Race 4 - Day 13
Crew Diary - Race 4 Day 13: Fremantle to Sydney
15 December

Hi everyone! Finally I'm back in the hot seat of galley duty and get to give my two cents on Leg 4.

I'll start off with some sailing chat for those of you interested in that sort of thing.

Today has been a bit of a crazy day. We have changed sails more since 11pm last night than in any 24 hour period that I've been on the boat and we are really pushing to make the best of these varying winds. We have a few boats close enough to us which has certainly added a bit of excitement and with Sydney not too far away, every clean sail change or evolution comes with a sigh of relief.

When I think more generally about the sailing on leg 4 compared to leg 3, the conditions have been so much more variable and this has meant that we have really had to be on our toes. We haven't had the huge swells or the extreme winds, but conditions that could change in a split second. The other day I was on the helm and went from doing 10 knots to 2 knots in a 10 second period after crossing a clear wind that you could see clear as day in the sea in front of you. It really has been a big contrast and I'm having a great time.

Now on to the more important part of my blog. Fighting back to the close-to-libellous comments that have been made in previous blogs.

As I said in my leg 3 blog, I usually read through the previous days to make sure I'm not repeating anything or blathering on about things that everyone else has already covered. This leg during my review I find that I have been painted as a grumpy sleeper by a certain Fräulein who shall remain nameless. I feel however that I need to state my side of the story to truly give the readers at home the full picture.

Wake-ups on board are a very common occurrence. There are 5 a day across the watches and people certainly have different approach and styles. Some, like myself, use a very positive “Good Morning [insert name]” while others go with a more gentle “time to get up” in soft tones to ease the sleeping sailors back into the day. However, Luise (I know I said she'd remain nameless but I want to get the truth out there) has a different approach. On the morning in question it had clearly been a little wet out on deck and as we were south of Taz, we would have been in one of the colder parts of the leg. Luise's approach to waking me up at 4am was to take a soaking wet and freezing cold hand and jacket sleeve and to smear it across my sleeping face. I will admit that I did not wake up in the best mood on that particular occasion. If you would like to test this on a loved one at home, take a kitchen cloth, soak in water and put in the fridge. Then, at around 3.30am, try to wash the person's face with the cloth and see how they react.

I want to say my hellos to loved ones that I'm missing terribly. Hugh, Jeroen, Stephan, Paul, Johannes, Kaz, and Tim; the boat isn't quite the same without you. I haven't managed to fill as many positions on the steering committee as I'd hoped and most of the time people just look at me funny when I offer them a “dark and creamy”.

Finally, I hope everyone is having a fun run-up to Christmas. I know I will be making up for it when I get to Sydney and can find a bar that sells mince pies and mulled wine (although in 30c + heat it might be more Margaritas and watermelon). Without Jeroen there, I might be allowed to have more than 3 drinks without being cut off....

Festive nautical regards

Iain

P.s. I will get into trouble if I don't actually give a shout out to my family and loved ones back home. Mum, Dad, Andrew, Laura, Wesley and my Viktoriya and Edmure. I miss you all and hope you're managing to pull yourself away from the race viewer long enough to be enjoying the Christmas fun.