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.