Thursday, November 25, 2004
Monday, November 15, 2004
Thursday, November 4, 2004
Day 33 :near a bar! (34 47 S 57 15 W)
'Once we are in the river, that's when the dye is nearly cast.' These were the words of David Melville just a few days ago and here we are, still in fourth and holding off the enemy!
Throughout the night we have been careering up the inappropriately named River Plate - which means River of Silver, although it is anything but. By night it was admittedly a sparkling sight - to port, a multitude of vessels in the shipping channel all lit up with their navigation lights; to starboard, the golden glow and streetlights of Montevideo; above, a canopy of stars; and all around us, the best show of phosphoresence of the journey - so bright that the rushing caps and foam of the brisk waves piled along luminously for as far as the eye could see. When a particularly frisky whitecap landed on the deck, that too was lit up with millions of spots of florescent light.
As dawn breaks, however, we regard our final bowl of porridge with some relief and the water with some surprise. We knew it would be muddy - but it really is very very brown - full of the earth washed down from the hills and mountains. In the Plate we have a series of waypoints to round, after each of which we must send in a brief report to Race HQ.
Information included in this is a list of yachts which we can see behind and in front. Thus far, this section has remained blank - a bittersweet fact, for whilst we have held off our old adversaries Sark and BG, we have not, thus far, managed to catch Samsung. Tantalisingly close at dusk yesterday - just a few miles distant - they managed to pull away from us dramatically during the high winds of the early hours. If we are honest with ourselves, only a fairly major mistake on their part is likely to see us pass them at this stage, but as they say, 'it isn't over until it's over!'
We have saved our final Mars bars until today for that extra bit of fuel in these last hard-fought hours of racing and perhaps it will make all the difference! I know for sure that as long as we hold our place there is going to be a huge roar of approval when we cross that line to the relieved shouts of our supporters bounding along in the ribs - Mum I'm on my way!!!!
Thanks to readers for all the kind comments about our logs throughout Leg 1! I am reliably informed that there will be much to see on our team website - www.bpoceanracingteam.com -during the stopover, and we will try to post logs throughout our stay in Buenos Aires. More soon when we head for Cape Horn - but for now it's off to the bar! Watch leader David Pugh ('Cop') may have discovered that he is not as addicted to Stella Artois as he previously thought, but there is still a lot of catching up to do!
Throughout the night we have been careering up the inappropriately named River Plate - which means River of Silver, although it is anything but. By night it was admittedly a sparkling sight - to port, a multitude of vessels in the shipping channel all lit up with their navigation lights; to starboard, the golden glow and streetlights of Montevideo; above, a canopy of stars; and all around us, the best show of phosphoresence of the journey - so bright that the rushing caps and foam of the brisk waves piled along luminously for as far as the eye could see. When a particularly frisky whitecap landed on the deck, that too was lit up with millions of spots of florescent light.
As dawn breaks, however, we regard our final bowl of porridge with some relief and the water with some surprise. We knew it would be muddy - but it really is very very brown - full of the earth washed down from the hills and mountains. In the Plate we have a series of waypoints to round, after each of which we must send in a brief report to Race HQ.
Information included in this is a list of yachts which we can see behind and in front. Thus far, this section has remained blank - a bittersweet fact, for whilst we have held off our old adversaries Sark and BG, we have not, thus far, managed to catch Samsung. Tantalisingly close at dusk yesterday - just a few miles distant - they managed to pull away from us dramatically during the high winds of the early hours. If we are honest with ourselves, only a fairly major mistake on their part is likely to see us pass them at this stage, but as they say, 'it isn't over until it's over!'
We have saved our final Mars bars until today for that extra bit of fuel in these last hard-fought hours of racing and perhaps it will make all the difference! I know for sure that as long as we hold our place there is going to be a huge roar of approval when we cross that line to the relieved shouts of our supporters bounding along in the ribs - Mum I'm on my way!!!!
