Race 3 - Day 17
Crew Diary - Race 3 Day 17: Cape Town to Fremantle
17 November

The trouble is, as we now write these blogs while we are on Mother Watch, we are maybe a little removed from the action and more chilled than when on deck - the difference between below and up top is remarkable.

I have to say I am a little envious of the rest of my watch who are currently flying the Code 2 in glorious sunshine with a brisk 20+ knots following a helpful seastate and a few dolphins. They pop below every so often to do some of the tasks allotted with a breezy smile and hop back up the companionway as fast as possible – this is a significant change from a couple of days ago when these mundane tasks were something to linger over in the relative warmth. I suspect that by the time I am up on deck in ernest again tomorrow morning the clouds will have returned – I should try to find out but we never really look at much more than the wind forecast – the rain or cold will be what they will be.

On a plus we are all pretty certain our least favoured sail 'The Windseeker' will not now be out of it's bunk for a few days at least.

We all have various views on 'The Windseeker', few of them are positive, and remember ours still bears the residual evidence from the incident of the carrot on Leg 1 so does not even look particularly pretty.

Johannes' opinion is that Hyde Sails need to be taken to task on the name – if it seeks it rarely seems to find – he believes the name is misleading, that we have possibly been missold. For myself I think the name hints at a desperate search without real hope – so the name to reflects the character of the sail. What is certain is that on this ocean when the wind is scarce it is not necessarily found in the direction to be expected and is more fickle than a.... whilst the least loved sail - Andy believes there is a place for it – for me it is firmly in its bunk.

Otherwise all good.

Lots of love to all and a special shout out to my sailing colleagues at Medway and Greenwich Yacht Clubs – hope to see you on the water soon. Also to the team at Croabh Marina – I am pleased that Highland Spirit is home – we'll see you at New Year.

Missing you Jane, Iona and Alex...