[manuel_w]

> around-the-world

Not to dimish their perfomance, but still worth noting that they are taking the curves as tightly as anyhow possible. Which is okay, I guess, it's a race after all.

    https://www.vendeeglobe.org/themes/custom/front/dist/assets/112114cd193fee4caebf.webp
    https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/what-vendee-globe

edit for those on screen readers: The links show the route of that race, which is from France down to south pole, around it, and back up to France. This race is not "along the equator" as some might read "around the globe".

[Tepix]

There's a continent in the way... </snark>

[tzs]

There is a reasonably circular path you could take to sail around the world. Just sail near the edge of what is visible in this view [1].

https://www.google.com/maps/@-31.0010223,-173.4498925,3.01z

[s1artibartfast]

"around the world" is a fairly arbitrary definition using around the rotational axis as the criteria. If pesky antarctica werent there you could sail around the the world in a very small amount of time. The record would be determined by the turning radius of the boat.

This is of course ok, given that any other criteria would be equally subjective.

[hervature]

That's the current course and the subject of the debate. The point is Tierra del Fuego (the southern tip of South America) is very close to Antarctica and so that circumnavigation is very short.

[ramraj07]

But isn’t this true no matter how pedantic you want to get? You’re still gonna have to go around the world in a fairly southern latitude…

[carlosjobim]

The minimum distance should be the planet's circumference.

[ilikepi]

Good news, the Earth's circumference is around 40,000km, and the actual distances sailed by each of the competitors in the most recent Vendee Globe were all around 50-51,000km. So they all exceed your requirement.

[carlosjobim]

The trail should also look pleasing to the eye. So I'll have to invent a new arbitrary rule.

[s1artibartfast]

Why is that? It seems as arbitrary as circumnavigating a rotational axis and returning home.

[moffkalast]

Ok that's complete bullshit, they might as well use the Falklands as a home base so they're "technically" doing a circumnavigation while starting and ending in the UK lmao.

Going through Panama, the Phillipines and back through Suez honestly seems way better. Aside from the part where they get shot and killed off the coast of Somalia of course.

[quickthrowman]

The official website says this route can be around 28,000 miles and the distance around the equator is 24,300 miles.

The route is chosen due to an unobstructed path ‘around the world’ in the Southern Ocean.

https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en/what-vendee-globe

[moffkalast]

And you could also sail for 30k miles in a 10 mile circle and it wouldn't be called circumnavigating anything. It's not about the distance, it's about the places.

[kennethwolters]

fair point!