Race 3 - Day 16
Crew Diary - Race 3 Day 16: Cape Town to Fremantle
16 November
In my defence... well I thought I had covered all the possible outcomes and risks but once everyone else sees what you are up to, the gremlins get an idea and in a flash they wreak havoc and destruction with the spectators laughing at my misfortune.
On thinking this over by reassessing the risks and wondering how to put forward my defence, Jonathan pointed out that these mysterious gremlins I mentioned at the outset are actually present all the time.
Sheets, or coloured ropes that are tied to the clew (one of the corners of the sails) to tighten, shape and control either the headsail, staysail or the spinnaker, have a life of their own when out of control.
When they behave, the two sheets per sail are very tight (working sheet) or just lolling about (lazy sheet). Should the helm (person steering the boat) or the wind decide to change without warning, these sheets begin a life of their own. They seek out unsuspecting objects, animate or inanimate, or look for each other and whip around the place with ferocious speed accuracy and force. They wrap, tie and wind themselves around each other causing untold consternation and angst amongst the sailors watching the story unfold or they stalk cameras attached to the end of boat hooks!
I was just bringing my camera back into the boat from an exciting angle when the wind dropped, the spinnaker began to collapse, the sheet gently looped itself around the camera on the end of the boathook and no sooner had I thought OH!.... $*&! happened. The sheet whip lashed the camera neat as you like off the hook and sent it spinning seawards. The explosion of laughter was of course necessary at both my utter dismay and confirmation of all their expectations... Eishhh.
Previous to this, Skipper Andy is always going on about the danger of this one sheet that droops behind the companion way. Set there to pull the Spinnakers down, it is usually tame but those same moments from helm and wind can bring about a nasty injury if one is not paying attention. The other night, this same sheet found its way behind the hatch flap. In an instant, the sheet had wrenched the flap from the hatch and deposited it gently on the floor of the pit. Astonishing! I am very wary of sheets. In fact, anything that looks like a rope I treat with the greatest respect and I urge all to do the same.
On a more gentle note, Happy Birthday to Tessa, what a place to have a memorable birthday. Also shout out to my friends who have their birthdays this month; Mark O'D, Pat, Ed and Joph.. From all of us aboard GREAT Britain, see you soon.