Baranson record attempt fails
Hats off to Richard Branson and his son and daughter for having the guts to kick off their record breaking attempt on the Atlantic ahead of one hell of a storm that wrecked the bid.
Yes, they were in the hands of an extremely experienced crew, headed by Mike Sanderson, director of Team Origin, and it was the weight of that experience that probably led to them taking a risk with the weather that, had they pulled it off, would have ensured a fast crossing.
But on a boat built for speed, like Virgin Money, there is nowhere to hide and nowhere to find any comfort; so, if they didn't know what they were in for before hand, they certainly do now.
"We have had an eventful trip with waves up to 40 feet, gale force winds between force 7 and 9. We got taken by one massive monster wave, which approached us from behind and took one of our life rafts. Fortunately all the crew were harnessed in, so everybody was safe," said Branson.
The storm blew out a spinnaker and ripped the mainsail beyond an easy repair so the team had no option but to abandon the attempt. The boat is heading for Bermuda.
The team hasn't ruled out another attempt this year if the conditions allow. "The boat will be ready to sail again in the next few weeks, and it’s possible that there might be one week left this season, " says Branson "otherwise it will be spring before it can go again. But everybody on board the boat is committed to get the record. The boat did well but the conditions were too bad for the boat to bear."
I heard the other day that Alex Johnson, the 42-year-old hedge fund manager who owns the 99ft Virgin Money, formerly called Speedboat, ordered the £7.4m yacht without mentioning anything to his wife until he had taken delivery. I can believe it. If you're reading this Mrs Johnson, he's in Bermuda!
Yes, they were in the hands of an extremely experienced crew, headed by Mike Sanderson, director of Team Origin, and it was the weight of that experience that probably led to them taking a risk with the weather that, had they pulled it off, would have ensured a fast crossing.
But on a boat built for speed, like Virgin Money, there is nowhere to hide and nowhere to find any comfort; so, if they didn't know what they were in for before hand, they certainly do now.
"We have had an eventful trip with waves up to 40 feet, gale force winds between force 7 and 9. We got taken by one massive monster wave, which approached us from behind and took one of our life rafts. Fortunately all the crew were harnessed in, so everybody was safe," said Branson.
The storm blew out a spinnaker and ripped the mainsail beyond an easy repair so the team had no option but to abandon the attempt. The boat is heading for Bermuda.
The team hasn't ruled out another attempt this year if the conditions allow. "The boat will be ready to sail again in the next few weeks, and it’s possible that there might be one week left this season, " says Branson "otherwise it will be spring before it can go again. But everybody on board the boat is committed to get the record. The boat did well but the conditions were too bad for the boat to bear."
I heard the other day that Alex Johnson, the 42-year-old hedge fund manager who owns the 99ft Virgin Money, formerly called Speedboat, ordered the £7.4m yacht without mentioning anything to his wife until he had taken delivery. I can believe it. If you're reading this Mrs Johnson, he's in Bermuda!
Labels: Alex Johnson, Mike Sanderson, Sir Richard Branson, Speedboat, Team Origin, Virgin Money
posted by Richard Donkin at
5:18 PM
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