeuwin and Cape Horn to port. There will be several "film gates" along the route, where the skippers can be interviewed as they sail past without stopping and where they can pass over films and letters.[5]
Entrants
There are 18 entrants from 13 different countries who entered the race. Of those, six have chosen the class compliant but relatively modern Rustler 36. A further 17 had expressed interest but subsequently retired.[6]
| Sailor | Yacht | Type |
|---|---|---|
 Abhilash Tomy |
Thuriya | Suhaili replica |
 Antoine Cousot |
Métier Intérim | Biscay 36 |
 Are Wiig |
Olleanna | OE 32 |
 Ertan Beskardes |
Lazy Otter | Rustler 36 |
 Francesco Cappelletti |
007 | Endurance 35 |
 Gregor McGuckin |
Hanley Energy Endurance | Biscay 36 |
 Igor Zaretskiy |
Esmeralda | Endurance 35 |
 Istvan Kopar |
Puffin | Tradewind 35 |
| Jean-Luc Van Den Heede |
Matmut | Rustler 36 |
 Kevin Farebrother |
Sagarmatha | Tradewind 35 |
| Loïc Lepage |
Laaland | Nicholson 32 |
| Mark John Sinclair |
Coconut | Lello 34 |
 Mark Slats |
Ohpen Maverick | Rustler 36 |
 Nabil Amra |
Liberty II | Biscay 36 |
| Philippe Péché |
PRB | Rustler 36 |
| Susie Goodall |
DHL Starlight | Rustler 36 |
 Tapio Lehtinen |
Asteria | Benello Gaia 36 |
 Uku Randmaa |
One and All | Rustler 36 |
| Type | Entrants | Hull speed (Gerr)* | Sail area/displacement ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rustler 36 | 6 | 6.7 | 13.4 |
| Biscay 36 | 3 | 6.9 | 14.6 |
| Tradewind 35 | 2 | 5.8 | 12.3 |
| Endurance 35 | 2 | 6.4 | 16.8 |
| Benello Gaia 36 | 1 | 6.4 | 14.0 |
| Lello 34 | 1 | 7.5 | 13.4 |
| Nicholson 32 | 1 | 6.1 | 14.3 |
| OE32 | 1 | 7.4 | 13.8 |
| Suhaili replica | 1 | 6.6 | 14.7 |
* Adjusted for displacement per Dave Gerr's formula
The race
The race started as planned at 10:00 GMT on the 1st July 2018, with the competitors passing a rolling gate between Robin Knox-Johnston's Suhaili and Bernard Moitessier's Joshua, two veterans of the 1968 race, with Sir Robin firing the starting cannon on Suhaili. Francis Chichester's Gipsy Moth IV was also in the starting regatta.
Of the 18 entrants, only Francesco Cappelletti failed to make the start line, and officially withdrew on the 5th July as he did not expect to make the deadline of the 7th. He plans to sail around the world independently, but still being tracked by the organisers of the GGR.[7]
Ertan Beskardes retired on the 5th of July, after deciding that being unable to communicate with his family removed the enjoyment from the race. Kevin Farebrother retired on the 15th at the Canary Islands mark, after becoming 'disillusioned by solo sailing and lack of sleep'. Also at the Canaries, Antoine Cousot had to stop to repair his windvane gear, demoting him to the 'Chichester' class. Nabil Amra returned to the Canaries on the 17th of July, also to repair windvane gear.
| Sailor / Place (+Miles) | Canary Islands mark | Cape Verde Islands mark | Storm Bay Tasmania gate | Falkland Islands mark | Finish |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abhilash Tomy |
|||||
| Are Wiig |
4th (+134) | ||||
| Gregor McGuckin |
5th (+166) | ||||
| Igor Zaretskiy |
|||||
| Istvan Kopar |
|||||
| Jean-Luc Van Den Heede |
3rd (+46) | ||||
| Loïc Lepage |
|||||
| Mark John Sinclair |
|||||
| Mark Slats |
2nd (+17) | ||||
| Philippe Péché |
1st | ||||
| Susie Goodall |
|||||
| Tapio Lehtinen |
|||||
| Uku Randmaa |
|||||
| 'Chichester' class (one stop) | |||||
| Antoine Cousot |
|||||
| Retired (in order of retirement) | |||||
| Francesco Cappelletti
|
Did not make start, officially retired on 5/7/2018. | ||||
| Ertan Beskardes
|
Retired on 5/7/2018, put in to A Coruña. Did not wish to continue due to inability to communicate with family. | ||||
| Kevin Farebrother
|
Retired on 15/7/2018, 'disillusioned by solo sailing and lack of sleep'. | ||||
| Nabil Amra
|
Retired on 17/7/2018 due to broken windvane, put in to Tenerife. | ||||
External links
References
- ^ a b "Stepping back to the Golden Age of solo sailing". goldengloberace.com. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Golden Globe 2018 Race round the world is set to recreate a 'totally retro' era of epic adventure". yachtingworld.com. 2015-04-22.
- ^ "The Rules". Golden Globe Race. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
- ^ "Golden Globe Race 2018-19 Notice of race" (PDF). Golden Globe Race. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
- ^ "Route and Course map". goldengloberace.com. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Skippers 2018". goldengloberace.com. Retrieved 2017-11-17.
- ^ "Francesco Cappelletti withdraws from the Race". Retrieved 5 July 2018.