The World Sailing Speed Record Council has officially ratified Lisa Blair’s circumnavigation of Antarctica, a 183 day long journey. Lisa’s solo and unassisted circumnavigation was not short of challenges, with seven meter seas and 40 knot winds leading to the dismasting of her 50-ft yacht, Climate Action Now, just 72 days in.
Lisa avoided injury, but was forced to detour to Cape Town to assess damage and conduct repairs, before returning to her point of dismasting to continue the circumnavigation. In planning for a journey of this magnitude, Lisa considered necessary redundancies that needed to be built into her yacht, opting for two separate B&G H5000 autopilots and Zeus² navigation displays for safety.
Lisa said, “The interface of the B&G Zeus displays made it easy for me to keep track of where I was the whole way around Antarctica. I had one of these displays mounted in my cabin, so as I could check the winds, heading, and alter my autopilot course whilst lying in bed.”
