Race 1 - Day 24
Crew Diary - Race 1 Day 24: Liverpool to Punta del Este
13 September
'The Wrong Trousers' by Tim Jeffery
Whilst you have been studying our routing and tactics and assessing the impact of the Doldrums Corridor on our long term prospects - briefly, the boats who entered later were able to motor-sail to exit in a more advantageous position - on the GREAT Britain boat you will be sorry to hear we continue to be distracted by the more mundane aspects of life at an angle.
A decision we face three times a day is what to wear when we go on deck. We need to be deck ready and this includes having all the necessary such as knife, sail tie, sun cream, jelly babies, tape, and anything else that might be necessary. It means wearing the right clothes. Unfortunately, the task list is not necessarily as simple as described in the crew manual – it is not always easy to get the clothing choice right. Now we are through the Doldrums it is cooler, but by no means an English winter so the general dress has been shorts and T shirt, expecting a warm drenching, and hoping to dry out before watch end. Below deck is generally very hot. We were therefore all impressed when Ian Mumford appeared on deck, very smart in salopettes and boots in anticipation of a Yankee change. Two minutes later and the task was clearing the sail locker floor to enable bilge checking and water clearance from the anchor chamber. Two hours later the team, comprising of Ed Aldworth, John Olsen, and Ian arrived back on deck, task complete but red in face and several litres lighter.
Ian's persistence in his choice of trousers is in the knowledge that one day it will be the correct one and finally over last nights first Watch, the shorts brigade received warning from a fair torrent over the deck. At watch change there is now a major rush to find foulies and on Jack Watch, now there is just myself, Nicola Thurlow, and Spence Bienvenue in shorts. I am considering the options on my drysuit.
A quick shout out to Walpole House at King's School Canterbury and to Mr Jenkins class at Pointers Blackheath.