A few milestones have been realised in the last sailing period between blogs. We have passed the halfway point of Leg 2 and we have so far notched up 312 miles in 24 hours, with the likelihood of surpassing that. It takes some very committed sailing to reach over a 300-mile day and I would not be surprised to hear if other yachts in the fleet have surpassed the 300-mile mark too, as they are all giving chase and not letting up. Its more amazing that many of the crew achieving this had limited-to-no-sailing experience before their training and now they hurtle down the waves in the dark towards Cape Town.
Though this ocean leg may be taking its toll on a few crew. One was spotted soaring like a seagull in the dark (in a seated position), hoping for a private moment I’m sure. There has also been aqua aerobics on deck, made more impressive if you see how hard it is to stand on deck presently. The fashion choice of Mother Watch was questioned today, but it’s hard to receive advice from people wearing knee length socks and crocs. Even for an Aussie though it was a pretty bad T-shirt. Tonight on deck, just before writing this, I was informed of a light off the port beam, to which I replied 'they call that a moon'.
Looking ahead, tomorrow night we may pass close by to Gough Island, our one and only landmark we have the chance to see on our route towards Cape Town, an island so remote that it has only been seen by a mere handful of people and famed for its rugged beauty by the way it imposes itself in the otherwise open ocean, too bad it will be night and we won’t actually see it! The Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint entry gate is still two days away.
Andy
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