Race 2 - Day 2
Crew Diary - Race 2, Day 2
17 September
WTC Logistics strikes back
Firstly, I just wanted to mention the fantastic support we saw in Portimão. After a disappointing Race 1 it was great to see so many friends, family and others (some locals!) rooting for us and the positive comments we read on social media were uplifting. It’s already been said but particular mention to Lindsay, Matt the trimmer’s wife who enthusiastically helped out on the boat in any way she could and of course especially to my lovely wife, Becca who made my stopover very easy with her usual impeccable organisational skills and just the very fact she was there. Thanks darling!
On to Race 2! After a frenetic start with plenty of manoeuvring, tacking, gybing and life at 45 degrees the last several hours have been very frustrating for us (and the rest of the fleet, no doubt). Winds have steadily eased to the point where, at the time of writing, we are bobbing up and down trying our best to trim our Code 1 spinnaker to a point where it actually wants to drive our boat at any speed (ANY speed!). This is very tricky and I’m not going to lie it often feels demoralising in zero wind and it can be hard work having to constantly, every minute of every hour, day and night check the sails luff curl (on the leading edge of the sail which can indicate how efficient the sail is working given the current wind angle, course over ground etc) then easing out or grinding in the sail just a little bit in order to better improve boat performance (or otherwise if misjudged which is easy to do!).
In very light winds, a gain of 0.5 knots to increase boat speed to 2.5 knots doesn’t sound worth bothering about given the concentrated effort involved but with an ocean race distance of over 5000 miles small, consistent changes make a significant difference over time. It does, of course require us all to be focused something which we acknowledge we could have done better during Race 1. As such, we have had a few Watch changes implemented by Skip (Mark) and Chief (Dan) for Race 2 which seems in these early stages to be making a difference – we have all be working hard to get as much out of the boat as we can in these challenging, light conditions – and we have just been informed by Skip that we have actually gained a number of places during this pedantic period! We all applauded on hearing that our efforts we having a positive effect on our race standings and it illustrates that when each Watch communicates effectively and work together we can all share a positive step forward as one Crew. I for one am enthused to continue to take those extra 0.5 knots wherever and however we can; to continue to work hard whether coming on watch at 0400 or sweltering in the midday sun. This is a race against a talented Clipper Race fleet and we have a mighty long way to go with lots of challenges ahead for all of us but we know we can compete.
Right Here. Right Now. Let’s do this!