Hi there from our Stealth position. We wanted to be a bit mystery at the end of the race. Today we finished the Ocean Sprint with very high spirits. JP started the job two days ago and finished it today with very high mark. I am happy he has joined the elite helmsman team of the boat. Now are going for the finish with great energy. Everybody is very excited to get to Seattle in just two days.
Although this looks short, we know that from here to the Finish Line there will be more challenges. In ocean racing, nothing goes entirely perfect. You are always having to deal with something, and you must resolve everything by your own with creativity and hard work. As an example, this morning I woke up with the news that our generator had shutoff by itself. After troubleshooting, we found that the seacock for the cooling was closed. We did an investigation and asked all crew about it, and we found that one of our thermoses fell off the counter and found its way in the bilge under the stove and by doing so closed the seacock valve. After resolving the problem, we found that a small hole at the foot of the mainsail had enlarged considerably.
We designed a patch and sent Angus harnessed on to walk on the boom and stick this patch to prevent further expansion of the hole. All the crew have been dealing with everything that came out and we are ready with what is coming ahead.
Some random news: the prize for the best mainsheet trimmer has been delivered to Seb, who showed great skills with the mainsail in very tough moments. We are trying to convince Kepa to come to Panama as we think his students may need extra time to prepare for their exams. Peter designed a water iron which gave us great results gluing the patch on the mainsail. We are going to miss Camilo a lot. I think he will miss us too as he is taking a lot of videos and photos. David Howe said he is going to make America great again. Oh man, we are going to miss our Jason. Whatever he touches, he transforms everything into a task-made-good. Although he doesn’t agree as he is very humble, he is one of our best helmsmen. We really wish he could take more weeks off. I’ve seen a transformation in him and everybody else who have been sailing with us. The ocean has done a good job.
We are working hard to catch up with those in front of us for a great fan finish.
Vamos Punta!!!
Nano, Angus and the Punta Riders