Thanks to readers for all the kind comments about our logs throughout Leg 1! I am reliably informed that there will be much to see on our team website - www.bpoceanracingteam.com -during the stopover, and we will try to post logs throughout our stay in Buenos Aires. More soon when we head for Cape Horn - but for now it's off to the bar! Watch leader David Pugh ('Cop') may have discovered that he is not as addicted to Stella Artois as he previously thought, but there is still a lot of catching up to do!
Wednesday, November 3, 2004
Day 32 :34' 46S 53' 54W
After five weeks of sailing we are approaching the entrance to the River Plate and the waypoint where all the fleet will converge.
We can smell land over to our right and the first insects since the big locust incident of the 15th and 16th were fluttering around our mast light during the night. There is an excited buzz onboard at the thought of seeing friends and family, who have flown out to meet us in Buenos Aires and there is general chatter at meal times as to what we are going to do when we get there.
BP Explorer is currently in fourth place and during the afternoon we could see BG Spirit on our port quarter. They remained in view until late in the evening when they disappeared over the horizon or into the mist.
Samsung are within our sights at just over six miles away and the thought of stealing third place keeps us working harder. Barclays Adventurer and VAIO are about 23 miles ahead, a comfortable position, but if they have any problems, catching them is quite possible.
The main theme of the day was no cock-ups. We are now so close to the finish that any mistakes could cost us a place or even places and make recovery very difficult. We've managed to get this far (6140 miles) without trashing anything serious and more importantly with no injuries. So we are all taking that extra few seconds or so to check and double-check everything. We are still pushing the yacht and sails to their limit but crew are posted, geared up and prepared to change everything at a moment's notice.
This morning we crossed a final hurdle - a low-pressure trough separating a northeasterly wind from a southerly that should take us to BA. These troughs are quite dramatic. You approach with the kite up and slowly the cloud builds overhead, lightning flashes all around and thunder rumbles. Everybody eyes the kite nervously and is poised for a drop. The idea is to leave the kite drop to the absolute latest moment.
The gust front when it does come, comes quickly. Rain lashes down and the wind rises dramatically, sometimes gusting up to 40 knots. Headsails go up the kite comes down amid urgent shouting and frantic pulling. We are hard on the wind and the breeze has shifted all the way south. It's actually quite a relief to have the headsail up and have a simple bash to windward - kites are fast but stressful. Down below the kite is checked out, minor repairs are made and the thing packed away - until the next time!
Little note at the end of today's log: If sometimes when you go to your computer and my daily log is not there, at that very moment I'm on the foredeck with my watch hoisting or fighting down a spinnaker or headsail. It 's taken several attempts today and I'm sorry if it's a bit late. Naomi's log tomorrow will be the last of this leg so I just wanted to say thank you for all the positive feedback we've received and keep logging on to read the next exciting chapter; Leg 2 - BP Explorer in the Southern Ocean.
We can smell land over to our right and the first insects since the big locust incident of the 15th and 16th were fluttering around our mast light during the night. There is an excited buzz onboard at the thought of seeing friends and family, who have flown out to meet us in Buenos Aires and there is general chatter at meal times as to what we are going to do when we get there.
BP Explorer is currently in fourth place and during the afternoon we could see BG Spirit on our port quarter. They remained in view until late in the evening when they disappeared over the horizon or into the mist.
Samsung are within our sights at just over six miles away and the thought of stealing third place keeps us working harder. Barclays Adventurer and VAIO are about 23 miles ahead, a comfortable position, but if they have any problems, catching them is quite possible.
The main theme of the day was no cock-ups. We are now so close to the finish that any mistakes could cost us a place or even places and make recovery very difficult. We've managed to get this far (6140 miles) without trashing anything serious and more importantly with no injuries. So we are all taking that extra few seconds or so to check and double-check everything. We are still pushing the yacht and sails to their limit but crew are posted, geared up and prepared to change everything at a moment's notice.
