Hmmm, here we are, a long way from any port let alone San Francisco. All
the boats are in and we are struggling along ducking and diving North
and South in a continuous strategy game to position ourselves for the
next favourable airflow. As mother Nature determines our course all we
can do is make the best of it. Yesterday that resulted in a choice of
action that is very contradictory to the racers that are within us. The
skip stuck his head out of the hatch and yelled (the wind was pretty
high by then): “we need to slow the boat down!” The idea is to let the
weather system overtake us so that we are sailing into favourable wind
flows. Great idea but the the concept of “slowing down” is hard to
fathom when all you have been doing since part C training is to make the
boat go faster. Anyway we are good at slowing down too, we have now
found out. We got our number 3 yankee down, the stormjib up and a third
reef in. The speed dropped from about 10 knots to just under 6 knots and
we changed course to dead East, straight into the big waves. We have
been bumping and banging now for some 20 hours and I think whomever was
still a bit apprehensive about taking the waves straight on the nose
(little mast overboard trauma) is now well and truly re accustomed to
it. The mast by the way still stands proud on Team Finland.
What keeps us going knowing that our friends on the fleet are enjoying
their drinks and each others company and the company of friends and
relatives and we still have roughly 2300 miles to go? Lovely e-mail
from our team members on shore spurring us on and wishing us well, the
desire to have a nice shower, clean and dry socks. (We have no
watermaker so fresh water is under strict control and a fresh water
shower on board is out of the question). The endless list of jobs,
emptying our bilges and the continuity of our watch system and the
occasional joke and moan (no nutella left, no more wet wipes), good
chats about all sorts of things (the influence of eastern philosophy on
the current economic growth and social development in Asia) fresh bread,
good food and a nice hot drink.
I have been on a diet of two glasses of hot milk per day to remain
hydrated. The milk is actually made with milk powder and as long as it
is full fat milk powder this is a fin e alternative to the real thing
and it tastes better than long life milk (UHT). Unfortunately the
anijsblokjes (for the Dutch readers) got water damaged when we lost the
rig and the deck tore open above the locker where they were kept. So,
just milk.
Anyway... less than 2000 miles to go to hopefully sunny California!
