Golden Globe Race: Dalton pressing on with race qualifications
by Richard Gladwell/Sail-World 21 Jul 2022 19:28 PDT
4 September 2022
Graham Dalton with his Golden Globe Race spinnaker © Graham Dalton
Despite earlier reports that the New Zealand Golden Globe Race entrant Graham Dalton would not make the start of the single handed round the world race, he advised Sail-World.com that he had now completed the required medical course, and is about to start the qualifying voyage.
He intends to set sail on Thursday to complete his required 2,000nm qualifying voyage. His 36ft yacht has been anti-fouled and is back in the water at Les Sables-d'Olonne, France.
Dalton says his 2,000 qualifying voyage will finish at the Spanish port of Gijon, ready for the race start on September 4, 2022.
Despite having New Zealand qualifications recognised as being the equivalent of the medical training courses and certificates for the race, organisers would not yield, Dalton told Sail-World that he had now repeated the course in Amsterdam.
Entry to the Golden Globe Race is by invitation only, for sailors aged 18 years and older at the start on September 4, 2022. Entrants must show prior ocean sailing experience of at least 8,000 miles and another 2000 miles solo in any boat, as well as an additional 2000 miles solo in their GGR boat.
Although 18 entrants are listed, it remains to be seen how many actually make the startline.
Dalton is sailing 2018 GGR Winner Jean-Luc van den Heede’s Rustler 36 Matmut. The event website states that Jean-Luc van den Heede completed a 6-month refit of his Rustler 36 class yacht Matmut in 2016, replacing her mast, rigging, sails, ropes and engine. He also completed the compulsory test sail under jury rig and spent the 2017/18 winter months sailing her in the Bay of Biscay and Atlantic to test the yacht in strong winds with assistance from former GGR entrant Lionel Regnier.
The race starts on September 4, 2022.