This morning we crossed a final hurdle - a low-pressure trough separating a northeasterly wind from a southerly that should take us to BA. These troughs are quite dramatic. You approach with the kite up and slowly the cloud builds overhead, lightning flashes all around and thunder rumbles. Everybody eyes the kite nervously and is poised for a drop. The idea is to leave the kite drop to the absolute latest moment.
The gust front when it does come, comes quickly. Rain lashes down and the wind rises dramatically, sometimes gusting up to 40 knots. Headsails go up the kite comes down amid urgent shouting and frantic pulling. We are hard on the wind and the breeze has shifted all the way south. It's actually quite a relief to have the headsail up and have a simple bash to windward - kites are fast but stressful. Down below the kite is checked out, minor repairs are made and the thing packed away - until the next time!
Little note at the end of today's log: If sometimes when you go to your computer and my daily log is not there, at that very moment I'm on the foredeck with my watch hoisting or fighting down a spinnaker or headsail. It 's taken several attempts today and I'm sorry if it's a bit late. Naomi's log tomorrow will be the last of this leg so I just wanted to say thank you for all the positive feedback we've received and keep logging on to read the next exciting chapter; Leg 2 - BP Explorer in the Southern Ocean.
Tuesday, November 2, 2004
Day 31 :32 02 S 49 36 W
'New boat speed record,' hollers the helm, his voice coming through the gloom of a rapid nightfall in a mixture of exhilaration and fear. 'A phrase which often comes before maximum mess-ups,' adds the skipper wryly - but you can tell that he is relieved to be going fast once again! Yesterday afternoon we watched in dismay as the wind speed faded and faded to practically nothing. For several hours we crept along, tiptoeing about the yacht as the helms nursed her through the water, sniffing out every bit of available breeze.
By this time in fifth position (BG SPIRIT having overtaken us by several miles), we had to re-remind ourselves of what David had told us at our lunchtime meeting - 'The die is not cast for another couple of days, you have to keep going.' Two hours later he came on deck and padded about the decks tweaking here, tweaking there and looking like sleep was the last thing on his mind. 'I really have a feeling that this afternoon could prove to be a crucial watch so please make sure that you are doing everything you can to make the yacht go faster.' It is useful to hear words of encouragement like this but we are all as hungry as each other for a good position. The stops are permanently all pulled out in this neck of the woods! The afternoon did, indeed, turn out to see some significant changes.
As we went from the lightweight kite, to the 1.5 (and later the flanker) with the wind building steadily, the boat accelerated, and accelerated, and accelerated some more.
By watch changeover at 6pm we were storming along. By the next change at 10pm, the watch coming off were taking to their bunks fully dressed and in lifejackets - constantly on the edge of our wind range for each spinnaker, we had to be coiled for action at any time. At some point in the evening we overtook BG SPIRIT and saw that we were now just seven miles from Samsung! As the girls in the snakepit at midnight - Laura and Goldie - belted out 'Surfing USA' as they whooped through the surf aboard what they described as 'our one-horse open sleigh', I think it is fair to say that however conservative we want to be, everyone on BP Explorer is now secretly hoping for something better than fourth.
By this time in fifth position (BG SPIRIT having overtaken us by several miles), we had to re-remind ourselves of what David had told us at our lunchtime meeting - 'The die is not cast for another couple of days, you have to keep going.' Two hours later he came on deck and padded about the decks tweaking here, tweaking there and looking like sleep was the last thing on his mind. 'I really have a feeling that this afternoon could prove to be a crucial watch so please make sure that you are doing everything you can to make the yacht go faster.' It is useful to hear words of encouragement like this but we are all as hungry as each other for a good position. The stops are permanently all pulled out in this neck of the woods! The afternoon did, indeed, turn out to see some significant changes.
As we went from the lightweight kite, to the 1.5 (and later the flanker) with the wind building steadily, the boat accelerated, and accelerated, and accelerated some more.
