List of speed sailing records

500 metre records

Class records

Last updated: 19 November 2012.

Nautical mile records

Day's run

A Day's run is the distance traveled by a vessel in one day, normally measured from noon to noon. This was the traditional measure used in the days of packet and clipper ships and varied in the actual time dependent on whether the vessel was sailing east or west. The records certified by the WSSRC since 1994 are based on a 24-hour distance measure irrespective of longitude.

24 hour distance record

Note that the nineteenth century records are not strictly compatible as they measure a "Day's run" which was measured noon to noon regardless of longitude. The two entries above were both eastbound and therefore less than 24 hours.

Notable performances

During her Jules Verne Trophy record in 2011-2012, the Banque Populaire V skippered by Loïck Peyron covered 811.70 nautical miles in 24 hours on 3 December 2011 at 11:45 UT, posting 28 days over 600 miles, including 9 days over 700 miles and 1 day over 800 miles.

During her Jules-Verne trophy record in 2009-2010, the trimaran Groupama 3 skippered by Franck Cammas covered 798 nautical miles in 24 hours on 13 February 2010 at 5 p.m. UT, showing 17 days over 600 miles, including 10 days over 700 miles.

During her Jules-Verne trophy record in 2016-2017, the trimaran Idec sport in the hands of Francis Joyon and his crew of Clément Surtel, Alex Pella, Bernard Stamm, Gwénolé Gahinet and Sébastien Audigane, covered 894 nautical miles in 24 hours, and 10 consecutive days at 809 miles / 24 h. Francis Joyon rounds Cape Horn, 16 days after riding off of South America, and after a course of nearly 12,000 miles above an average of 30 knots (730.16 miles / 24 h over 16 days). He then signs a performance increase of between 30 and 40% compared to the record to be broken by Loïck Peyron 5 years earlier. Leaving the southern seas with a lead of 4 j 06 h 35 min over Loïck Peyron's previous record, Francis Joyon, Clément Surtel, Alex Pella, Bernard Stamm, Gwénolé Gahinet and Sébastien Audigane regained the equivalent of 2,800 miles on the record during this episode.

During the aborted attempt of 2019, Yann Guichard sets a new record crossing the equator in 4 days 19 h 57 min and, thanks to favorable weather conditions, lines up 4,812.1 miles from the 11th to 16th day, or 802 miles / day for 6 consecutive days.

24 hour distance record for Armel Le Cléac'h on Banque Populaire VII: 682,85 miles in 24 hours singlehanded on 26 January 2014 (28,45 knots).

During his record around the world Singlehanded in 2017, 24 hour distance record for François Gabart on Macif: 850,68 miles in 24h.

During his attempt for the Jules Verne Trophy on 5 December 2020, Thomas Coville on :fr:Sodebo Ultim 3 covered 889.9 miles in 24 hours (37.1 knots average, top speed 48.9 knots).

During his attempt for the Jules Verne Trophy on 21 December 2024, François Gabart on SVR-Lazartigue covered 892.2 miles in 24 hours (37.2 knots average, top speed over 50 knots).

During the return trip after his victory in the 2021 Transat Jacques-Vabre, Charles Caudrelier broke two unofficial records on the :fr:Maxi Edmond de Rothschild: in false solo training, he reached 50.7 knots, and covered 880 miles in 24 hours at an average speed of 36.6 knots. This last record cannot be approved for a lack of adequate equipment on board.

124 hour Boston Teapot record

The Boston Teapot Trophy is an annual award given by Sail Training International to a sail training vessel that covers the greatest distance under sail within a 124-hour period. A vessel must have a waterline length exceeding 30 feet (9.14 m) with a majority of the crew under 25 years of age.

The Guinness World Records officially acknowledged Statsraad Lehmkuhl's record in 2016.

The top five distances recorded since the start of the race in 1964 have been :

Instantaneous speed record

The idea of an instantaneous speed record is not officially sanctioned by the WSSRC and is, therefore, not officially measured or documented. The highest speed ever reported is from the crew of Vestas Sailrocket 2 : on 24 November 2012 they recorded a top speed of 68.33 knots in a 25–29-knot wind.

Previously, the highest speed ever reported was from the crew of l'Hydroptère. During an attempt on 21 December 2008 at Port-Saint-Louis-du-Rhône, they recorded a top speed of approximately 61 knots (speed not verified or registered on any onboard instrumentation) during a 45 knot gust of wind. This heavy gust of wind overpowered the sailboat, causing it to capsize at high speed. The crew sustained only minor injuries.

"Sovereign of the Seas", 1852, 258 ft, the fastest and longest ship yet built when she was launched in New York, designed and built by Donald Mackay, America's foremost clipper designer. On her maiden voyage, she sailed New York to San Francisco in 103 days. This ship achieved the fastest ever recorded speed of a sailing vessel (22 knots).

Notable people

• Farrel O'Shea (born 1963), former professional windsurfer

Notes

|access-date= 14 December 2021

References

1. {{usurped
2. Lubbock, Basil. (1921). "The Colonial Clippers". Glasgow, James Brown.
3. "WSSRC Records - 24 Hour Distance".
4. [http://www.fralo.info/jv08.html Trophy Jules-Verne, Partials and statistics]
5. "WSSR newsletter No 239. Banque Populaire 7. Singlehanded 24 hours. 28/02/14".
6. "WSSR Newsletter No 296. MACIF. Singlehanded 24 hour record 07/01/18".
7. "La cartographie du Trophée Jules Verne".
8. "''summary December 20-21-22 2024, 37,2 knots for 24h''".
9. (25 November 2021). "2021: Clap de fin pour le Gitana Team".
10. "Sail Training International Annual Awards". STI.
11. "Fastest racing tall ship". Guinness World Records Ltd.
12. (30 November 2016). "Bergen’s Tall Ship sets speed record". NewsInEnglish.no.
13. "The Boston Tea Pot Trophy". National Institute for Sea Training.
14. (9 October 2020). "Se cumplen 54 años de la primera vez que la fragata ARA “Libertad” obtuvo el trofeo “Boston Teapot”".
15. [https://valenciasailing.blogspot.com/2008/12/lhydroptre-capsizes-after-reaching.html 61 knots for l'Hydroptère]