Velux 5 Oceans Race
The Velux 5 Oceans Race was a round-the-world single-handed yacht race, sailed in stages, managed by Clipper Ventures since 2000. Its most recent name comes from its main sponsor Velux. Originally known as the BOC Challenge, for the title sponsor BOC, the first edition was in 1982. In the late 1990s the race was renamed the Around Alone. The 2010-11 race was the last to take place and attracted just five entries. The event has not been held since.
Overview
[edit | edit source]The race was established in 1982 as the BOC Challenge, with main sponsorship from BOC. The race was inspired by the Golden Globe Race, which was the first single-handed round-the-world yacht race. Although the Golden Globe was a non-stop race, the BOC Challenge concept was for a single-handed round-the-world race, to be run in stages (in contrast to the Vendée Globe, which is non-stop). As the longest single-handed event in the world, it was regarded as one of sailing's ultimate challenges.[1]
The race was run every four years. The first edition was won by Philippe Jeantot, who won all four legs of the race with an overall elapsed time of just over 159 days. In 1998, the race was renamed the Around Alone; for 2006, it is known as the Velux 5 Oceans Race.
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1982-1983 Route
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1990-1991 Route
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1994-1995 Route
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1998-1999 Route
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2002 Route
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2006-2007 Route
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2010-2011 Route
Past results
[edit | edit source]The BOC Challenge 1982–83
[edit | edit source]Raced over four legs; Newport, Rhode Island — Cape Town — Sydney — Rio de Janeiro — Newport. Two classes of boat were entered: Class 1, 45–56 feet (13.7–17.1 m); and Class 2, 32–44 feet (9.7–13.4 m).
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The BOC Challenge 1986–87
[edit | edit source]Raced over four legs; Newport, Rhode Island — Cape Town — Sydney — Rio de Janeiro — Newport. Two classes of boat were entered: Class 1, 50–60 feet (15.2–18.3 m); and Class 2, 40–50 feet (12.2–15.2 m). New safety rules were introduced for this race, including compulsory watertight bulkheads and a simple stability check.
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The BOC Challenge 1990–91
[edit | edit source]The course was changed for this edition, although it was still divided into four legs: Newport, Rhode Island — Cape Town — Sydney — Punta del Este — Newport. Three classes of boat were entered: Class 1, 50–60 feet (15.2–18.3 m); Class 2, 40–50 feet (12.2–15.2 m); and a Corinthian class.
The BOC Challenge 1994–95
[edit | edit source]The course was again changed for this edition, although it was still divided into four legs: Charleston, South Carolina — Cape Town — Sydney — Punta del Este — Charleston. Two classes of boat were entered: Class 1, 50–60 feet (15.2–18.3 m); and Class 2, 40–50 feet (12.2–15.2 m).
The Around Alone, 1998
[edit | edit source]The course was again changed for this edition, although it was still divided into four legs: Charleston, South Carolina — Cape Town — Auckland — Punta del Este — Charleston. Two classes of boat were entered: Class 1, 50–60 feet (15.2–18.3 m); and Class 2, 40–50 feet (12.2–15.2 m).
In this race Isabelle Autissier was rescued by fellow competitor Giovanni Soldini when her boat PRB capsized approximately 1,900 nautical miles (3,500 km) west of Cape Horn.[11][12]
Viktor Yazykov is noted for performing surgery alone, at sea, on his elbow to drain a dangerous infection after injuring his elbow during the race. He emailed a doctor who provided instructions for his treatment[16][17][18]
The Around Alone, 2002
[edit | edit source]The course was again changed for this edition, this time spanning five legs: Newport, Rhode Island/New York — Brixham, Devon — Cape Town — Tauranga — Salvador, Brazil — Newport. Although the race technically started and ended in Newport, it was preceded by a "prologue race", in which the boats with crews of up to five raced to New York, to take part in Sail for America, a major sailing event marking the first anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks. The main Around Alone event started from New York, and finished back in Newport.
Three classes of boat were entered: Class 1, IMOCA Open 60; Class 2, IMOCA Open 50; and Class 3, IMOCA Open 40.
