Maserati establishes time reference for monohulls
by Meaghan Van Liew on 14 Feb 2012
Maserati Challenge 2012 SW
During the 2012 Maserati Challenge, Giovanni Soldini and his crew took 10 days, 23 hours, nine minutes and two seconds to travel the 3884 miles of the orthodromic route which links Cadiz to San Salvador, thus establishing an excellent time reference - the first - for the monohull category.
Having set sail from Cadiz on 2 February at h 11 50' 08' GMT, they travelled 4632 real miles at an average speed of 17.6 knots.
'I'm extremely pleased,' declared Soldini immediately after crossing the finish line.
'We've established an excellent time reference, which will be very difficult to beat. The only fly in the ointment was the last night, which was really rough. We had a technical problem with the hydraulic system for the keel, which doesn't move any more. We were all awake, and sailed with a fixed, central keel, but obviously it slowed us down. In any case, we couldn't have hoped for a better result. We were spot on with all our choices regarding the weather, and I'm really pleased with how the boat and the crew performed.'
The VOR 70 Maserati will carry on, without stopping, to Charleston, South Carolina, where it will be completely overhauled.
After the work, Giovanni Soldini and his team will attempt to beat the 24-hour speed record.
The record attempt can be followed, almost live, on Giovanni Soldini and Maserati's new
website.
The challenge is being sponsored by Maserati, as main partner and inspiration for the boat's name, by the Swiss bank BSI (Generali Group) and by Generali itself, as co-sponsor.
If you want to link to this article then please use this URL: www.sail-world.com/93886
