carwreck.com: around Boston harbor...

Robert Miller and the 23 crew members on board his 140 foot super yacht, Mari Cha IV, re-wrote sailing history when they sailed past Lizard Point, off the south west coast of England, at 11:32:20 BST Thursday to shatter one of the world's most historic and prestigious sailing records - the West to East Transatlantic speed record.

Mari Cha IV set sail from Ambrose Lighthouse, New York, at 17:39:41 BST on Thursday October 2, and completed their 2,925 mile crossing in 6 days, 17 hours, 52 minutes and 39 seconds,* beating the existing record by over two days and giving them their place in the record books as the first monohull ever to cross the Atlantic Ocean in under seven days. Their average speed for the passage was 19.5 knots!

The previous record, held by Switzerland's Bernard Stamm aboard Armor-Lux, stood at 8 days, 20 hours, 55 minutes and 35 seconds and was set in February 2001.

The Mari Cha team had already smashed one record during the transatlantic crossing when they beat the 24 hour distance record on Tuesday, sailing 525.5 nautical miles in a 24 hour period.* They beat the previous record of 484 nautical miles set by John Kostecki's Illbruck in April 2002, becoming the first monohull to ever sail over 500 miles in a day.

Next year, the Mari Cha IV team plans to launch an attempt to become the first monohull ever to sail around the world in under 80 days. The current record held by Michel Desjoyeaux's PRB is 93 days, 3 hours, 57 minutes and 32 seconds. - www.mari-cha4.com

From Scuttlebutt

How do they do this? I am assuming their hull design is revolutionary in some shape or form. Or maybe they jus thas really skinny sailors and lots and lots of sails. What makes that damn ship so speedy?

Here is an article which explains why this boat was able to smash the previous record by so much.

http://www.latitude38.com/LectronicLat/2003/1003/Oct13/Oct13.html#anchor222972

but can they dance the cha cha?