Typhoon Howls 400 Miles to Southwest of Geronimo

by Superyachting Challenge on 16 May 2006 It's an ordinary day at sea today; in fact, the sea itself is ordinary. What's unusual is that it's a rare day for Geronimo and her crew with no particular record to set, no time to beat, just a sail to Yokohama and the next big challenge.

Of course, taking this 'non-attempt sail' is the result of a thoroughly thought-out decision at the end of last week to forgo setting a course and establishing a record-to-beat from Hong Kong to Yokohama in order to steer clear of Chanchu, the early-season China Sea typhoon expected to blow its way into Hong Kong. At present Geronimo is amid calm winds as she moves slowly away from the storm.

Skipper Olivier de Kersauson offers his impressions of the voyage, 'Last night under the moon, the clouds spun-up by the weather depression in the Southwest passed by. With water temperature of 30 degrees and air temperature of 29 degrees, only the current pushes us along our course. In the heat, the monotony we're in has us pleading to leave this system for trade winds.

'However, if we had waited to leave Hong Kong and had passed to the South of Taiwan, it would have been more difficult,' he says, continuing, 'As we stay on the edge, we continue to hear 'System D' alerts and every hour, the emergency warnings sound furiously: Danger, Danger!'

In fact, with the storm in its full fury only 400 miles away from Geronimo, her crew are convinced they made the right decision. 'Gusting to 120 knots, against the winds and seas of Chanchu, Geronimo could capsize and her pontoons fill up and sails fly away,' says de Kersauson. 'With that kind of prospect, it's easy to understand why we had to stay away from the howling monster!' he concludes.

Geronimo's next challenge is the West to East Yokohama-San Francisco Challenge scheduled for later this month.