Beau Geste in trouble

[Tugboat]

Early reports coming through the race feed on Facebook and in the media that Karl Kwok's maxi Beau Geste has suffered structural damage and withdrawn from the Auckland to Noumea race.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/7042342/Mission-to-rescue-crew-from-stricken-yacht

Hopefully all aboard are safe and remain so!!

 

[Mel]

Definitly hoping they remain safe. Thoughts are with our mates onboard.

 

[Swanno]

30 to 40 knots and 3m swell according to race web page. Sounds nasty.

 

[Mel]

Latest on their facebook page:

10.00pm Monday

All well on board, very bumpy with 30+kts of wind from 050.

Nobody is hanging about in the downstairs lounge of the freight train! There are a few green faces.

The boys feel gutted for Beau Geste and hope they make Norfolk safely.

https://www.facebook.com/sailnoumea

 

[Tugboat]

From the looks of the tracker, Beau Geste looks to be in a different weather system than Vodafone with even stronger breeze.

 

[Tugboat]

4 June 2012 - 10.30pm

The Rescue Coordination Centre New Zealand (RCCNZ) is currently coordinating the rescue of 18 people on board a yacht around 100 nautical miles east of Norfolk Island.

The 24 metre yacht, Beau Geste, is participating in the Auckland to Noumea yacht race.

The skipper of the yacht contacted RCCNZ at 7pm and advised the yacht had suffered damage to its decking and hull and was continuing to deteriorate.

RCCNZ issued a request for assistance from nearby vessels and the cargo ship Winchester Strait has responded and is making its way to the stricken yacht – the captain of the ship estimates they are approximately six hours away.

RCCNZ search and rescue mission coordinator John Dickson said Beau Geste had an experienced crew of racers and that remaining on board the damaged yacht while help arrived was the best course of action at this point.

Mr Dickson said RCCNZ had good communications with the yacht, through its satellite phone.

The yacht is equipped with two ten-man life rafts, in the event the crew needs to abandon ship.

A Royal New Zealand Air Force P3 Orion is also on standby to assist if needed.

No other details are currently available – an update will be provided at 6am.

 

[JL92S]

It will not be the first time beau geste has suffered structural damage recently, apparently in the fastnet they retired due to a crack in the deck

 

[punter]

Not a good week for hong kong boats, one of their boats had to abandoned in the hk to Taiwan race over the weekend as it was taking on water.

 

[MR.CLEAN]

Links in this story include a link to some early structural issues...

breaking bad



The old ORMA 60 Vodafone slipped through a small window in a developing low as she opened a huge lead on the Auckland-Noumea Yacht Race fleet yesterday, but the second-place boat, Karl Kwok’s sexy mini-maxi Farr 82 Beau Geste got caught behind that same system. And last night, New Zealands Rescue Coordination Center got a phone call from the big Beau, reporting that the yacht had suffered damage to its decking and hull and was continuing to deteriorate, and asking for rescue. The boat has been fast since her 2009 launch, but this isn’t the first time there’s been crunching aboard...



A cargo ship has been diverted to rescue the crew, and the RCC has good comms with the yacht via satphone, and a look at the tracker shows that much of the fleet has diverted to Beau Geste – just in case. Race staff are doing a nice job updating the many fans and family via Facebook. And amidst the general worry for the crew, here’s a great story about historic Whitbread maxi Steinlager II and the race. Check the thread for the news as it happens, and join us in sending our thoughts out to our friends on the water. Pic from a couple years back from Sander Van Der Borch.

 

[Tugboat]

Beau Geste and crew have safely made it through the night and are now close to Norfolk Is and accompanied by a boat from the island.

Stricken yacht approaches Norfolk Island

MICHAEL DALY AND MICHAEL FIELD

Last updated 07:45 05/06/2012

LATEST: A 24 metre maxi yacht with 18 crew racing the annual Auckland to Noumea race is nearing safety at Australia's Norfolk Island but authorities there are yet to work out how to make it safe.

Hong Kong flagged Beau Geste issued a distress call last night after its hull and decking began deteriorating quickly.

A relatively new yacht, launched in 2009, Beau Geste is a purpose built racer.

A member of the Australian Federal Police on Norfolk told Stuff early this morning the yacht was near Phillip Island, just to the south of Norfolk.

"It is not too far away, and a local boat is with it," she said.

Norfolk has no safe harbour but she said locals were planning to get the yacht into a reasonably safe anchorage soon.

"The people here are used to this sort of thing."