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The Velux 5 Oceans 2006–07
[edit | edit source]The 2006 edition covered a route of 30,140 nautical miles (55,820 km). The race started in Bilbao (Spain), on October 22, 2006, and finished there. There were only two stops, in Fremantle (Australia) and Norfolk (USA).
| Skipper Name | Boat name | Nationality | Boat Type | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bernard Stamm | Cheminées Poujoulat | File:Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Switzerland | Open 60 | 103 days |
| Kojiro Shiraishi | Spirit of Yukoh | File:Flag of Japan.svg Japan | Open 60 | 118 days |
| Unai Basurko | Pakea | File:Flag of Spain.svg Spain / Basque | Open 60 | 158 days |
| Sir Robin Knox-Johnston | SAGA Insurance | File:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom | Open 60 | 159 days |
| Graham Dalton | A Southern Man-AGD | File:Flag of New Zealand.svg New Zealand | Open 50 | Finished Leg 2 |
| Mike Golding | Ecover 3 | File:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom | Open 60 | Retired Leg 1 |
| Alex Thomson | Hugo Boss (1) | File:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom | Open 60 | Abandoned Leg 1 |
The race was open to monohull yachts conforming to the Open 50 and Open 60 class criteria. The Open classes are unrestricted in certain aspects but a box rule governs parameters such as overall length, draught, appendages and stability, as well as numerous other safety features.[21]
The race took place in stages, with the skippers having the chance to rest and refit at each stop-over point. Different staging points have been used over the years; the races prior to the 1998 event were run in four legs, and the 1998 event in five legs. The 2006 edition had the longest stages of any edition to date, with just three legs:[22]
| From | To | Expected Start | Expected Finish | Length (nm) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bilbao, Spain | Fremantle, Australia | October 22, 2006 | Early December 2006 | 11,730 |
| Fremantle, Australia | Norfolk, Virginia, USA | January 7, 2007 | Mid March 2007 | 14,500 |
| Norfolk, Virginia, USA | Bilbao, Spain | April 15, 2007 | End of April 2007 | 3,910 |
The total length for the 2006 edition was 30,140 nautical miles (55,820 km).
The Velux 5 Oceans 2010–11
[edit | edit source]The 2010 edition of the race started in La Rochelle (France), on October 17, 2010, and finished in the same port. Stopovers were Cape Town (South Africa), Wellington (New Zealand), Punta del Este (Uruguay), and Charleston, South Carolina (USA). The sailboats were all in the "Eco 60" class (Open 60 yachts built before 1 January 2003).
| Skipper Name | Nationality | Boat name | Boat Type | Total Time | Overall Place | Overall points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brad Van Liew | File:Flag of the United States (23px).png United States | Le Pingouin | Eco 60 |
118 days 10 hours 17 mins | 1st | 73 |
| Zbigniew Gutkowski | File:Flag of Poland.svg Poland | Operon Racing | Eco 60 |
140 days 14 hours 37 mins (including stopping in Brazil due to injury) | 2nd | 53 |
| Derek Hatfield | File:Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada | Active House | Eco 60 |
130 days 15 hours 42 mins | 3rd | 51 |
| Chris Stanmore-Major | File:Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom | Spartan | Eco 60 |
140 days 4 hours 10 mins | 4th | 48 |
| Christophe Bullens | File:Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium | Five Ocean of Smiles | Eco 60 |
Retired, Sprint 1 |
See also
[edit | edit source]Notes
[edit | edit source]- ^ Race History, from the official web site Archived March 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Roll of Honour (1982), from the official web site Archived March 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ The BOC Challenge 1982–1983 Results, from solocircumnavigation.com
- ^ Roll of Honour (1986), from the official web site Archived March 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ The BOC Challenge 1986–1987 Results, from solocircumnavigation.com
- ^ Roll of Honour (1990), from the official web site Archived March 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ The BOC Challenge 1990–1991 Results, from solocircumnavigation.com
- ^ Roll of Honour (1994), from the official web site Archived March 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ The BOC Challenge 1994–1995 Results, from solocircumnavigation.com
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Howe, Robert F. (1 March 1999) "The Deep End of the Sea", Time. Retrieved 19 June 2010.
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Roll of Honour (1998), from the official web site Archived March 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Around Alone 1998–1999 Results, from solocircumnavigation.com
- ^ 1998–99 Around Alone Results Archived 2005-11-11 at the Wayback Machine, from Torresen Marine
- ^ Alone Against The Sea - The Dangers Of Solo Sailing
- ^ Lua error in Module:Citation/CS1/Configuration at line 2172: attempt to index field '?' (a nil value).
- ^ Cruising World, February 2008
- ^ Roll of Honour (2002), from the official web site Archived March 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Overall results Archived 2005-12-19 at the Wayback Machine, for 2002, from Pindar's website
- ^ The Boats, from the official web site Archived December 31, 2005, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Race Route, from the official web site Archived March 12, 2006, at the Wayback Machine