Doha wins Oryx Quest in style

by Brian Hancock on 10 Apr 2005 They finished as they started - in fine style, all sails set, a relaxed and happy crew, looking like they had just sailed around the bay - not around the world.

Brian Thompson and his talented team on Doha 2006 stormed across the finish line off Doha this morning local time, precisely 62 days, 21 hours, 1 minute and 22 seconds after they left the fair shores of the Gulf State of Qatar.

The wind was a steady 12 to 13 knots and the boat approached on a close reach sailing at 15 knots.

Doha crossed the line close to the coastguard cutter that was the official finish boat, providing the dignitaries on board with a terrific show as they rocketed past.

A warm Qatari sun blazed down sparkling on the turquoise water as they crew threw their arms in the air in jubilation and lit flares to mark their win.

Official finish time for Doha 2006 was 08:01:22 GMT, 11:01:22 local time, just 2 hours and 58 minutes short of nine weeks at sea.

The last week of their around-the-world odyssey has been especially tedious for the team, as they battled headwinds, or no wind. In fact, it has been a long, hard slog all the way from south of South Africa, but perhaps the worst part of the voyage was the last 400 miles in the Strait of Hormuz.

Winds died completely, leaving the giant catamaran to float helplessly on a glassy sea. As Paul Larsen put it in one of his logs, ‘each passing zephyr was pounced upon.’

The nimble cat sailed ungainly towards the finish, pouncing on zephyrs and catching what little breeze it could in its massive sails, while the crew watched the sun paint startling colours on the still water.

They could smell the earthy scent of land, with an occasional waft of something cooking, reminding them that it had been a long time since ‘real’ food passed their lips.

At last, during Friday night, a steady wind filled in and the cat loped toward the finish line.

First the shimmering haze off the desert sands reflected in the clear sky; then signs of civilization as a small fleet of spectator boats approached the boat.

Finally, just before they crossed the line, the square-topped outline of the high rise buildings in Doha came into view and then suddenly it was over.

On the firing of the finish gun, the race officially ended for Doha 2006. Thompson and his team had won, Tony Bullimore and his crew will likely come in second, and the huge million dollar cash prize is all but in the bank.

An elated Thompson gave the credit to his crew, one of the most accomplished teams of offshore sailors ever assembled.

‘I am lucky to have sailed around the globe with some of the best multihull sailors in the world,’ he said. ‘This is a truly great team and our victory is as much theirs as it is mine. We started as a team of sailors and finished as a team of best friends.’

While Thompson and the Doha 2006 crew celebrate their win, Tony Bullimore and his team on Daedalus have hit the doldrums.

Their boat speed for the last four hours has hovered between two and five knots; not exactly thrilling sailing, but perhaps a taste of what the next ten days might have to offer before they too will enjoy life on land.

At 09:40 GMT (12:40 local time) Doha was just arriving at the welcome pontoon where several dignitaries were on hand to congratulate Thompson and his crew. There was also a large spectator crowd assembled.

Australian navigator aboard Doha, Will Oxley, produced the precise mileage for the race. Since leaving Doha, they have sailed 25,602 nautical miles, covering an average of 407 miles each day, at an average speed of 16.96 knots.

To read all the crew logs from Doha 2006 go to www.maxicatdoha.com.

To read all the logs from Daedalus go to www.teambullimore.com.

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