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  • (wake thundering and hissing)

  • - [Narrator] A few years ago,

  • entrepreneur Jim Clark envisioned a boat

  • built purely for speed.

  • A boat so light, so fast,

  • that it would shatter every record it attempted.

  • In 2014...

  • That dream became a reality,

  • with 100-foot monohull, Comanche.

  • - [Ken] It's by almost any measure

  • the fastest monohull in the world.

  • - [Narrator] With her revolutionary design,

  • she has since been dominating

  • the world of professional sailing,

  • blowing competitors out of the water.

  • Now, skipper Ken Read is on a mission

  • to break one of sailing's most prestigious benchmarks,

  • the transatlantic record.

  • - It's one of the holy grails of ocean-going records.

  • - [Narrator] A grueling journey of 2,880 nautical miles

  • from New York to the southern tip of England.

  • The crew's success depends largely

  • on how elite navigator, Stan Honey,

  • can predict, harness,

  • and adapt to the Atlantic's fickle weather patterns.

  • If broken, this record will secure Comanche's place

  • among the most successful racing boats in sailing history.

  • (slow mysterious chiming)

  • - Overview of Comanche is really simple.

  • It's, uh, Jim and Kristy Clark's dream to have

  • the ultimate race boat, the ultimate monohull race boat.

  • - [Narrator] Clark's team analyzed every aspect

  • of the modern monohull, then set out to build

  • the next iteration of racing boats,

  • principally designed to break open ocean records.

  • - [Ken] The build team that we assembled

  • are the best of the best.

  • - There was no expense spared in creating this thing.

  • It's either carbon or titanium.

  • - With the engineering structure,

  • with the use of carbon fiber,

  • with this canting keel mechanism,

  • this boat is literally half the weight

  • of a boat like this, even 10, 15 years ago.

  • - Ken Read, the skipper, and Jim Clark, the owner,

  • gave the designer a very, very clear mission,

  • which was to design and build the fastest possible boat

  • that was legal to enter into

  • the major ocean races around the world,

  • and to, ideally, set the course records for these events.

  • That sort of clarity of objective was, I think, critical

  • to the boat coming out the way it did.

  • - You know, it's meant to make a statement

  • in the sailing world, and you can just tell

  • by its outward appearance, it makes a statement. (laughs)

  • - The level of detail that they take in building these boats

  • then filters down throughout the whole sailing team.

  • - Ken is among the best sailors in the world.

  • He's a commentator for the America's Cup,

  • he's extremely knowledgeable, you know, about sailing,

  • and he's a great skipper.

  • - Ultimately, what I'm pretty good at doin'

  • is getting a compatible group of all-stars

  • from all around the globe,

  • that can actually handle a boat like this.

  • It's like a Formula One car:

  • You let it get away from you, it'll get away from you.

  • - It is a very dangerous boat.

  • Everybody who is onboard this boat

  • either has America's Cup, Volvo Ocean Race,

  • Grand Prix high-end racing background.

  • It's their career; it's their job.

  • - My job, specifically, is really quite easy:

  • I get to sail the coolest boat in the world.

  • I guess, as the skipper of the boat,

  • I'm ultimately responsible for the safety of the crew,

  • the big decisions, you know?

  • I work very closely with Stan Honey, the navigator,

  • on where we position ourselves in the ocean.

  • It's critical, because the navigator and the skipper

  • work together very closely.

  • And then where we overlap and work together,

  • is in the tactic area.

  • - The boat's a 100-foot screamin' machine,

  • that has been built to break every record in the world

  • that we can, and she's on her way to doing that.

  • - [Stan] Once in the water,

  • Comanche went straight for her competitors.

  • - Wild Oats is the boat to knock off,

  • and we're here for a reason, but there's also

  • three or four other really good boats in this event,

  • that could do the same exact thing,

  • so we've just gotta go out and sail well,

  • and let the chips fall.

  • - [Chris] The sheer size of it, it looks different

  • to any other boat out there at the moment.

  • (crowd cheering)

  • - I think it's fair to say,

  • we've got the fastest 100-footer in the world.

  • You saw what it did off the starting line

  • and what it did down that first run,

  • and we were 30 miles ahead when we broke.

  • We love this boat.

  • - [Jim] We've had good luck, racing in those races

  • and setting the records.

  • - This boat's unique,

  • because it's the fastest in the world. (laughs)

  • - [Narrator] With wind in their sails, the Comanche team

  • set their sights on sailing's most prestigious prize,

  • the transatlantic record.

  • - Stan Honey is a legend in our sport.

  • When you think of all the great navigators,

  • Stan is one of those guys right at the top

  • of the list who comes to mind.

