FALMOUTH yachtswoman Susie Goodall remains safe and secure as she awaits rescue from her Rustler 36, DHL Starlight.

The only woman competing in the Golden Globe Race 2018 was running fourth when disaster struck.

Susie's boat pitchpoled and dismasted in the Southern Ocean 2,000 miles west of Cape Horn yesterday (December 5).

Chilean rescue authorities have tasked the 38,000 ton Hong Kong-registered bulk carrier MV Tian Fu, which is due to reach Susie at 5am tomorrow (December 7).

Adrian Jones is the co-owner of Rustler Yachts in Falmouth, which built the original boat and then refitted it for Susie's entry into the solo round-the-world race.

He said: "It's a boat we built 18-20 years ago and it's an incredibly tough race – but Susie's an incredibly tough woman. Normally a sequence of events has to happen to pitchpole but this was a case of her being in the wrong place on the wrong wave. In truth, she was unlucky."

Overnight weather conditions have moderated but the seas remain challenging. Without a mast, this has made it very uncomfortable.

Adrian said: "The boat itself is sound and will look after her. Everything worked as it should – even though the rig is now missing.

"It's a tough gig. The boats taking part in this race are slower then modern ocean faring yacht. The don't have the speed or manoeuvrability to avoid objects and weather patterns. Modern ocean racing is all about technology and the tracking of weather patterns. The Golden Globe boats are at the mercy of the weather system."

The team at Rustler helped Susie refit the yacht, making it compliant with the retro race rules that define this commemoration of Sir Robin Knox-Johnston's achievement in 1968.

"We are all so sad for her," said Adrian. "We've all been part of the build up. You realise, as you spend time with racers like Susie, what they're taking on. There's a drive that you see in them that's different."

Susie is spending today preparing for evacuation tomorrow. The flooding is now under control and today she will try to coax DHL Starlight's engine to run again, in case she is required to manoeuvre her yacht alongside the ship. She will also ensure that the yacht's liferaft is ready to deploy.

"We know she won't give up, she'll come back for more. Racing is her thing and she deserves a little bit of luck in her next race, whatever it will be. There's a real superstar in her."

It will still be dark when the MV Tian Fu reaches Susie so the rescue operation is unlikely to start until daylight.

Susie has been tweeting her series of events, which were received through satellite text messages.

It became clear that the situation was not good at 9:45am on Wednesday.

She tweeted: “Taking a hammering! Wondering what on Earth I’m doing out here.”

This was followed by an acknowledgement statement made by the Golden Globe Race team, who detailed her situation.

“At 11:00 UTC, we were alerted by UK Marine Rescue Coordination Centre that Susie Goodall’s distress beacon was activated,” @ggr2019official tweeted.

“MRCC Chile is now in charge of this situation. GGR has sent a text message to Susie. It was received, and no further news is available right now.”

Since the update of strong winds, Susie has tweeted:

1:08pm, December 5: “Dismasted. Hull OK. No form of jury rig, total loss.”

1:29pm, December 5: “Interior total wreck. Life raft OK.

1:29pm, December 5: “Nasty head bang as boat pitchpoled. Unbelievably roly now.”

2:17pm, December 5: “Totally and utterly gutted!”

11:14pm, December 5: “This motion is just horrible! Clinging on in my bunk.”

8:23am, December 6: “In need of a cuppa tea! But sadly no cooker.”

8:25am, December 6: “I think time and speed are related.”

12:05pm: December 6: “That was a looong night.”