Insane in the Hydrovane

AHOY! Welcome to I’dRatherBeSailing, the sailing newsletter that is naut ready for the weekend yet, but here we are, so lets get into it.

In today’s letter we have for you:

• Low Pressure, Mo’ Problems: Update on the GGR.

• Insane in the Hydrovane: The race pains.

• Flo Returns Home: And other interesting weekend reads.

Golden Globe Race Update

Purple on Windy is never good news. Purple on Windy the size of Brazil is definitely bad news. This beast of a low pressure system jumped out of the exclusion zone and headed down the coast of Chile. You can see Kirsten’s and Abhilash’s position on the map above, after sailing NE from Cape Horn for two days to reach a safer quadrant.

Below is the current damage toll this low pressure system as taken so far:

• Broken Spinnaker Pole - Kirsten Neuschafer (current GGR Leader)

• Ripped Dodger, Broken Hydrovane - Simon Curwen. Will be making repairs in Chile.

• Sail damage, Rigging & Wind vane Maintenance - Abhilash Tomy. Already spent 22 hours straight on repairs after hitting a low pressure front on Janurary 26.

• Lost Life Raft - Guy Waites. Had been running under bare poles with heavy anchor chains out for days, and survived knock down winds of 60 knots and 10 metre seas by strapping himself to his bunk. He is currently heading towards Hobart, and will be exiting the race.

The Hydrovane Pains

Barely a month ago Simon Curwen had a 1,000 mile lead on the rest of the fleet. This week his lead is gone, and he is forced to make a stop for repairs.

The problem? His Hydrovane.

Broken Hydrovanes have been haunting this years Golden Globe Racers. The most notable example being Tapio. One of the leading theories for the sudden sinking of Asteria is, you guessed it, the Hydrovane. Since it was installed below the waterline, coupled with extreme tensions, that could have led to the loud ‘bang’ and water rushing in that Tapio described. This blog post, written by someone who worked closely with Tapio, does a great job fleshing out the theory. 

The Hydrovane headache started for Curwen during a knockdown 1,200nm off Cape Horn in confused seas and 6-7 meter waves. The wave ripped a handrail off, twisted stainless steel tubes and tore canvas on the sprayhood, as well as snapping the Hydrovane.

“Of all the components on the Hydrovane, it is one of the bits that would be least likely [to fail] and was never proposed by Hydrovane to carry, and I wouldn’t have thought [it would have broken],” Curwen said.

“I will talk to Hydrovane and give some feedback, because in the unlikely scenario of receiving the treatment [knockdown] that I did, it would have been useful if there was a weaker point in the construction, so when a wave lands on top of the vane, the vane breaks, rather than the casting.”

“If I had a spare Hydrovane, it would have been an easy repair to make at sea.”

Interestingly, the only GGR race entrant to bring a spare Hydrovane was Edward Walentynowicz, who retired just two days after the start of the race.

So, we have Curwen, Abilash, and (potentially) Tapio that have all been effected by Hydrovane failures so far. Perhaps they’re just not made to withstand the extended extreme stresses of racing around the world, massive swells, and knockdowns?

Maybe.

But then there’s Damien Guillou, who barely made it out of the starting line before having to retire from the race.

I don’t even need to say what was broken.

12 out of 16 Skippers in this years’ GGR chose Hydrovanes. 3 of the 12 have been confirmed broken. 1 potentially caused a sinking.

Is this an inditement on Hydrovanes? No.

Is this an interesting pattern? Absolutely.

Weekend Reads

Historical Row: The youngest woman to ever row across the Atlantic crosses the finish line. Read her story here

A New Sloop: Panamax Sloop Nilaya departs construction hall, prepares for massive carbon rigging. Read more here

Flo Returns Home: The iconic gold Trimaran that won the 1991 Route du Rhum returns to racing in all her glory. Read more here

Past Mast

Just a few interesting sailing-related events from February’s past

• In February 1779, Captain James Cook sets sail on his third and final voyage, during which he discovered the Hawaiian Islands.

• In February 1902, the sailing ship Iceland arrived in New York after a record-breaking voyage of 68 days, making it the fastest crossing of the Atlantic by a wind-powered vessel at that time.

• The Transpacific Yacht Race, also known as the "Los Angeles to Honolulu" race, has been held every year in February since 1906.

Editor’s Note: To Capt. J. Wiggins - After much deliberation, we can confirm that the shortest way between two points is most definitely not on a sailboat, but it IS the most fun!

That’s all for today you Salty Dogs, stay safe out there, and ketch ya’ in a few days!