By watch changeover at 6pm we were storming along. By the next change at 10pm, the watch coming off were taking to their bunks fully dressed and in lifejackets - constantly on the edge of our wind range for each spinnaker, we had to be coiled for action at any time. At some point in the evening we overtook BG SPIRIT and saw that we were now just seven miles from Samsung! As the girls in the snakepit at midnight - Laura and Goldie - belted out 'Surfing USA' as they whooped through the surf aboard what they described as 'our one-horse open sleigh', I think it is fair to say that however conservative we want to be, everyone on BP Explorer is now secretly hoping for something better than fourth.
Monday, November 1, 2004
Day 30 : East of Rio Grande
We all came on watch after Saturday's 24-hour marathon looking very tired. What sleep we did manage to get was often interrupted by noise on deck. Every shout, every clatter of sheets and grinding of the winches echoes through the hull and it's difficult to just count sheep when the next 'everyone on deck' could be moments away. So, tired and physically exhausted we start our watches but throughout the day we all talk about the events of the night before and a strong sense of camaraderie builds. As we recount our individual stories of heroics from helm to foredeck thought of returning to our bunks disappear and we remember why we wanted to do this thing in the first place. It is at these times that the two watches tend to overlap more.
During the day people arrive on deck and muck-in with sail changes whether they are on watch or not and soon we are a dynamic team again and patting each other on the back. Spirits lifted, we view the fleet positions not with a defeated gloom but an optimistic 'right that's the problem - let's try fix it'. The problem is not a small one, we pulled five miles back on Barclays Adventurer in the afternoon only to lose it again during the night and they took 11 miles from us over the 24 hour period. Samsung and VAIO have increased their lead over us by 8 and 20 miles respectively and although we were only 1.8 miles from BG SPIRIT yesterday morning they pulled away too and are now about nine miles in front. We did however take 20 miles from Spirit of Sark. The leading five yachts are quite spread out now with most of them further west than BP Explorer. At the moment we are far enough apart to be experiencing different conditions and trying to match the yachts performance like for like is impossible. The next two and a half days will be very interesting as we all converge on a waypoint at the mouth of the River Plate and aim for a piece of ocean one tenth of a mile wide. The challenge will be to get the best possible position before the waypoint hoping that conditions are better for us further east. After that it's a straight race up the River Plate to the finish.
Halloween brought it's sailing horrors to the deck but during the day a friendly witch by the name of Laura Alexander promised to cast a 'good luck' spell over the chart table. We've no doubt of her abilities in the snake pit let's hope the spell works as well.
During the day people arrive on deck and muck-in with sail changes whether they are on watch or not and soon we are a dynamic team again and patting each other on the back. Spirits lifted, we view the fleet positions not with a defeated gloom but an optimistic 'right that's the problem - let's try fix it'. The problem is not a small one, we pulled five miles back on Barclays Adventurer in the afternoon only to lose it again during the night and they took 11 miles from us over the 24 hour period. Samsung and VAIO have increased their lead over us by 8 and 20 miles respectively and although we were only 1.8 miles from BG SPIRIT yesterday morning they pulled away too and are now about nine miles in front. We did however take 20 miles from Spirit of Sark. The leading five yachts are quite spread out now with most of them further west than BP Explorer. At the moment we are far enough apart to be experiencing different conditions and trying to match the yachts performance like for like is impossible. The next two and a half days will be very interesting as we all converge on a waypoint at the mouth of the River Plate and aim for a piece of ocean one tenth of a mile wide. The challenge will be to get the best possible position before the waypoint hoping that conditions are better for us further east. After that it's a straight race up the River Plate to the finish.
Halloween brought it's sailing horrors to the deck but during the day a friendly witch by the name of Laura Alexander promised to cast a 'good luck' spell over the chart table. We've no doubt of her abilities in the snake pit let's hope the spell works as well.
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