Clipper Route - Modern Use of The Route

Modern Use of The Route

The introduction of steam ships, and the opening of the Suez and Panama Canals, spelled the demise of the clipper route as a major trade route. However, it remains the fastest sailing route around the world, and so the growth in recreational long-distance sailing has brought about a revival of sailing on the route.

The first person to attempt a high-speed circumnavigation of the clipper route was Francis Chichester. Chichester was already a notable aviation pioneer, who had flown solo from London to Sydney, and also a pioneer of single-handed yacht racing, being one of the founders of the Single-Handed Trans-Atlantic Race (the OSTAR). After the success of the OSTAR, Chichester started looking into a clipper-route circumnavigation. He wanted to make the fastest ever circumnavigation in a small boat, but specifically set himself the goal of beating a "fast" clipper-ship passage of 100 days to Sydney. He set off in 1966, and completed the run to Sydney in 107 days; after a stop of 48 days, he returned via Cape Horn in 119 days.

Chichester's success inspired several others to attempt the next logical step: a non-stop single-handed circumnavigation along the clipper route. The result was the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, which was not only the first single-handed round-the world yacht race, but in fact the first round-the world yacht race in any format. Possibly the strangest yacht race ever run, it culminated in a successful non-stop circumnavigation by just one competitor, Robin Knox-Johnston, who became the first person to sail the clipper route single-handed and non-stop. However Bernard Moitessier decided to withdraw from the Race after rounding Cape Horn in a promising Position. Instead of heading home to Europe he decided to continue to Tahiti, completing his circumnaigation south of Cape Town and doing actual one and a half when arriving in Papeete.

Today, there are several major races held regularly along the clipper route. The Volvo Ocean Race is a crewed race with stops which sails the clipper route every four years. Two single-handed races, inspired by Chichester and the Golden Globe race, are the Around Alone, which circumnavigates with stops, and the Vendée Globe, which is non-stop.

In March 2005, Bruno Peyron and crew on the catamaran Orange II set a new world record for a circumnavigation by the clipper route, of 50 days, 16 hours, 20 minutes and 4 seconds.

Also in 2005, Ellen MacArthur set a new world record for a single-handed non-stop circumnavigation in the trimaran B&Q/Castorama. Her time along the clipper route of 71 days, 14 hours, 18 minutes 33 seconds is the fastest ever circumnavigation of the world by a single-hander. While this record still leaves MacArthur as the fastest female singlehanded circumnavigator, in 2008 Francis Joyon eclipsed that record in the trimaran IDEC with a time of 57 days, 13 hours, 34 minutes 6 seconds.