Sam Davies first Brit in Artemis Transat

by media on 27 May 2008
Thirty-three year old Samantha Davies has become the first Briton to finish The Artemis Transat 2008 solo race in Boston, USA. Samantha sailed her 60-foot monohull Roxy across the finish line at 23:00:51 GMT Monday in a time 15 days, 10 hours, 00 minutes and 51 seconds. For the last 24 hours, Sam battled a biting and gusty 25 to 35 knot headwind, but crossed the line with a huge smile.

Out of the 13 IMOCA boats that started The Artemis Transat on Sunday, 11 May, only three Britons made the start line after Mike Golding, Brian Thompson and Jonny Malbon were forced, for different reasons, to withdraw from this famous solo transatlantic race at the last minute. Samantha Davies, Dee Caffari (Aviva) and Steve White (Spirit of Weymouth) were the only competing British competitors, and Davies has put in a fantastic solo performance to bring home Roxy in fifth place.

Compared to the four IMOCA boats that ha ve already completed the 2982-mile course, Davies was racing an older generation, if albeit famous, IMOCA boat. Roxy is the ex-PRB that won the last two editions of the solo Vendée Globe, and Davies performance in The Artemis Transat has reinforced her place in the premier league of offshore solo sailing.

Davies started The Artemis Transat in daunting circumstances having lost the use of her radar on the first night. A trip up the mast on day 4 of the race confirmed there was no chance of repairing the radar as the waterproof sealant had decayed allowing water to corrode the elements, at that point Davies knew she would be 'sailing blind' unable to identify shipping or the threat of icebergs on the other side of the Atlantic. Undeterred Davies raced on handling the diverse weather conditions of the North Atlantic from frustrating patches of no wind to full-on 40 knots of wind, and working her way into 5th place behind the leading pack of the latest generation IM OCA 60s.

From the dockside in Boston, Sam commented.

'Many aspects of the race were totally unexpected. I had fun and enjoyed some great sailing but at times got really frustrated. I guess this is what you come to expect being an offshore sailor! I feel like I have sailed a clever race and I am proud of my tactical choices, and my boat-handling.

I have had such a great time and learnt more and more about Roxy. I feel totally at home onboard and I am looking forward with eagerness to the Vendee Globe....I am sad that this race is so short because I could have happily carried on sailing but I am looking forward to enjoying a nice meal, a hot bath and a soft pillow tonight!'

Sam’s Davies will now spend a few days in Boston with her team, resting and getting Roxy ready for her voyage back to France. The boat will have a refit during the summer to ensure she is at her full potential for the Vendee Globe. The Vendee is one of the toughest sporting trophies in history, a solo non-stop round the world race, starting from France in November.