Earthrace heads towards Maui
New Zealand Skipper Pete Bethune has ratcheted up the Earthrace throttles and the 24 metre power trimaran is again running at 22 knots as she thunders towards Hawaii on the 2300 nautical mile leg from San Diego on her round the world speed attempt. 
'Earhtrace closes on Hawaii'
Earthrace
Media
Leaving the throttles open is a big gamble for the team. At first thought it should be easy to calculate how much fuel it takes to reach Hawaii, but if Earthrace encounters inclement weather she won't have the fuel to continue motoring at speed. Last year Earthrace arrived in Hawaii dead empty gasping to reach the docks.
Remember, Earthrace does not wave penetrate downwind. Instead she climbs over the back of a wave and then slowly surfs over the wave top with the engines vibrating in an un-natural manner. The crew looks out the windscreen to open blue sky, while the engine output meters spike into the red zone. Eventually Earthrace crests and drops into the trough to start the cycle again. Big waves are harder to climb and consume more fuel.
If the seas build its possible Bethune could find himself one hundred or even fifty miles short of Hawaii drifting while the clock ticks. Refuelling at sea is strictly forbidden by race rules.
Yesterday Bethune reported they encountered a discarded fish net that wrapped a prop. A mid ocean dive at night cleared the thin filament net but we have to watch this event carefully. A bit of left over net may already be grinding away, below the water line stuck between the shaft and water lubricated cutlass bearing.
This will not be the last of the floating dangers in the coming Earthrace track. The far western end of the Pacific is know to be a downwind repository for floating obstructions the worst of which are fully grown trees.
Last year Earthrace hit so many items after leaving Palau her three bows were mashed inward and a four-meter long gash ran down the starboard waterline. The tear was completely through the outer hull the force so severe it dented the inner hull. The team's onboard engineer was so traumatized from the constant collisions, smashing, raised voices and crash stops that he walked off the boat in Singapore never to race again.
Scott Fratcher was ground team engineer for the first Earthrace record attempt. See Yachtwork.com for Earthrace-First Time Around
by Scott Fratcher 
Macquarie Island, TAS
