The high pressure system has brought everyone back together and slowed progress for many on the sprint. It will realign the fleet in such away that it’s almost a completely new race start. The fleet is spread finely across an east west divide. North and south, there is now only tens of miles between us and the fleet, but for Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam which still has a healthy 70 mile margin. They actually made good progress through the system compared to all other boats in spite of sailing straight for the centre of the high and less wind. Fortune favours the brave...perhaps

I feel bad for Zhuhai and GoToBermuda which made efforts to circumnavigate the system in order to make westward ground and into the new pressure first. That’s the way it should work if you listen to the forecast but its wildly inaccurate with complex high pressure systems on this race. I've only ever used it as a guide. At this stage, even suggesting something as broadly as which side of the course would be favoured in terms of pressure, is an assumption too far. It’s obviously a very complicated system right now to predict.

We also have current data that shows adverse current here yet we are sailing faster to windward at a better angle than we ever have. Still, we are on starboard tack and we always seem better on starboard tack.

It will be interesting to see what the forecast says tomorrow as hopefully it will be a little bit more accurate. At the moment, we don’t know what to expect or which direction it may come from. In these times we just sail the making tack. Effectively, what tack seems to point closest to where you want to go. Sounds obvious but for so many reasons this is often not the best thing to do.

I'm sending love back home to everyone. I miss you all. I miss Charley and Tarly, Alison and al the Ileys, Isaac and cousins. I miss my grandparents I hope you read this you are well and grandad is recovering well. Charley tells me he is. I hope Alison’s chest is feeling much better. I miss popping into my uncle Tony’s, and talking boats and I miss my best friends Rich Roberts, Alan, Tim, Pete and all those I haven;t mentioned you all know who you are...

That's all for now

Shower day. Washing onboard generally consists of a number of compostable baby wipes to freshen up. It’s often a chore to find personal space and even the physical act of washing onboard can be somewhat challenging and precarious as we invariably need to support ourselves moving around at 45 degrees especially in these conditions, large seas and blowing upto 30 knots.

We look forward to the sunny days when the boat is flat where on can move to the back of the boat, fill a bucket with sea water and pour said water over your head. A little shower gel adds some cleanliness to the occasion. Trouble is you need the right kind of weather. Too cold and you'll freeze. Stripping off to ones undies is just not a pleasant experience. The boat could do with being flat. Moving around at 45 degrees is tough enough but trying to get buckets and pour and clean.. It’s just not easy. This leg has not been great for showering conditions and I do like that invigorating feeling of oceanic water being thrown over your head when you feel disgusting. Shame we can't just pause time and jump in...although the size of the shark we saw yesterday cruising along the surface would make one think twice about that. Probably a tiger shark.

Well, the weather hasn't been cooperating and my cave lockers are leaking. This means that on one tack, the lockers (moulded into the boat) are taking water and the other tack they are pouring that said water onto my bed. Not a problem with an ocean sleeping bag, it’s totally waterproof. Here's the dilemma. It’s soo hot! Open my sleeping bag and the inside will get wet. Lay on top of it and I'll get wet. Try to sleep in it and I just sweat and can't sleep. So, for various reasons I've had less than three hours of sleep in the past 24, although enough rest off-watch in such period.

So, feeling a little groggy I decided it was time. With apologies to the crew, I ran through the companionway sporting nothing but a towel and my boxers and a lifejacket. I put myself up on deck clipped on and charged to the bow as it submerged with each wave I felt the tiredness and dirt and muck and general disgustingness wash away. I stood for several minutes just enjoying the not too cold but refreshing water crash over me...now that’s a shower!!

The race -

After the complex systems which left the inshore boats stranded, we have pulled into a tussle for second place, but it’s not that easy. There's another high developing off the corner of the Brisbane area.

Before we get there, the northerly breeze will turn and come from the south, blessing those boats in the south first and reducing any advantage the front boats have once more. This really is a game of snakes and ladders. I'd have put us inshore to catch the southerly earlier but there are some complex set of currents working here that leave a very strong south setting current that I wanted to do my best to avoid. We shall see if that was the right decision. There is a possibility that others may get the southerly pressure too and sneak through on the inside. The rationale was that the coastline has not paid much in this race and this particular one should have paid yesterday and didn't so I'm keeping away.

Now to position ourselves for this change that will happen in about 12 hours. hmmm.