Race 9 - Day 23
Crew Diary - Race 9 Day 23: Qingdao to Seattle
15 April

Welcome back Dare To Lead readers. When we left Qingdao we had an estimated arrival window into Seattle of 14-19 April... so when I saw the blog rota and my name down for today's log (14 Apr) I have to admit to crossing my fingers that we would have already arrived. Alas, Mother Nature had her own ideas and we still have approx 1,200nm to travel, including an Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint – a cruel twist to what has been an epic voyage thus far.

A lot has been written about the challenging conditions we have faced recently out here, some of which I copy below as they speak for themselves and so eloquently describe what it has been like.

Dale – skipper of DTL wrote - So let me paint a picture. Outside its blowing a solid 50 knots and gusting 70-75 in the hail squalls. The temperature is sub zero. The sea state is massive and regularly breaking. We Just hit a top speed of........wait for it 32.8 knots!!!! This is where you tread lightly and feel like a gazelle running between a pride of lions. Safety is top priority, we stopped "racing" 24 hours ago. On the flip side, this is my drug, my passion, the reason I sail. The scene outside could not be captured in a million frames or painted on a million canvasses. Your weekend yachtsman will never see nature unleashed like this. This is what makes us human, risk and reward. These wild ocean vistas get tattooed on your soul.

Dave – skipper of GB wrote - Waves the size of houses would be too cliché to try and describe the sea state. To me they are more like pursuing creatures, charging down on us as they raise in height, stimulated by some mythical wave charmer, to envelope and then consume the GREAT Britain boat. They are constantly changing shape, morphing from one being to another. Then at the point they reach the transom, they change again, into streams of lava type substance, forming instant valleys, long escarpment and distant mountain ranges. These lava streams, are not the fiery red or bible black of the volcanic earth. These are dark, dark formal grey, with patches of diamond blue thrown in. Topped with white streaming lace as the tops break and turns into a film of spindrift that looks like a layer of steam, covering the surface. Each wave is made up of thousands of smaller ones, like a molecular structure each one with its own individual identity. The power and enormity of the sea state, triggers feelings of isolation, and our vulnerability, while simultaneously giving us an exclusive insight to the power of nature. It is an amazing experience, the boats on the fleet will be having similar experiences, but Mother Nature at the moment is giving the GREAT Britain crew our own spectacular show, there is no one here but us to witness it.

Rob – skipper of NASDAQ wrote - There is a savage beauty to the seascape under those conditions - dark blue waves covered with blown white spume, and a translucent icy blue crest in the moments before they break. The sound and sensation of that much wind roaring through the rigging is overpowering. It would be impossible to be out here and not feel awed by the forces of nature surrounding us on our insignificant little boat.

A couple of days on and today's 30 knots seems like a gentle breeze, the experience has truly taken a few days to sink in. Just quietly I was hoping to be challenged during this leg, so when the first week was more akin to being in the tropics I really did wonder for a period... but Mother Nature has now definitely turned up to the party in a big way as described above, Wow, “Hurricane” strength winds and sea state officially "Phenomenal" (that's >14m (>45') tall). Now processing events; having been on the bow as we downsized headsails as the low-pressure system approached; having been knocked from my feet and washed into the cockpit in the dead of night by an unsighted rouge wave (we were all double tethered) and having my life-jacket explode into action (it was like bodysurfing and being dumped by a wave onto a sandbank and being held underwater in a washing machine); having briefly helmed in 65+ knots and with the boat travelling above 20 knots; having now been wet and cold for two weeks; having been physically exhausted from sail changes and with days of broken sleep I can definitely say that my expectations have been met and exceeded. I have been awed, I have been challenged, I have witnessed the courage of my fellow crew as we all stared down our fears.

Today is Mr Neil's birthday and he has chosen to be in the galley for the day in the relative warmth and in the company of fellow RTWer Jenny. It's going to be difficult to keep the cake prep under wraps. We are currently running parallel to a virtual boundary at 45deg of latitude which we must remain south of as per the race instructions for another approx 100nm and then we can plot our course to the finish unbounded. There remains a lot to race for and we are well positioned to be in podium contention short of unforeseen events or weather variations.

I, like the entire crew, will be pleased to arrive. We are almost done, we remain focused on a safe arrival before we really do run out of food (no joke). For me, this is my final missive after two varied and wonderful legs. I wish all well in the race ahead.

All the best.

Andrew

P.S. Following on from Charlie Morgans blog yesterday. there has now been an official sighting of the rarely sighted North Pacific Owlboss (think a cross between an Owl and and Albatross) – apparently one of the crew spoke with this mythical creature! Perhaps this speaks to our real state of mind at this point in this trip.