File:INSV Mhadei sailing with the spinnaker in 20 kts of wind.jpg

English: Mhadei Cape2Rio2017 Indian Naval Sailing Vessel Mhadei undertook her fastest voyage under sail across the South Atlantic ocean during the Cape to Rio Race 2017. The boat was helmed by Captain Atool Sinha, and crewed by Commander K R Binoy and Lieutenants Swathi P, Sanjay Satyapal, Nitin Prakash and Payal Gupta. The Cape to Rio race is the biggest transatlantic inter-continental oceanic race sailed from Cape Town to Rio De Janeiro covering a distance of about 3,800 Nm or around 5,500 Kms. This ocean sailing race is a grueling test of human endurance and perseverance and an ultimate test of sailing skills to battle the elements of sea and it’s wrath. Team Mhadei were tested for their grit, perseverance and sailing abilities immediately from the start which saw winds up to 30 kts. The rough sea conditions with sea states up to six, winds gusting to 45 kts and swell as high as six meters was a matter of routine, for the first seven days of the race where the crew had to put in their best and remain cautious and conservative to prevent any breakage or damage. Mhadei finished the race in a record time of twenty days, twenty hours and twenty eight minutes defeating four boats which had started six days earlier, and setting a new Indian sailing record of crossing the South Atlantic Ocean, and its crew becoming the ‘Fastest Indians’. This year a total of twenty three boats from nine countries competed.