Racer Sam out of Vendée Globe
Samantha Davies, the only woman in the solo round-the-world yacht race, has been forced to abandon after her mast broke
THE only woman in the round-the-world Vendée Globe solo yacht race, British sailor Samantha Davies, has been forced out of the competition after her mast broke.
Davies, 38, had been in the cabin of her yacht Savéol when she heard the mast fall in the 45-knot winds. She closed the watertight doors and got into her survival suit until the winds dropped and she could get out to examine the damage.
She reported to race control that she was uninjured and at 1.30 this morning was able to get outside and cut free the rigging. She has now started her engine and is motoring to Madeira for repairs.
Davies spoke to her husband, fellow racer Romain Attanasio, in Concarneau with their son, Ruben, this morning and told them what had happened.
She said that she had been caught in winds varying between 40kt and 5kt and with huge waves breaking over the boat. “I was on top of a wave when we just fell off it and I heard the mast go.”
The mast was swinging about in the waves and she feared it would damage the hull so had gone out to cut it free when the winds dropped and the sea calmed.
Race control has alerted all shipping in a 200km area off Madeira to help.
She had just moved up to 13th place in the race, which started last weekend in Les Sables d’Olonne.
The race is currently led by Armel Le Cléac´h on Banque Populaire although he is in a close fight with François Gabart in Macif and Bernard Stamm in Cheminées Poujoulat.
Three other sailors have already left the race, two after hitting fishing boats.
In 2000 British yachtswoman Ellen MacArthur had to climb her mast to mend her sail while racing in the Vendée Globe yacht race and in 2002 Hampshire solo round-the-world racer Emma Richards had to climb the mast to repair rigging.
