Race 5 - Day 17
Skipper Report
08 January

Spoiler alert: I've sneaked 15 film quotes into today's blog - how many can you spot?

There is so much serenity on the ocean right now - a gentle easterly breeze is filling the sails above us, and beneath us the waves are warming and filling with flying fish and diving birds. Still, if anything is going to happen, it's going to happen out here.

Our (presumably) nearest rival Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam is wearing a cloak of invisibility as I type, but Nick "Norfolk" Whittle claims to have spied her somewhere over the rainbow. I have an idea (I'm an ideas man) that he might actually have spotted the Flying Dutchman castaway in a dead calm near Treasure Island. Our own position in the fleet has improved over the past 24 hours as we reap the benefits of our ‘eat your sprouts first’ strategy around the East Australian Current.

Basically, the plan was to put some slow eastward miles in early to position ourselves to take advantage of the opportunity when it arises. I love it when a plan comes together! Now we need to just keep on swimming, swimming, swimming through the last 500nm to Airlie Beach.

Today, Imagine your Korea has a global gourmet galley. Lunch was Korean: kim chi, noodle soup, onion and garlic salad, whilst Swiss rosti is tonight's special. Between guest appearances by keenly nationalistic chefs Seonki Chae (Korea) and Thierry Meier (Swiss), I don't think Trevor Orman (Bedford) quite knows where he is. Just as I'm trying to finish the skipper blog on time, here's Johnny Wallington (Victualing Officer) with questions about shopping in Airlie Beach. It must be nearly time for a spinnaker - let's see how this thing flies.

That's all folks.

Cheers, Rob