BP Explorer is 87 miles south east of Cape Cod, sailing slowly in a light north westerly breeze (yes a headwind..) The air is cold and damp with fog covering the first 10m of the sea. We can see the sky above, but cannot see more than 100m in front. Its very cold and the crew are raiding their curver boxes for extra t-shirts and socks.
If we cross our fingers and view the winds optimistically, we shall get in end of Monday. Finishing this race reminds me of the frog hopping across a table, the first time he jumps he gets half way across the table, the second jump takes him half the remaining distance..and so on forever.
While the distance to the finish seems to shrink but never reaches an end the same cannot be said for our competitors Imagine It. Done and Spirit of Sark - who are 2 and 6 miles behind respectively. Spirit of Sark in particular has done better overnight and I am sure they will be visible once this fog lifts.
So with 6880 miles under the keel since Cape Town we shall cross a finish line in sight of two other yachts. Although we are no longer competing for a podium place, these positions are important. If we finish in our present ranking, we shall still be joint first overall, While Spirit of Sark will be four points behind. They will be desperate to get into our position and with the very light winds ahead, this is a possibility.
We must endure one more 24 hour period of light winds lottery, with no chance to rectify any damage. Keep your fingers crossed, and for those waiting in Boston rest assured that we are going as fast as we can.
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