Finally this morning at 6am i made it into Mylor, the sailing was bumpy and rather uncomfortable. After leaving Brixham at 11am yesterday soon after fixing my rigging problem the wind was quite pleasant and the going was good but after passing Start Point and Salcombe it really started to increase. I had wind up to 32 knots, which is a force 7 i guess, just as forecast. What amazes me each time is how messy the sea state becomes in the English channel, it must be a combination of shallow waters and currents but as soon as the wind picks up the waves build up short and criss-crossed and sailing into them is a bit like riding a bike up the stairs.
Here in Mylor the weather is absolutely foul, I'm glad i pressed on yesterday because it has been raining all day and the wind houls and i' sure it is preatty horrendous out there. About 7 of us competing in the race have gathered so far, i'm rafted along Diablo-J, there is Mary on QII, Desmond on Roc, I've seen Orvieto, S X girl and the Dutch Chillout. Jerry on Fluffy and Katie Miller on Hot Socks are in Falmouth and due in later, all the others are on the way i guess but i'm not sure where they are. Graham on Outlandish was due to leave this morning from Dartmouth.
Everyone I spoke to is busy fixing some problem or another with the boat, in a way this calms me down as i realise that there isnt such a thing as a boat with nothing that needs fixing. Here on British Beagle all is fine, if we forget the incident with the U-bolt i was very pleased as other than some little nags everything that really matters worked fine.
To give an example, I have a windvane, a big metal machine sticking at the back of the boat that steers the boat sensing the wind with a paddle in the air. It allows me to set a course and let it steer for me... I spent nearly 40 hours at sea in the past 2 days and i didnt helm a single minute, what a luxury! The new wind generator too is a true luxury, in the strong winds i can have everything turned on, computer, radar, lights, radio and i still dont have to worry about discharging the batteries.
I was also very pleased to see that i'm not all shattered as i usually am after sailing, finally all those nights spent training at the globe paid out hansomely, lifting pint glass after pint glass till my arms grew strong and fit for sailing!!! Thinking of which, i guess it's time to head for a nice cold beer... Ciao!
Marco.
British Beagle
If you enjoy this website why not make a donation to The Institute of Cancer Research. For more information visit our Charities page.