An unfortunate breakdown

French skipper YannEliès was skippering the Wolf Rock Lighthouse and leading the race La Solitaire du FigaroThe mast of his boat simplycollapsed while manoeuvring. Eliès speculated a busted lower shroud was to blame. He feared he might drift into the lighthouse and crash into the rocks, but it wasn't. "Now I want to go ashore and have a beer," commented the survivor, adding that this was not how this race had gone from the start. Ian Elis is now on his way to Falmouth to port Cornish. If he can get his sailboat repaired in time, he may even be able to join the second leg of the race in Plymouth on Saturday, albeit with two penalty hours. Last year, a broken boom did not prevent the yachtsman from winning. Could it work this time, too?