urgent: ellen mac arthur

[olbrichlarsresearch]

Hi there
I need to do some research on Ellen MacArthur''s world record setting sailing adventure around the world.

So it would be really great, if some of you''d be able to answer a few of the whole bunch of questions I came up with. Otherwise, do you know a good source for that kind of information? Please let me know.

She became the fastest person which singel-handed, sailed around the world.

But what is the exact definition of that?
What does "single-handed" exactly mean?
Was she allowed to have short rests on an accompanying boat?
Was there another boat providing her with food, some devices, etc.?

Besides that, what does the phrase "around the world" mean?
Is sailing around, say, the antarctis already "around the world"?
Is there a minimum of miles and/or do you need to cross certain oceans or reach certain milestones?
For instance why did she sail down from the UK and then sailed part of the way up again on her return (why didn''t she head back from, say, iceland or so? Is the wind the only explaination?).

Regarding the boat, are there any restrictions on its size? Is it ok to have some motor on your boat, that you are allowed to use for some time(well, probably not, but anyway)?
And last but not least, are there any further requirements that need to be fulfilled that authorises you to name the mission a "world record"?

Thanks for wading through all those questions, hope to get some answers.

Kind regards,
Lars

[Jeff_H]

I suggest that you go on Google.com and do a search there as there are a lot of sites that talk about her round the world record attempt. She also has two websites, www.teamellen.com and www.ellenmacarthur.com

But what is the exact definition of that? What does "single-handed" exactly mean?

There are various sanctioning bodies that record various distance sailing records. Each has their own specific definition of ''sailing around the world''. Most require that the route start and end at the same location, that the boat pass all of the southern capes and have a minimum distance equal to the circumferance of the earth.

Single-hand simply means that there is only one person on the boat.

Was she allowed to have short rests on an accompanying boat? Was there another boat providing her with food, some devices, etc.?

No. She was required to stay on the boat. There is no chase boat. Most around the world records are non-stop. Long distance racers go into training, learning to sleep for 10 to 15 minute at a time while the autopilot steered. She had to carry all of the food and upplies that were required for the entire trip. Most round the world racers use a mix of tanked water and drinking water makers to provide drinking water.

Regarding the boat, are there any restrictions on its size?
The type of boat is controlled by the particular record that she is seaking to break. There are records that do not limit anything about the boat, and others that limit size, and type.

Is it ok to have some motor on your boat, that you are allowed to use for some time(well, probably not, but anyway)?

Round the world racers do have engines on board to recharge the battery and operate the watermakers. Some have a propellor shaft and propeller, which is locked and sealed so that it can''t be used during the record attempt, while other record attempts have only carried a small engine as a generator but without a propellor shaft. Motoring is not permitted so routing the boat to get the best winds becomes an important factor in racing around the world.

Gotta go,
Jeff