Crew Blog

Things we forgot?

08 May 2008

Now the race is over it is hard to believe it is day 15 at sea, (where did all those days go?) Being on a watch system you only know when you are going back on again and how much sleep you can get in between, and as the weather has progressively got hotter so sleeping has become a lot harder.

As an avid Formula One fan I can now see the complex thought and decisions that the team have to make is crucial to the outcome of the race. Which tyres do you use (sail) when do you bring them in for new tyres, when do we decide to change the sail or gybe,
are the sails trimmed right for more speed, same as the aerodynamics on an F1 car, where will the finish line be? All these things only add up to small amounts but make a big difference in the end. Having spent most of the race with Glasgow on our heels one wrong mistake or decision and they could sail straight past you.

Our routine has changed now as we motor to Panama and all the crew work together as one rather than split into watches. Work in the morning in the cooler air doing as much repair work and cleaning that is possible at sea, then the afternoon to ourselves, with almost a full night’s sleep.

It has come to our attention that a couple of essential items have been missed off the boat. Having looked in vain for two days now we cannot find the air conditioning unit to repair it as we were told it had just broken. Also the ice making machine seems to have been left off the boat as well. Perhaps these will be waiting at Panama? We have now however managed to turn the snake pit into a jacuzzi and rigged up a gym, The skipper keeps reminding us that this is not the QE2. There is one thing we have kept to is Pimm’s in the afternoon and as it is Pimm’s o’clock now I will be off to sit in the deck lounge.

Paul Kerby
“Far Away”