  • The amount of work that he puts into it,

  • to make these attempts happen,

  • without him, it wouldn't happen.

  • - So, uh, the transatlantic monohull record is

  • probably the most prestigious sailing record of any.

  • - [Narrator] In 1905, the transatlantic record

  • was first set by the schooner, Atlantic.

  • It took her 12 days and four hours to cross,

  • a benchmark that stood for 100 years.

  • Since then, only four boats have improved on her record.

  • - [Ken] The current project we're setting out to do

  • is to try to set the monohull record

  • for the fastest transatlantic passage.

  • That record is currently set at

  • six days, 17 hours, by Mari-Cha.

  • - Mari-Cha did as well as any boat could do

  • in that tactic, where you're gonna have to use two systems

  • to get across the ocean.

  • So what we were trying to do

  • was to take an entirely different approach,

  • which nobody had ever done before in a monohull,

  • but take a single system all the way across.

  • - You know, he watches the weather, just religiously,

  • looking for all these small little things

  • that might happen.

  • - I had access to 11 years of historical weather data,

  • so I routed Comanche every six hours

  • for each of the last 11 years, from June through November,

  • and what I discovered was

  • that there was only two possibilities per year, on average,

  • where Comanche could stay ahead of a southwesterly storm

  • the whole way across.

  • - You can't take the ocean for granted.

  • This is man against ocean, this is man against the elements.

  • If I've learned anything, you start to just

  • get a little cocky in the ocean and it'll bite you, hard.

  • - [Narrator] July, 2016.

  • Stan Honey spots a moving low in the westerlies,

  • potentially favorable for an Atlantic crossing.

  • Within a day, the international Comanche team

  • is assembled in New York City, waiting for a green light.

  • - It was kind of a cruel turn of fate

  • that it turned out that the perfect weather had evolved

  • at a time when Kenny couldn't join us.

  • - For Ken, it just came at a period where

  • he had a prior commitment with the America's Cup,

  • but that's the nature of weather.

  • - [Narrator] If Comanche launches,

  • Captain Casey Smith will take the helm as skipper.

  • - I'll (expletive) my pants to start with. (laughs)

  • - But at that point, Kenny knew just how hard it is

  • to find these opportunities, and said,

  • "Okay, well, I can't make it, but you guys gotta go."

  • - To be able to be told that,

  • "Hey, you're gonna be the guy in charge,"

  • and I was really, really happy to be in that position

  • and trusted like that.

  • - Casey is an enormously experienced sailor,

  • and he was the boat captain, so he's the guy

  • in charge of moving the boat around between events,

  • so nobody knows the boat better than Casey.

  • - Casey in the pit, Nick Dana at the rig.

  • - The transatlantic was a very interesting one for us,

  • because we had three false starts.

  • You're waiting for that exact window

  • and you have to be ready at any moment,

  • so your life's pretty much on hold.

  • At this point, we're not that confident

  • that this was actually, the one.

  • - We are getting constant information from Stan.

  • - We wanna start as close as we can to the front,

  • but ahead of the thunderstorms,

  • because if the thunderstorms catch us,

  • you guys know what happens.

  • - [Nick] It felt like a bit like launch day for NASA,

  • where you're waitin' for that exact window,

  • and you have to be ready at any moment.

  • - [Stan] This is the...

  • put yourself in harm's way to try to do something

  • that nobody else has ever done before.

  • - [Casey] And then when we pushed off the dock

  • and started motoring out, that's when it really was like,

  • "Wow, we're doin' it, we're gonna go!"

  • Amazing.

  • (tense music)

  • - It's real, it's happening.

  • We positioned ourselves about a mile away

  • from the Ambrose Light, which gives us enough runway

  • to hit the start line at full speed.

  • We had the sail combination that we wanted to use,

  • we had the perfect wind, it was time to let it rip.

  • - [Nick] The acceleration, doing 25 knots to 30 knots,

  • - Honey!

  • Oh, this is perfect, guys.

  • - [Nick] Doing that jump in such a short amount of time

  • can often put you on your butt.

  • - Copy, 16:58.16.

  • - And we came past the Ambrose Light fully lit up.

  • Everyone gave a huge hoot and holler

  • as we went past the start line, and off we went.

  • (wake hissing)

  • (dramatic drum-heavy music)

  • And, it's pretty radical.

  • You've got all the sail area up,

  • you've got all the power in the world you need,

  • so, you know, for a start, you don't want to mess it up.

  • (wake hissing) (dramatic music)

  • - New York's there, England is there, 3,100 miles now.

  • We're gonna knock this bastard off.

