The first log after our somewhat unpleasant protest hearing in Boston and the temptation would be to bleat on about the injustice of it all - but I won't. It's not the end of the world; we are joint second overall and only three points behind the leaders after all. There is nothing we can do about it so we are just going to forget it and get on with this leg. We would however just like to thank everyone including, crew from other yachts, who have given us their support.
The morning of the start began with breakfast at the very impressive Boston Harbour Hotel. A feast of bacon, eggs, potatoes, fresh fruit and fresh orange juice would be the last we will be seeing for two weeks so we filled our plates. At about nine o'clock we headed out of the hotel and into the general hustle and bustle of start day. We said our goodbyes to friends and relatives and wished the other skippers and crews good luck and safe sailing and got onboard BP Explorer for the blessing of the fleet.
At about 11:30 we were off - well nearly. When it came to our turn to leave we were minus one very important crewmember, our skipper David. It could have been the perfect opportunity for one of us to seize the top spot and go for glory but in the end we decided we needed him and so were pleased to see him fight through the amassed supporters to join us.
The start was a good one. In a close battle at the start line we were flanked by Samsung on our left and Team Stelmar on our right. Team Stelmar got it wrong and crossed the line early forcing them to do a 720 degree turn when we were out of the harbour. Samsung were just meters away and almost level but we had the right of way. We squeezed past them to cross the within seconds of the start gun and so become first, officially, over the line.
As we tacked back and forth out of the harbour the Boston skyline started to disappear into the distance. A huge cruise liner called Spirit of America had stopped just outside Boston and was being well guarded by a US coastguard ship, two RIBs with machine guns mounted on the front and a high-speed patrol boat. We didn't pose much of a threat, Major wasn't steering, but they made it quite clear they were going to enforce the 100-meter exclusion zone around the ship. A friendly wave and we both parted company to complete our independent missions.
No sooner had we started to get going when the wind dropped and we all parked up. VAIO, Samsung and SAIC La Jolla got some better wind out to our left and moved ahead closely followed by BG SPIRIT. It was not clear what was the better sail combination, genoa or yankee and staysail. SAIC La Jolla surged ahead with the genoa but then slowed again. We swapped several times and made ground on the others. At the last position reports things are so close as to not really be significant but SAIC La Jolla are in front with us in second. As the sun went down the silhouettes of 11 other Challenge yachts spread across the horizon was a magnificent sight. I made a point of looking at them for a long time; I knew I couldn't take a picture, there wasn't enough light, so I made sure I burnt it into my mind - just one of many great memories from Boston, indeed the race.
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