Race 8 - Day 10
Skipper Report
14 March

Hello Team,

How are we this “rocking 'n' rolling” Wednesday? Glad to be halfway through the working week, sorting your seat out for Super Saturday (Rugby Six Nations)? For those watching at home are you a TV only or TV screening with radio commentary?

There's an air of anticipation onboard today, for us we can now talk about arrival and what we are going to do in Qingdao, as we have less than 250nm to go. I am particularly upbeat this morning as, unlike the previous night, I actually got some sleep (like all my fellow Skippers I would imagine).

There's a down side for the crew when I have had some sleep, as I then get somewhat bored if there is nothing demanding my full attention, isn't that right Nick (my son)***. When it was reported by the Watch that the visibility had dropped to moderate, due to some sea mist, the next thing they are working on deck to the sound of “Puff the Magic Dragon” blaring across the deck.

The last 24 hours have seen us sailing in bright blue skies, on flat sea (not as blue with quite a bit of flotsam around) on a broad reach with the Code 2 (mediumweight spinnaker) up. There has been significantly less fishing activity to avoid, but an increase in other commercial traffic. One commercial vessel came up from behind us at about 17 knots; then reminiscent of a pizza moped delivery rider weaving their way through a traffic calming scheme, shot themselves through a small fishing fleet with no apparent loss of speed - it's AIS track on the screen was pretty impressive.

A big thanks to the Officer of the Watch on Pilbara Maru. As we were working out how to get through a small fleet, we spotted a tight but small gap in the line of defence. Then Pilbara Maru, acting as a dummy runner, bust out of the line next to us in the style of a Barbarian rugby player with nothing to lose, straightening up, getting the defence to drift the wrong way. Then the gap opened up for us, then to the roar of the onlooking crowd, we were through and across the line, between the posts, in a moment ….... well something like that.

On the daily routine front, Jon Milne was Mother yesterday and when he, like Ian (Learmonth) are Mothering, I always feel the galley is similar to a zoo. The two of them accept the duty with due grace, but it’s not their natural habitat. They pace below in the confines of the lower deck, turning their head toward the stern and upwards, out the companionway, to catch a glimpse of the above deck environment they long and thrive in. Jon escaped briefly yesterday when a fishing vessel decided to turn in front of us and show us how long his net was, so we had to gybe in double quick time. Then he was banished back to the confines of the galley, where he produced some dodgy pasta with tomato sauce, but there was a slight accident with the tomato sauce, so it was just dodgy pasta that was served. However, he did produce some excellent bread which was just perfect for toast and marmite this morning.

So as we currently head east north east laying Virtual Mark “Foulkes” our team stats for you today to mull over are lost in our battle with the fishing fleets, but 232 mile to go!

Standing by this channel, out.

Dave

*** Spoke too soon . . . Just now, I'm fully engaged on deck working with the team gybing up channels between trots of nets, following a route through a maze of some hundreds of fishing boats/nets that seem to keep appearing on our route west and north. Pip O’Sullivan and Jeremy Hilton focused on the chart plotter, giving directions.