I’ve put on my foulies, boots and hat on anndddI’m ready. Not quite to go on deck but to write this blog, I’ve chased keyboard number two around the nav station (the boat is rolling left to right) and shaken the water out from between the keys. It's cold and still wet.
Anyway, to the more wet stuff. Sailing this race has gone exactly as I planned. I knew where we were going to gybe, tack, hoist kites, reef, lose our GPS, eat my pineapple and custard you know the usual things you plan in the morning before work. It was at this exact point I knew we were going to be able to sniff out our competitors again. Well, ok,maybe Ididn’t know any of that, however we as a crew knew if we fell behind then we’d pull ourselves back into the mix. That's what the crew have done. Our Watch Leaders now do watches with no assistance. I woke up to David sat in the nav station drinking tea and listening intently to the watches work together to shake out the last reef. It's good that after all the knock downs the crew still have the confidence to take these tasks on, on their own and some have even taken them on as learning opportunities.
It has been happy sailing for these past few days. Over the past 600nm we have been skirting and playing chicken with the northern limit of the course, known as highway 45 onboard. As the sleet finished up, the wind backed, and I made the decision to gybe away to avoid the time penalty. We gybed with 1.5nm to spare which gives us less then 10 minutes to correct any faults. Luckily everyone was briefed, and it went to plan. For the next 70nm, until the end of highway 45, we will continue to gybe and try to maintain the best course. This will mean lost miles on the boats in front but with 1,000nm left to go and a wind hole in the forecast there is still lots of time to make the miles back up.
By the time you will be reading this we will have gone into Stealth Mode, and you will not see our position.
No fear as we are still here,
Onward we head to Seattle.
I know not seeing us is tricky,
No email is needed for Nicky.
We still head safely towards Seattle
You know our destination,
so, take an estimation.
On our course for Seattle
What’s the best plan of action for DTA* subtraction?
As we close the finish in Seattle
Wind instruments, who needs them?
Everyone will have an opinion; some people need to bin them.
To land in the city, Seattle
Once we reappear, I understand all will be more clear
Of our idea to cross the line outside Seattle.
Love,
Maisie, David and the fridge chilled crew
*Distance to arrival