  • (thunder rumbles) (wake hisses)

  • - [Narrator] But just as they're off,

  • things take a dangerous turn,

  • as Comanche tangles with a formidable thunder storm.

  • - The worst part of it,

  • the most dangerous part, weather-wise,

  • was actually the first night and that next morning.

  • - We started ahead of a front,

  • and the thunder storms preceding the front

  • came out earlier than expected,

  • and kinda gobbled us up, which was unexpected,

  • and you know, we definitely had to change our plan,

  • adapt on the go,

  • sail a course that we weren't expecting to sail,

  • and the first thing in my mind is,

  • "Is it over?

  • "Are we done?

  • "Are we sailing home and going on standby again?"

  • - [Narrator] For hours, the team battles

  • through the wind and waves

  • of the unforeseen lightning squall.

  • - You know, you can't control the lightning.

  • The lightning does what it wants to do,

  • and so you basically just put that out of your mind

  • and focus on the sailing.

  • You focus on what you can control.

  • - I thought it was over.

  • When the thunderstorms came, I thought it was actually over.

  • But luckily, we were able to find

  • a little narrow bit of breeze, up close to land,

  • and escaped.

  • - And we managed to just wiggle our way out of it

  • and, uh, keep on going.

  • - Well, tough morning, day two.

  • The thunder storms, which were brewed up

  • over the Central America,

  • came out and got us.

  • Now we've popped out the other side,

  • and we're back in the forecast winds.

  • - [Interviewer] Looking good?

  • - So we're heading east at pace.

  • - It's probably closer to a dive expedition.

  • We spend a lot of time underwater.

  • All of our gear is our only line of defense

  • from becoming totally saturated,

  • turning into a giant raisin.

  • - You've got 18 guys onboard,

  • and it's for 5-1/2 days,

  • so it's pretty tight quarters,

  • even though it is a 100-foot boat.

  • You're sharing bunks, sharing bowls,

  • you're sharing water bottles

  • for drinking and everything.

  • - This race we just did a simple four-on, four-off,

  • you know, traditional watch system.

  • - [Casey] That's a challenge in itself, you know,

  • waking up every four hours

  • to come on deck and do your watch.

  • - No, you're off the lock!

  • - [Casey] And then off you go again.

  • You might sleep for three hours out of that

  • when you're down, when you've eaten.

  • - [Nick] If you're lucky, you get your four hours off watch,

  • but you never miss your four hours on deck.

  • - When you're off watch, you gotta do everything else.

  • That's when you gotta do the cooking,

  • do the tidying up, do the eating,

  • and try to get some sleep.

  • The four hours goes by pretty darn quick.

  • - So, you have your helmsmen, who are...

  • They'll drive the boat for two hours.

  • You've got your trimmers of the sails,

  • who are basically the engine, making the boat go fast.

  • - So I'm one of the bright individuals

  • that is on the front of the boat,

  • that's basically taking on

  • a lot of the dangerous situations.

  • Up front, we deal with all the sails going up and down.

  • - [Casey] And then you've got a lot of the guys

  • who are required for the muscles and everything,

  • to pull those sails in.

  • - The more prestigious of the records

  • are set by boats where all of the sail handling

  • is done with human power.

  • - We have six grinding pedestals,

  • so we have to pull any sails up or trim them in.

  • We have 12 guys just going at it,

  • until, you know, the trimmer's happy or, you know, the sail's up.

  • - [Casey] You're working the sails, you're grinding,

  • you're steering, you're always sort of losing,

  • losing, losing, losing against the, the sleep.

  • - [Stan] There's no place I'd rather be,

  • even though, it's a terrible place in a lot of respects.

  • - Oh, I wish I had new boots. (laughs)

  • (wake hissing) (crew chatting)

  • - Being onboard Comanche in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean

  • is something that, you realize how small you are out there.

  • You realize that you're a speck.

  • Personally, I love the silence.

  • You know, when you're flying an airplane across

  • and you look down, you're never gonna see us.

  • It's huge.

  • You know, if we were to lose all communications and everything,

  • you'll have a hard time finding us.

  • - Another thing that you tend to notice early on

  • is how big the ocean is.

  • You know, if you're sailing around the world,

  • you can just sail for day, after day, after day, after day,

  • even on a really fast boat.

  • - You have a lot of time to think, when you're out there.

  • The day slows down a lot.

  • You're living every hour.

  • (water splashing)

  • - It's kinda cool to just disconnect,

  • and you're out there, in the elements,

  • the wind and the waves...

  • It's nothing like it, it's crazy.

  • - You have a lot of time to reflect on

  • everything in your life, but as well,

  • you have a lot of time to appreciate

  • where you are in the world.

  • All of us were

  • definitely captivated by the sea at that point.

