A Record Run to Close Out the Crossing
Balance 502 TwinFin has just completed a Cape Town to Grenada passage — and she saved her best for last. On the final leg from Fernando de Noronha to Grenada, with delivery captain Daniel De Klerk at the helm and Colin and Karen aboard, TwinFin logged a 274 nautical mile noon-to-noon run.
274 Miles: How the Day Unfolded
They averaged just over 11 knots with peaks past 12, all under the Parasailor in less than 20 knots of true wind. A consistent 2 to 3 knot current through that stretch helped, but the boat’s pace in light air did the real work.
When the Wind Shifts, the Boat Adapts
The Parasailor went up on a deep reach — almost a dead run — before the true wind progressively backed from 130° all the way to 67° over the period. By the time Colin finished his 0300–0600 watch, Twin Fin was flying the Parasailor on a beam reach and still clicking off the miles. The boat simply adapted to whatever the breeze offered and kept moving.
The Crew Across the Atlantic
Life on the Final Leg
The log fills in the rest of the picture: squalls dodged, the Parasailor dropped and re-hoisted inside an hour when the sky turned, large patches of Sargasso weed to thread (some of it finding the propeller), a mid-ocean swim during one of the calms, dolphins alongside, and Starlink satellites tracking overhead in the pre-dawn dark off French Guiana.
Grenada in Sight
The crew are now in Grenada, taking a well-earned rest after months of watches around the clock. They’ve earned it.
Fernando de Noronha to Grenada | Best noon-to-noon run: 274 nm | Sail: Parasailor | TWS: <20 knots | Current assist: 2–3 knots
