Adventure Travel

Tag: Race

French skipper Clarisse Cremer smashes the Vendée Globe women’s record by seven days

Clarisse Cremer broke the women’s record for the Vendee Globe round-the-world race when she completed the solo event in just over 87 days.

The 31-year-old French skipper finished the race in 87 days 2 hours and 24 minutes, smashing Ellen MacArthur’s previous mark of 94 days and 4 hours set in the 2000-01 race.

“I’m so happy to be here. It’s a big relief, we were stressed until the end,” she said on the race website. “I’m happy to have succeeded and to be back with my team. This welcome is incredible, I feel like I am dreaming.

“There were times when I wished I had pushed harder on the machine, but the goal was to finish.”

Source » France 24

French sailor Yannick Bestaven wins round-the-world Vendée Globe race

George Ramsay, CNN »

French sailor Yannick Bestaven was declared the winner of the round-the-world Vendée Globe race on Thursday following his role in the rescue of a fellow competitor.

Bestaven was the third sailor to cross the finish line in Les Sables d’Olonne, France, but a jury awarded him a time compensation of 10 hours and 15 minutes for helping to rescue stricken competitor Kevin Escoffier earlier in the race.

Escoffier was forced to abandon his yacht off South Africa’s Cape of Good Hope in November and spent more than 11 hours in a life raft. He was eventually rescued by Jean Le Cam, the nearest competitor to the scene.

Bestaven, skipper of Maître CoQ IV, achieved a finishing time of 80 days, 13 hours, 59 minutes and 46 seconds after his role in the rescue operation was taken into account.

 

Meet Michael Inuarak, the young musher, as he prepares to take part in the annual Nunavut Quest

For the past weeks, 22-year-old Michael Inuarak has been preparing for the gruelling, annual weeklong Nunavut Quest traditional dog sled race where competitors traverse an unforgiving sea of ice and tundra.

This year, the race starts in Inuarak’s hometown of Pond Inlet and ends more than 300 kilometres away in Arctic Bay.

Kieran Oudshoorn, writing for the CBC:

“I love the race. It’s a very exciting time,” said Inuarak.

“There was one time when my dogs were running after a polar bear and I had no rifle. So I was sweating and trying to avoid the polar bear as much as I can.”

The last three times Inuarak participated in the Quest, he placed third — an impressive feat for such a young musher.

Inuarak is proud of how well he did, but hopes he will do better this year.

“I’m not worried. I’m just a bit nervous because of all the fast racers who are going to be ahead of me. And I’m not using as [many] dogs as I normally do.”

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‘The Great Alone’ documentary

This multi award-winning documentary explores the comeback of Lance Mackey, champion dog musher, in one of the most unforgiving regions of the world.

The Great Alone explores Mackey’s troubled youth, family history, how he overcame adversity and setbacks, and how second chances shaped him into a one of the great sled dog racers.

The Great Alone:

The Great Alone is a feature length documentary shot in the arctic wilderness of Alaska that captures the inspiring comeback story of champion sled dog racer, Lance Mackey. From his sunniest days as a boy by his famous father’s side to cancer’s attempt to unseat him, The Great Alone pulls viewers along every mile of Lance’s emotional journey to become one of the greatest sled dog racers of all time.

Awards:
Grand Jury Award – Seattle International Film Festival
Grand Jury Award – Banff Mountain Film Festival
Grand Jury Award – La Costal Film Festival
Audience Award – Flixx Film Festival
Audience Award – Homer Documentary Film Festival
Best Exploration & Adventure Film – Banff Mountain Film Festival
Best Score – Flixx Film Festival
Best Sports Documentary – Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival

Currently on Netflix.