Dame Ellen MacArthur is to make two bids to sail into the trans-Atlantic record books later this year. Challenge 1 Having narrowly missed out on setting a new record for sailing west-east across the Atlantic in 2004, she's hoping to make her second attempt on the solo record from New York (USA) to Plymouth (UK) on board her 75-foot trimaran B&Q. Ellen will go on standby for the trip from 1st September and will need to cross the ocean in less than the 7 days, 2 hours, 34 minutes, 42 seconds set by Frenchman Laurent Bourgnon in June 1994. Last year, she missed that decade-old record by just 75 minutes.
 | | Ellen at the helm in the Southern Ocean |
MacArthur said: "We need to have a pretty perfect weather window to have any chance of breaking this very fast record. Last June we were forced south of the route and had to sail more miles than Laurent, in the end too many to break his record. "We are under no illusions as to how big this challenge will be. The timing of departure will be critical, everything will have to go right, the weather, the boat and there will not be room for mistakes." And the fastest round-the-world solo sailor believes this quest could be her toughest yet. "A lot of people say 'Oh you've been around the world, what's the point of doing the trans-Atlantic?'", she said. "But that's not reality. The reality is you have to work that much harder to break the trans-Atlantic record, albeit just for seven days. "If you lose time, you haven't got much time to catch up. "It's the difference between a marathon and a sprint." Challenge 2 And as if sailing across the Atlantic once insn't enough in a year, Ellen is also to compete in the Transat Jacques Vabre.
 | | Roland Jourdain |
Ellen will temporarily step off B&Q to step on board the Open 60 monohull Sill et Veolia to compete in the challenge as she partners Frenchman Roland Jourdain. The 4,340 mile race that departs the French port of Le Havre to Salvador de Bahia in Brazil starts on 5th November and takes approximately 16-18 days. Roland Jourdain has competed in five Transat Jacques Vabre races and is a double winner of the monohull Open 60 division, claiming victory in 1995 with Paul Vatine and in 2001 with Gaël Le Cléac'h. Ellen has competed in the Transat Jacques Vabre three times finishing in 6th place in 1999, 2nd place in 2001 with French skipper Alain Gautier on board the trimaran Foncia and in 2003, again with Gautier, but only managing 9th place after suffering major halyard problems. | 
