Leg 2 Day 6 : 46°35'00.0"S 59°41'00.0"W

 The Roaring Forties are, for us at least, purring like a contented kitten sometimes even sleeping with just the occasional sigh. These are not the best of racing conditions and make for frustrating and tiring watches as we try every sail for best performance and to maintain our position. Some of the fleet are starting to separate behind us but with five yachts spread in a long line some 60 miles apart we are a long way from a 'comfortable' lead and it too changes like the winds. Barclays Adventurer stalk us to our left like the

posse after Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid and BG SPIRIT and Samsung are out on the edges of the line experiencing either more or less favourable conditions than those in the middle. It makes it difficult to say who has the best position.

 

Of the five frontrunners only eight and a half miles between us decided who is officially in first place. A bit like the horse racing machines at the amusement arcades, each horse occasionally searing ahead only to slow and be overtaken by another making betting on a winner difficult. These are testing times and it is a testament to how well we are working together that we have the same crew (bar the leggers/BP Explorer crew) as when we left Portsmouth. It does mean we can move forward in our effectiveness as a team. The first leg saw us getting to know each other and honing the procedures on deck.

 

This leg is much more about tweaking things, making them faster and focusing on safety onboard. We have taken a leaf from our sponsor's book and are operating a daily safety briefing in which we analyse and document safety issues. The safer we are the less likely we are to get injured and break things on the boat. With the top five yachts so close together and the rest not that far behind it really is a case of the one that cocks up the least will be the most likely to get a podium place.

We have already seen that injury and damage is directly proportional to success in the last leg and were witness to one mistake leading to Me to You blowing a kite during a peel. They were within clear view and threatening to pass us but are now 17 miles behind us.

The layers are starting to pile on now as the temperature drops. What were shorts and T-shirts are now Musto Gore-Tex mid layers (like ski suits), Windstopper hats and fleece gloves. Below decks we have moved from lightweight sleeping bags to winter ones. No more near naked bodies on sweaty bunks and things that were once covered by a thin silk sleeping bag liner are now safely tucked away and protected from the frost.

John Bass

Leg 2 Day 4 : 41°51'00.0"S 57°26'00.0"W

The first 48 hours of a leg are tough even when conditions are favourable. Just getting back into the watch system puts the body through turmoil both mentally and physically. Faces of the crew look drawn even if they have got some sleep and the sailing muscles having been worked for the first time in several weeks now ache. We work just as hard throughout the race it just seems harder in the first couple of days. The first nightmare watch has come early in the leg again. The worst ones are at night where the pitch darkness makes things even more difficult and natural tiredness makes the reaction times that little slower until the adrenalin kicks in. What should have been a routine spinnaker gybe got all together more complicated when the sheet and guy failed to release from the end of the pole when the tripping line was pulled. For some reason, we are still not sure why, the sheet got tangled around the end of the pole and began sawing its way through the foreguy. The pole had to come down quickly and the only way to do it was to edge it bit by bit down the mast at the inboard end. When it finally got to the base of the mast it had to be brought back to the cockpit because it was the wrong side of the sheet to come down in the normal way. The frantic pulling of the trip line had jammed the mechanism in the pole and needed to be sorted before the pole could be then be safely stowed again. Below decks the off watch were rolled in their bunks and the all too familiar sounds of something not going to plan reverberated around the boat. Half dreaming, half awake you are not sure whether to get up or stay where you are and get some sleep - though getting to sleep is not a real option because you are conscious that at any moment you could be required to help out. Coming on watch your fellow crew tell you of the evening's events and you are thankful that it's all sorted as you pat them on the back and wish them a good sleep. Thankfully we had not lost too much ground. Spirit of Sark have edged ahead but they are only just in front of us and spirits raised after a good sleep the watches swap once more and the first thing to be announced is "our mission today is to get ahead of Spirit of Sark" We saw a group of ten or more whales yesterday, some sea lions and several Albatross, a good day nature-wise. The skies have been shrouded by cloud for most of the day, which gives us timely relief from the searing sun that even the factor 50 fails to totally protect us from. We have a great crew and skipper onboard BP Explorer and every day we sail together we improve as a team both personally and technically. This has already been shown in how much more relaxed David is with us and we are with each other and David. This leg will stretch us further than we've been stretched before but we are ready - bring it on. John Bass

