Tilbage i januar måned kunne du her på Bådmagasinet læse om franskmanden Romain Pilliard og spanske Alex Pella og deres forsøg på at sætte en ny verdensrekord Jorden rundt - vestom.
Det forsøg strandede bogstaveligt talt onsdag nat, på klipperne i kanalerne ved Patagonia ved Kap Horn - begge sejlere er uskadt.
Havde netop rundet
Det ene lavtryk efter det andet havde holdt teamet i stand-by position for at runde Kap Horn, og selv om det lykkedes for en uges tid siden, så måtte de efterfølgende søge læ, og vente på det rigtige vejr-vindue, for at fortsætte rekordforsøget mod vinden i sydhavet.De søgte ind i kanalerne ved Patagonia (se kort i galleriet) hvor de sejlede rundt i Cook Bay, for at vente på bedre vejr, og det var her det gik galt.
Den spanske navigatør Alex Pella om bord på 'Use It Again' faldt ganske enkelt i søvn på sin vagt, og den 70 fods store trimaran endte på klipperne, med ‘rocks all around’ - og ingen mulighed for de to, for at få båden bragt flot igen!
På teamets website bringer skipper Romain Pilliard denne udtalelse (på engelsk, red.)
"It was 1am local when a loud noise woke me up. The boat came to a standstill. I immediately understood… We took the helm in turn, ensuring our respective shifts, sailing in Cook Bay during the night to be in place on February 9 for a new depression and before a possible exit window on the 10th to the Pacific.
The weather conditions were still good, we were under reduced sail, we were progressing at 6 knots in Cook Bay. Alex was on shifts, and it was my turn to rest. After more than a month at sea, fatigue built up and Alex landed inside and fell asleep. It's a real nightmare! I don't really have the words. I am devastated.
I try to evacuate and focus on the urgency of the moment. But I find it hard to believe what happened to us. At that time. Under these conditions. The trimaran is literally laid on the rocks, we are stuck in a mouse hole with rocks all around us. It's surreal to be there. To experience that. After what we have been through in the last few days.
We prepared the boat to get out of here, sent a video to the Chilean Navy so that they could get us out of there in the best conditions and as quickly as possible before the arrival of the depression and without damaging the boat too much. The area is not mapped, the exit will be complicated. We are not injured, we will take the boat out of there, put it to safety, the rest we will see."
