Catamaran Attempts Trans-Atlantic Record

Aug. 9 -- For skipper Cam Lewis and his 14-man crew aboard Team Adventure, the goal is simple: to sail across the Atlantic Ocean faster than anyone else before them.

After waiting all morning for the breeze to fill in, Team Adventurecrossed the starting line at the Ambrose Light Tower, which guards the entrance to New York Harbor, today at 3:03 p.m. ET. Their destination is Lizard Point on the southwest corner of England.

Since the current mark was set in 1990 by a French crew aboard Jet Services V, 23 boats have attempted to break the trans-Atlantic record. All have failed.

Team Adventure has been preparing for the record attempt for several months. It is widely considered to be one of the most daunting challenges in off-shore sailing. The treacherous waters and fickle winds of the North Atlantic have stymied several record attempts.

However, Lewis is skippering a new breed of sailboat — a maxi-catamaran capable of reaching top speeds of nearly 50 miles per hour and featuring dual hulls stretching 110 feet in length. It is roughly comparable to a floating tennis court or an ice hockey rink.

Given the right conditions, team members believe the question isn't whether Team Adventure will break the trans-Atlantic record, but by how much.

"The speed rushes are pretty amazing," says Team Adventure crew member Paul Larson. "The water's going up the back, the noise below decks, the bucking motion of the boat, in all of that you're trying to cook and sleep and do maintenance and keep the human element from falling apart."

"If you can imagine a weeklong NASCAR race where you put a caravan on the back [of the car] and you're not allowed to stop, I think you get a bit of an idea of what you put yourself through," Larson adds.

Danger Loomed at the Race

But, the sheer size and speed of these maxi-catamarans present new dangers for those who sail them — as was learned last winter, when Team Adventure and a fleet of five similar boats were first showcased at an event known simply as "The Race," a non-stop, around-the-world, fully crewed test of speed and endurance.