Negotiator, the Class I (16 litre) Lamborghini-powered catamaran driven by Chris Parsonage and co-driver James Sheppard, set a new record for circumnavigating the Isle of Wight with a time of 32 minutes 22 seconds on August 28, representing an average speed of 111mph.
Negotiator, the Class I (16 litre) Lamborghini-powered catamaran driven by Chris Parsonage and co-driver James Sheppard, set a new record for circumnavigating the Isle of Wight with a time of 32 minutes 22 seconds on August 28, representing an average speed of 111mph. He became the first person to exceed a 100mph over for the 59.84 statute mile course smashing the July 2001 record of 43 minutes by a huge margin.
Negotiator set off from Egypt Point west of Cowes in an anti-clockwise direction watched by thousands of spectators. Its performance in the Solent was restricted to a speed of 90mph in the interests of safety but once clear of the Needles was allowed to fully open up touching a top speed of 138mph on the seaward side. Calm sea conditions proved ideal for the attempt.
“Once we left the Solent there was no stopping us,” said an elated Parsonage after the run. “Had we not been restricted in the busier areas of the Solent I guess we could have set an even faster time.”
The record is likely to stand for some considerable time and if future bylaws limit high speeds in the Isle of Wight area, may remain unbroken.
