thedailychannel.com — recommended books

Godforsaken Sea: Racing the World's Most Dangerous Waters
by Derek Lundy

A thoughtful telling of the gripping story of the 1996 - 1997 Vendee Globe solo round-the-world race through the Atlantic and the Southern Ocean.

In August of 1997, just fourteen intrepid ocean racers set sail from Les Sables-d'Olonne on the western coast of France. Guiding 60-foot boats designed specifically to surf down building-sized waves at 25 knots or more, they headed south, to an ocean so remote that rescue in the event of mishap would be all but impossible.

In such an ocean, frequently combed by storms, fifty-foot waves stretching from one horizon to the other are commonplace. Icebergs and invisihble growler bergs float north in the Austral summer. Mishap is a virtual certainty.

So join Parlier, Auguin, Bullimer, Dinelli, Pete Goss, Isabelle Autissier, Catherine Chabaud, Gerry Roufs

as they prepare for the race (in some cases not enough preparation), get hit by the first big storm, get knocked down, climb their masts in freezing blizzard, capsize, hit floating ice and other flotsam and jetsam, run low on drinking water, get deafened by the noise, carry out miraculous rescue, carry on despite disqualification, return to Sable Des Olonnes and mourn those who did not make it back.

So contact your backers, raise some money for the race, visit amazon.com and set sail for the Southern Ocean

 

reviewed January 9, 2000