Race 8 - Day 11
Skipper Report
15 March

Good morning campers!

Yesterday evening I came through the saloon to go on deck after putting on an extra layer.
We had just gybed away from a fleet of fishing boats and the path ahead was clear.
In the galley Carsten Busk was peeling sweet potatoes and Nic Schellenberg was hunting through the cupboards for herbs and spices. Hmm I thought, in for a treat this evening...

And a treat it turned out to be, just as Team Co-ordinator April Rellis was listing off the activities, formalities and planned corporate and social events in Qingdao, a fishing boat appeared to move ahead of us, and then a flashing red light appeared. At almost the same time the call came from the Nav Station to have a look, and there to see on the screen was organised rows of nets with fishing boats moving between.

The oncoming watch gybed the spinnaker and we set about a routine trying to work our way through. After five or six near-perfect gybes in tight surroundings the spinnaker sheet got trapped under the boat and it was impossible to free.

It seemed nothing was going right as in the process of tidying up we got a few torch flashes from a nearby fishing boat and had to take avoiding action.

Finally we got the cockpit tidy and the Yankee 1 hoisted and I was able to enjoy Carsten's onion soup with croutons, Spaghetti Bolognese and for dessert, Nic Schellenberg's baked apple with honey and almonds... yum.

Now we are in thick fog and becalmed 100 nautical miles offshore and 138 miles from the finish. This is not forecast to last for long and soon we expect 30 knots from the north-east.

This will bring colder and drier air to blow the fog away and we will be living at an angle for the last few miles.


Conall