American Steve Fossett arrived on the Island yesterday after lopping nearly 13 hours off the record for the fastest crossing between Newport and Bermuda.

Fossett, a 54-year-old millionaire from Chicago driven by an unquenchable thirst for adventure, sailed past the finishing point off St. David's at 5.17 a.m., 40 hours and 51 minutes after his departure from Rhode Island.

Fossett did not so much break the record as set a whole new standard -- and he did it sailing his 60-foot trimaran Lakota single-handed.

Jean-Pierre Mouligne set the previous record of 53 hours and 46 minutes in his 50-foot customised sloop Cray Valley in November, 1996.

And the record time for the biennial Newport-to-Bermuda race, which multihulls like Lakota are not allowed to enter, was also set three years ago, 57 hours and 31 minutes, clocked by the 80-foot maxi-yacht Boomerang .

Fossett, after bringing his boat into port at St. George's, said he had picked his moment to leave when the weather, with a cold front pushing off the east coast of the United States, would be most favourable to his chances of a rapid crossing.

"It was a good weather forecast but I was afraid that the winds would die when I got down close to Bermuda, but there was still enough wind to sail right to the finishing line,'' he said.

"There was some hard sailing but never anything I was worried about. There was a fair amount of sailing in 25-knot winds and you have to stay on your toes when you're going that fast.'' He added that there had been no nerve-racking moments -- but with no crew he had been constantly busy as he looked to capitalise on the strong winds and there had been little time for rest.

"There was a lot of work. I counted 10 sail changes during the trip. I got about an hour of sleep the first night and nothing the second night,'' he said.

Fossett has a penchant for record-breaking and last year he and Lakota made the fastest crossing in the 20-year history of the 2,120-mile Singlehanded Transpac race -- seven days, 22 hours and 38 minutes.

But ironically, it was persistent failure which made him famous, in the form of his five unsuccessful attempts to make the first complete global circumnavigation in a hot-air balloon.

Asked why he had targeted the Newport-to-Bermuda record, he said: "It is an important record in sailing, I think. Last winter I was trying to think of some interesting things to do with Lakota and I thought this would be an interesting project -- to beat the record and to do it single-handed.'' And his achievement in slashing the record figures by a quarter had not surprised him.

"The plan was always to do it in 42 hours and the question was whether I would get good enough winds to do it and fortunately the winds were very good for this trip,'' added Fossett.

Though he clearly has a daredevil streak, Fossett does not come over as the swashbuckling character that one might imagine him to be.

Instead, his reaction to adding another record to his collection yesterday, suggested a down-to-earth type who is unlikely to get over-excited -- useful characteristics in the kind of life-threatening situations in which he has often put himself.

His straightforward explanation for the motivation behind his love of dangerous activities was typical. "It's very interesting and it's fun to do these kinds of projects,'' he said.

Fossett added that his wife Peggy put up with his jaunts without worrying too much: "She knows that's what I enjoy doing, so she's very supportive.'' Having spent most of yesterday catching up on sleep, Fossett intends to spend the weekend relaxing on the Island before flying home.

Record-breaker: A jubilant Steve Fossett gives the thumbs up sign after his record-breaking crossing from Newport to Bermuda. Below: The trimaran Lakota moored in St. George's Harbour after its arrival early yesterday morning.