She said the wind had been strong earlier this morning but it is currently sitting around 19 kilometres per hour, gusting to 33kmh.

The Rescue Co-ordination Centre New Zealand (RCCNZ) said Beau Geste sought help around 7pm yesterday, reporting its hull and decking were damaged and it was in difficulty around 185 kilometres east of Norfolk Island.

Around 3.30am today (NZ time) Beau Geste was joined by a fishing boat which was accompanying the yacht towards shore, RCCNZ said.

Cargo ship Winchester Strait, which had responded to RCCNZ's call for help, was released overnight.

"The Beau Geste is working to get as close to Norfolk Island as possible and they are making good progress," RCCNZ search and mission coordinator Tracy Brickles said.

"The crew will wait for daybreak (around 7am NZ time) to properly assess the damage on board and ideally look to anchor the yacht as close to shore as they can."

A nearby bulk carrier was available to provide shelter to Beau Geste if needed.

Wind and sea conditions were easing, Brickles said.

The crew of New Zealanders, Australians, Chinese, and one American were all safe and well.

Beau Geste is owned by Hong Kong business man Karl Kwok and skippered by former America's Cup helmsman Gavin Brady.

Brady has four America's Cups to his credit along with two Round the World Races.

Beau Geste was designed by Farr Yacht Design and built by Cookson boats in 2009.

It has campaigned in over 92,600 kilometres of yacht racing and is China's most successful sailing team. It took line honours in the Los Angeles to Tahiti yacht race earlier this year.

Its current crew under owner skipper Karl Kwok is listed as Margaret Chan, Bill Low, Gavin Brady, Cameron Ward, David Blanchfield, David Wood, Morgan White, Rodney Daniel, Rodney Keenan, Jim Delegat, Matt Randall, Aaron Reynolds-Lovegrove, Carla Holgate, Keven Batten, Nikolas White, Richard Bearda and Kayne Mulcahy.

Fairfax NZ News

 

[Evo]

crikey....not a lot of safe anchorage at Norfolk. pretty much any change in wind direction and what was safe becomes dangerous very quickly. Big old ocean out there right now. Good luck fellas

 

[Delta Blues]

So, the front didn't fall off?

New meaning to "Chinese Junk?"

So what is it with all "standards" for construction? Are they just general guidelines? Clipping a corner here or there isn't important? Are boats like this built on the bloody side of the bleeding edge of the knife minimizing construction weight, and once they buckle, it's time to throw the boat in the dump? Do designers take it to the bare minimum and not add a safety factor to the tolerances? Why do these boats keep falling apart?

 

[johnnysaint]

So, the front didn't fall off?

New meaning to "Chinese Junk?"

So what is it with all "standards" for construction? Are they just general guidelines? Clipping a corner here or there isn't important? Are boats like this built on the bloody side of the bleeding edge of the knife minimizing construction weight, and once they buckle, it's time to throw the boat in the dump? Do designers take it to the bare minimum and not add a safety factor to the tolerances? Why do these boats keep falling apart?

Where have you been? It's been going on for years. As Ben Lexen said in 1983 "If it don't break, it's too heavy. If it does break, it's not strong enough."

 

[SF Woody Sailor]

I have sailed on previous Beau Geste's, and Karl is a great owner who spares no expense on his programs. Save your criticisms until they are all safe.

My thoughts are with him and the crew.

 

[Somebody Else]

Builder?

 

[One eye Jack]

This looks like the designing of ships.. Before the computer it was ok this will work but we'll add in a little for error.. Now the computer says that this will work..and 99% of the time it will work just fine. I remember going on the sides of ships and they have areas marked push here, and if you didn't push right there, the hull would oilcan. So now we have all of these boats being designed the same way.. And are having some problems with them being built to light..Is it the naval designer? They're just following the computer,and what it recommends..So you can go to the owner and tell them that their boat will be lighter..and still be safe...but it looks more and more like there needs to have a little added for any error... So who's fault is it?the computer program that tells everyone that it will work? The designer, the builder? Or just mother nature?Designers builders and mother nature has been around vessels for years..so it kind of points to one thing..Just my thought.

 

[daskew]

Beau Geste appears to be safely at anchor in a cove south side of Norfolk now. Hopefully everyone is ok.

 

[johnnysaint]

There is some serious weather on the NSW coast that may give them some problems when it gets to Norfolk Is in a day or two.

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Gabo Is is at the SE corner of the mainland. Right under the 993 on the weather map.

 

[DRIFTW00D]

So is Ball Bay the only place with some protection? That island seems to have no ship landing docks? Is that right ?

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