It’s not quite a yacht as most of us would recognise it, but Yachting World reports that ‘Simon McKeon’s wing sail machine’ has sailed at 50.07 knots over a 500m.

This isn’t quite as fast as the outright world speed record for wind powered vehicles which is currently held by a kiteboard sailor, Alexandre Caizergues, who acheived 50.57 in October last year (2008), but it is very impressive and a significant breakthrough for the team.

For those of us who sail ‘normal’ boats 50 knots (~ 58mph or 93kmh) seems like an incredible speed. I know what it feels like to sail a yacht at around 10 knots, but what is it like to travel 5 times as fast?

Maybe I’ll never find out, but as a comparison for you, 50 knots on the Beaufort scale is a force 10, and I don’tknow many sailors who would choose to go out in those conditions!