Coville record attempt slips in fickle conditions

(January 20, 2014; Day 3) French skipper Thomas Coville’s descent south in the Atlantic towards the equator will need to straighten if he hopes to gain on the solo around the world record set by Francis Joyon (FRA) in Jan. 2008. Now 182 miles behind as of Jan. 20 23:45 TU, Coville has been forced to cope with unstable wind off the Canary Islands, wrestling the sails of his 31m maxi-trimaran Sodebo to maximize performance. His next task is to find a path past Cape Verde islands, just under 500 miles ahead. Team website.