Whilst Steve Fossett and his crew on Cheyenne had a fairly slow start to their Jules Verne attempt, with an average speed of less than 13 knots by Monday evening, Olivier de Kersauson’s trimaran Geronimo which is a day and a half behind, stormed along averaging nearly 20 knots in the first 24 hours, putting her ahead of Orange’s record first day position. Cheyenne, meanwhile, is some 300 miles behind the record breaker’s position but has picked up speed and was, at the last report, averaging 17 knots as she heads for the Trades and was close to Madeira.

Chart shows Cheyenne’s position at 1700 on 9 February