  • - It's amazing.

  • - You get the clouds getting lower, and lower, and lower,

  • and the sky turns more and more gray,

  • and then you get this sort of drizzle, as it starts to rain,

  • and that's what we had, all the way across the ocean.

  • Just kind of this gray drizzle.

  • - Things move differently

  • compared to other keeled boats I've sailed on.

  • One minute you're doing 10 miles an hour,

  • and then you blink, and honestly,

  • you're up to 20 to 30 miles an hour.

  • - The thing's a weapon.

  • It just goes forever, and it's not a really short awesome,

  • but things being awesome for days on end.

  • (tense music)

  • - Okay, guys, there's ice contours we're keeping track of.

  • - [Narrator] Day three,

  • Comanche faces its greatest obstacle,

  • navigating through an area known to have icebergs.

  • - There was a very small patch of south-westerly

  • that we had to stay in, and that patch of wind

  • took us right through an area

  • where there was known to be ice.

  • (tense throbbing music)

  • - Couldn't see more than

  • 100-feet in front of the boat.

  • Fully engulfed in fog.

  • You know, doing 20 knots,

  • 100-feet isn't enough warning to avoid the ice.

  • - And it sounds crazy,

  • to have guys on deck keeping a careful watch for icebergs

  • when you can't even see the bow,

  • but a funny thing happens when you get close to an iceberg.

  • The icebergs are just unbelievably white

  • that they appear to glow.

  • You know, you're sailing along and the pea soup fog

  • suddenly gets a little bit clearer,

  • and then a part of the horizon looks funny,

  • 'cause it looks like it's glowing.

  • - The consequence of hitting icebergs

  • is so severe and it's like you just

  • turn it out of your mind.

  • We just can't. You prepare for it, but if it happens, it happens.

  • - On the leeward side of an iceberg,

  • you can get these small bits of ice called growlers.

  • They're too small to see on radar.

  • You know, they're like the size of a pick-up truck.

  • If it hit the boat exactly wrong,

  • it's potential, that it could punch a big enough hole

  • into the boat, so that the boat could sink.

  • - To be fair, it's hard to sleep

  • when you're off watch and go down below,

  • because you know the other watch is going through

  • exactly the same thing, so it's a little bit nervous.

  • Not my favorite part of sailing.

  • I don't like it, yeah.

  • - That's why, when we sleep down below,

  • we sleep with our feet forward,

  • so if you stop suddenly, your feet'll take the impact,

  • not your head.

  • - Hey guys, we're out of the area

  • that there are known to be icebergs,

  • and we've got 20 minutes till we're out of the area

  • where there's any possibility of an iceberg.

  • - Yeah, right now, by the GPS

  • we're at 22 miles, a little over an hour to go.

  • - We knew we were on the pace.

  • We knew that the time was right.

  • (winches ticking)

  • - And a lot of transatlantic records fail

  • right at the finish.

  • Boats get within a hundred mile of the finish,

  • and then they stop, due to the light air.

  • And I knew, once we were 2/3 of the way across,

  • that that wasn't gonna happen,

  • that that low was powerful enough to push that ridge

  • and we were gonna have good breeze all the way in.

  • - [Interviewer] What are you looking for?

  • - Land, yeah.

  • We're looking for the Lizard.

  • Should be on the bow, about 10 miles,

  • can't quite see it yet.

  • - And the finish is off the Lizard Lighthouse

  • in southwest England.

  • - Now! (cheering)

  • - [Casey] Thank you very much, mate, good on ya!

  • (speaking in foreign language)

  • - Essentially, we had crushed the record.

  • - The goal was to improve Mari-Cha's record by a day.

  • We were able to improve it by one day, three hours.

  • We pioneered a completely new tactic,

  • which is the tactic of doing it in a single system.

  • And it was just barely possible to do that

  • with a boat like Comanche, and I don't think

  • it would have been possible

  • with a monohull that was any slower.

  • - This boat was built to do that.

  • It did it.

  • We're all very happy.

  • - It's such a special thing,

  • to be able to break this transatlantic record.

  • Huge thanks to the weather gods

  • to allow us to do it, as well,

  • 'cause that what it really took.

  • - I'm happy, I'm tired! (laughs)

  • - I think, for everyone in the crew

  • it was something they're real proud of,

  • because these records live forever.

  • - [All] Hooray!

  • - A record like the transatlantic record

  • is one of the most prestigious events in all of sailing.

  • Even if somebody beats our record,

  • it'll always show that Comanche took one day, three hours

  • off the previous one.

  • (laid-back synthesized music)

  • (fireworks whistling and cracking)

(wake thundering and hissing)

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