ENZA and the Jules Verne Challenge

As sailing technology improved and as the multihull community, the French in particular, pushed the limits ever further, thoughts began to turn to just how fast one could sail non-stop around the world. Taking existing performance data into account and overlaying that with the course and distance to sail, a theoretical time of close to 80 days seemed feasible.

Combine that with Jules Verne’s fictional character, Phileas Fogg, and the ingredients of an intriguing race against the clock was born. Blake had long been dreaming of making a record attempt and his plans had been enshrined in the triple Steinlager programme. Because multihull sailing was primarily the domain of the French, Blake ventured into the heart of France to throw down the gauntlet. In October 1992 at the Yacht Club de France in Paris he and British adventurer Sir Robin Knox-Johnston announced a joint bid for the Jules Verne Trophy would start early in 1993.

The New Zealand Apple & Pear Marketing Board, under the trade name Enza, took up the sponsorship and Blake acquired an aged, but very well built catamaran formerly known as Formule Tag. Blake’s challenge was taken up by French sailing ace Bruno Peyron and on January 30, 1993 the Enza catamaran and the French catamaran Commodore Explorer set off from the port of Brest on the French Atlantic coast.

Twenty six days later, south of Cape Town at latitude 41°31’S and longitude 56°E Blake had to radio his support crew ashore to say their attempt had been abandoned. Enza had struck a submerged object and the starboard hull was badly holed. For 16 days, Blake, Knox-Johnston and their crew of five nursed the stricken boat back to Cape Town, pumping the damaged hull every 10-15 minutes. Peyron went on to circle the globe in 79 days, becoming the first to break the magical 80 day mark.

Initially, it seemed this would be a dream unrealised for Blake. He was, by now, committed to an America’s Cup campaign and the logistics of adding another Jules Verne attempt to his workload seemed overwhelming. But, giving up was contrary to Blake’s ethos and, having laid the groundwork for a New Zealand America’s Cup challenge, he announced he would indeed try again.

Blake had to radio his support crew ashore to say their attempt had been abandoned. Enza had struck a submerged object and the starboard hull was badly holed.

Enza was lengthened by 3m and a new accommodation module – later nicknamed the ‘god-pod’ – was built into the centre main beam. The improvement in performance was estimated at 15%.

In January 1994, in atrocious conditions, Enza once again crossed the imaginery startline between the Creac’h Lighthouse on Ushant and the Lizard lighthouse on the other side of the English Channel. On board were Blake, co-skipper Knox-Johnston, along with crewmen Barry McKay, Don Wright, Ed Danby, David Alan-Williams, George Johns and Angus Buchanan. Once again, there was a French rival, Olivier de Kersauson with a giant trimaran Lyonnaise des Eaux Dumez, to make a race of it.

Guided from ashore by American weather guru Bob Rice, Enza made good early progress and after 20 days at sea Blake reported they were passing south of the Cape of Good Hope. “We are a quarter of the way round the world and we are thoroughly enjoying it most of the time,” he told radio listeners in New Zealand.

Just four days later, however, Blake was not enjoying it much at all. Enza had buried its bows into a huge wave, going from 28 knots to a dead stop. Blake was flung across the ‘god-pod’, injuring his back and ribs. For the next eight days he was confined to his bunk and serious consideration was given to making for Australia in case he needed to be helicoptered off.

But, Enza ploughed on opening up a big lead on the French trimaran and tracking well ahead of Peyron’s record time. Down into the Southern Ocean, all the expectations were that the usual westerlies would rocket Enza south of Australia and New Zealand and on to the feared landmark of Cape Horn at the southern tip of South America.

Instead, easterly winds awaited, and Enza had to dive further and further south to find favourable winds.

The planned route was to sail west in the Roaring Forties, between latitudes 40°S and 50°S, the historic ocean highway that carried the giant clipper ships around the world a century earlier. Instead, for 11 days Enza sailed below 60°S, dodging ice-bergs and enduring freezing conditions. No multihull had ever ventured this far south before. Swathed in foul weather gear and with ski-masks protecting their eyes, the crew kept driving the boat hard to the west, but 24-hour ice watches had to be maintained, which meant stationing crewmen on the bow in endless 30-minute rotations.

Then, on the approach to Cape Horn, the Southern Ocean again dealt a nasty hand. A vicious gale, the worst Blake had seen in four Horn roundings, threatened to drive them even further south and fears mounted that they might be driven onto the shore of the Antarctic Peninsula. Although survival, rather than record-setting, became the main priority, there was great concern that the de Kersauson and his trimaran had escaped the contrary weather and made up 1000 miles.

Out into the Atlantic at last, Enza opened up its lead again and the record was tantalisingly close. But, the worst of the weather still lurked ahead. A menacing North Atlantic storm was building across their path. As storm-force winds and waves pounded the English Channel, the French ports were closed and all ferry sailings cancelled.

In mountainous seas, Enza was at risk of being pitchpoled and, even with all sail down was careering along too fast. To maintain control, the crew had to deploy a drogue made up of anchor chain and long warps cast in a loop from each transom. Blake described the closing stages of the Enza bid as “the worst 24 hours of my life”, but at last, still streaming the drogue behind them, Enza crossed the finish line on April 1, 1994.

Arriving to a tumultuous welcome in France, the Enza crew were hailed as heroes. They had survived atrocious conditions to beat de Kersauson by two days and set a new record of 74 days 22 hours and 17 minutes around the world. In a life filled with superlatives, this remained one of Blake’s most cherished achievements.

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