Transatlantic sailing record
Since the five-week voyage of Christopher Columbus in 1492, crossing the Atlantic Ocean, quickly and safely, between Europe and the Americas has always been an important issue. Today, the route has become a classic one among skippers. The record is one of the most prestigious, next to the Jules Verne Trophy, for which it is often a good preparation.
This record can be achieved both ways: from west to east or from east to west. It can also be homologated single-handed or crewed, on monohulls or on multihulls.
It is homologated, since 1972, by the WSSRC
From west to east
This route is the fastest, as it follows the prevailing westerlies. It is the one that meets the most interest among skippers.The crossing must be made from Ambrose Light of New York to an imaginary line linking Lizard Point, Cornwall to Ushant. The distance is around.
Crewed http://www.sailspeedrecords.com/transatlantic-ambrose-light-tower-to-lizard-point-crewed.html WSSRC transatlantic W-E crewed
Time | Yacht | Skipper | Crew | Date | Average speed |
12d 4h 1m 19s | ![]() | Charlie Barr | 1905 | ||
10d 5h 14m 20s | ![]() | Éric Tabarly | Éric Bourhis, Georges Calvé, Dominique Pipat | 1980 | |
9d 10h 6m 34s | ![]() | Marc Pajot | 1981 | ||
8d 16h 36m | ![]() | Patrick Morvan | Jean Le Cam, Marc Guillemot, | 1984 | |
7d 21h 5m 42s | ![]() | Loïc Caradec | 1985 | ||
7d 12h 49m 34s | ![]() | Philippe Poupon | 1987 | ||
7d 6h 32m | ![]() | Serge Madec | Marc Guillemot | 1988 | |
6d 13h 3m 32s | ![]() | Serge Madec | 1990 | ||
6d 17h 52m 39s | MariCha IV | Robert Miller | 2003 | ||
5d 14h 21min 25s | ![]() | Casey Smith | Stan Honey, Tony Mutter, Dirk de Ridder, Chris Maxted, Jon von Schwarz, Juggy Clougher, Julien Cressant, Nick Dana, Pablo Arrarte, Pepe Ribes, Peter van Niekerk, Phil Harmer, Richard Clarke, Robert Greenhalgh, Shannon Falcone, Yann Riou | 2016 | |
4d 17h 28m 6s | ![]() | Steve Fossett | Stan Honey, Ben Wright, Dave Scully, Gino Morrelli, Peter Hogg, Shaun Biddulph, Dave Calvert, Paul Van Dyke, David Weir | 2001 | |
4d 8h 23m 54s | ![]() | Bruno Peyron | Roger Nilson, Bernard Stamm, Ludovic Aglaor, Florent Chastel, Pascal Bidégorry, Jacques Caraes, Ronan Le Goff, Jean-Baptiste Epron, Yann Guichard, Clément Surtel, Jean-Baptiste Le Vaillant | 2006 | |
4d 3h 57m 54s | ![]() | Franck Cammas | Franck Proffit, Stève Ravussin, Frédéric Le Peutrec, Sébastien Audigane, Yann Guichard, Ronan Le Goff, Bruno Jeanjean, Loïc Le Mignon, Pascal Blouin | 2007 | |
3d 15h 25min 48s | ![]() | Pascal Bidégorry | Ronan Lucas, Kévin Escoffier, Yvan Ravussin, Ewen Le Clech, Sébastien Audigane, Florent Chastel, Jean-Baptiste Le Vaillant, Emmanuel Le Borgne, Marcel Van Triest, Pierre-Yves Moreau, Xavier Revil | 2009 |
Single-handed
Time | Yacht | Skipper | Date | Average speed |
11d 11h 46m 36s | ![]() | Bruno Peyron | 1987 | |
9d 21h and 42min | ![]() | Florence Arthaud | 1990 | |
9d 19h and 22min | ![]() | Bruno Peyron | July 1992 | |
7d 2h 34m 42s | ![]() | Laurent Bourgnon | June 1994 | |
6d 4h 1m 37s | ![]() | Francis Joyon | 6 July 2005 | |
5d 19h 29m 20s | ![]() | Thomas Coville | 15 July 2008 | |
5d 2h 56m 10s | ![]() | Francis Joyon | 16 June 2013 | |
5d 2h 07m | ![]() | Francis Joyon | 13 July 2017 | |
4d 11h 10m 23s | ![]() | Thomas Coville | 15 July 2017 |