Earthrace mid Canal on Round World Record attempt

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(www.powerboat-world.com) The 78 foot New Zealand bio-fuelled trimaran Earthrace in now powering through the Panama Canal system heading for the Pacific Ocean.

She was 1100 nautical miles ahead of the 1998 Cable & Wireless round the world record, just 7 minutes short of 75 days when she reached Colon on the Atlantic side of the Panama Canal on Thursday.

There was a large fleet of boats waiting to transit the Canal, however as happened during their first Round the World attempt in March 2007, she managed to jump the queue, albeit with some delay.

With the cooperation of the Panama Canal Authority, Earthrace skipper Pete Bethune and his crew were able to take the high tech wave-piercer into the 37 nautical mile lock system that separates the Atlantic from the Pacific, at 0830 on Saturday morning and she is currently speeding through the highland Lake Gatun and will soon reach the smaller Lake Miraflores and the Pacific side locks.

Unfortunately the Panama stop-over took its toll on the Earthrace crew.

The Earthrace engineer, British born 31 year old Mark Russell, was on the back deck working soon after the boat arrived in Shelter Bay marina when he slipped and fell over during a small rain shower. His foot landed on a piece of angle aluminium used for securing extra fuel tanks. He severed a tendon in his foot and he spent the night in a local Panama hospital.

Russell commented today ‘I am now back on Earthrace and fully intend to carry on. I will have the foot checked for infection when we reach Mexico and if its ok will keep going. I think I am over the worst of the pain.’

Their next leg is up the coastlines of Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, Guatemala and then Mexico. This is an area with a lot of local finishing boat activity.

Last year Earthrace overran an unlit fishing skiff, invisible to their radar. Bethune and his crew were found innocent of any liability. For this record attempt Earthrace has fitted, in addition to the radar system, a FLIR night vision system which increases the level of safety.