A Frenchman at the helm of a "flying yacht" and a kite surfer are locked in a race to become the fastest through the "wind barrier" of 50 knots - nearly 60mph. Alex Caizergues, 29, from Marseilles, made nautical history off the coast of Namibia last week when he broke the record for wind-powered craft by keeping up a speed of 50.57 knots (about 58mph) over 500m with his kite surfboard. A few days before that, Alain Thébault, 45, had reached 52 knots in southern France, albeit over a shorter distance that did not qualify for a record. His craft, the Hydroptère, is a trimaran whose unusual design, he claims, gives it the acceleration of a sports car. The destruction of the "mythical wall" of 50 knots, which Thébault compared to the sound barrier in flying, has been hailed as a great French accomplishment.
A Frenchman at the helm of a "flying yacht" and a kite surfer are locked in a race to become the fastest through the "wind barrier" of 50 knots - nearly 60mph.
Alex Caizergues, 29, from Marseilles, made nautical history off the coast of Namibia last week when he broke the record for wind-powered craft by keeping up a speed of 50.57 knots (about 58mph) over 500m with his kite surfboard.
A few days before that, Alain Thébault, 45, had reached 52 knots in southern France, albeit over a shorter distance that did not qualify for a record.
His craft, the Hydroptère, is a trimaran whose unusual design, he claims, gives it the acceleration of a sports car.
The destruction of the "mythical wall" of 50 knots, which Thébault compared to the sound barrier in flying, has been hailed as a great French accomplishment.