Leg 2 Day 2 : 37°47'00.0"S 56°27'00.0"W

This log (and those that follow) come to you from the 'graveyard shift' - the '2-6-er'. As friends and family move the pins in their globes back home, the logs are written earlier and earlier in the morning here on BP Explorer to arrive by 0900 GMT. Thus you may be hearing more about moonlight than sunrises, and your writers may be somewhat sleepier as they type quietly away by the night light which lends the media suite a red glow and anyone beavering away 'downstairs' the look of a submariner! The name of the game right now is making the best out of light winds. Not that this will be a long-term pattern of events; it is definitely the calm before the storm, as much heavier winds are forecast in the not-too-distant future. Those on mother watch (cooking and cleaning) are for once thanking their lucky stars that it is their go at the domestics, for they are able to work with the comfort of calm seas and a flat boat. At the top of the companionway steps meanwhile, we have been concentrating on keeping our attention on performance and 'controlling the controllables'. At 1800 local time we could see ten out of the eleven other boats - a situation which could easily make it hard to stay focused - but we have done our level best not to take our eye off the ball. Between 2100 and 2200 we decided that a gybe was in order then reflected that we should cover the other boats out to the east instead. Spirit of Sark later gybed behind us and as we prepared to follow in their wake the wind obligingly shifted, so we held our course and saved valuable time by avoiding the gybe. We have been level pegging with Spirit of Sark ever since; and although technically the position reports at 0145 GMT (1045 local time) had us in first place, it is a close-run thing. Now, one hour into the watch, we can see the lights of just two other boats - Spirit of Sark to port and Me To You (who earlier gave us a good run for our money) a little further out to starboard. Up on the wall in the saloon galley, have a few amusing pictures of our antics at sea (and in port!), and we also have a few aims for different stages of the long voyage ahead to New Zealand. Without giving too much away, the first reads 'top three out of the River Plate'. We have managed to achieve this by steering from brown waters out into the deep blue in second. The task now is to up the concentration, prepare for a blow and stick out our necks as we head south. Next stop, Cape Horn! Naomi Cudmore

Leg 2 Day 1 : 35°47'00.0"S 56°47'00.0"W

It was always going to be difficult to top the race start day from Portsmouth. Buenos Aires, however, gave it a very good shot! The blessing of the yachts and crews was particularly moving - every member of the fleet all too aware of what lies ahead - and there was certainly a tangible sense of affection in the air. The competition might be passionately pursued, but at the bottom of the world nobody wants anyone else to get hurt. Hug followed hug as people zipped back and forth along the narrow pontoon saying 'aufwiedersehen' to friends on other yachts. But all too soon it was time to cast off and store the mooring lines for five or six long, tough weeks. After many tears, a good dousing with Holy Water and a roaring cheer from all those watching from the shore, we were greeted outside the marina by a surprisingly large armada of supporter boats and curious boat-owners who had been drawn out to see the Global Challenge fleet heading off for 'Cabo de Hornos'. Their exhilaration was infectious and got each and every one of us in the mood again. So thanks to the city for a fantastic farewell to round off a wonderful stopover; during which we had a partying 'sandwich' - work, followed by parties, followed by work - and the shore team had a work overload! Thank you to them especially for grafting non-stop to make sure we all got underway again in fine fettle! The skyscrapers left behind, the ten-minute gun resounded, taking with it any remaining final cobwebs that might have hung about us as we got back into the groove. Hearts once again began to pound and the yachts jostled in the muddy waters of the Plate beneath a brilliant clear sky. It was a close-run thing, not everyone managing to stay behind the line at the gun. We manoeuvred ourselves into a very good position, however, and then took the losing tack to escape the 'bad air' from other yachts. As we went into the watch system at 6p.m. we took the lead. It felt good to be back! The night saw a wonderful display overhead after our somewhat narrowed skies amidst the city buildings of Buenos Aires, and helming by the Southern Cross was a real treat, albeit one which required every ounce of concentration as we found ourselves rapidly locked back into battle with BG SPIRIT and Spirit of Sark. As day begins the story is much the same. The wind has died and we are struggling to eek out every .1 of a knot of speed. However, there they still are, within spitting distance! Here we go again. PS: A note to all our supporters who were due out to see us off on the boat - we are sorry that you did not make it and have not yet heard what the problem was with your boat. Such a shame. Thanks to all of you for turning out and supporting us though - we will see those friends and family amongst you again soon! Huge hugs to Kate and Jasper, June, Anne, Claire and Ruth, Olli's Mum and Dad and everyone else. Xxxxx Naomi Cudmore

Leg 1 Compilation Race Video

Leg 1 BP Explorer Compilation Video

Leg 1 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!