I have been told by my supporters back home that there is a lot of negative chat on social media for the race, so when I get to Qingdao I will read it. Only the crew who are experiencing this race can judge whether it is worth it or not, everyone I have asked is not bothered about the motoring, they agree that safety is important and the Clipper Race is making sure everyone is safe to avoid any accidents and that is the right thing to do!
Mike who is only doing Leg 5 has no regrets doing it and has enjoyed the motoring!
We are now 3 days out of Hong Kong- stopping there for only a few hours; enough time to fix the forestays and refuel. So this next race will be measured on elapsed time and we set off first with Derry~Londonderry~Doire and GREAT Britain not far behind.
Light winds were forecast for the race start and 10 minutes before we were due to cross the start line we were seeing only 5 knots and then this suddenly increased to 30 knots, heading into the wind, so it has been very unpleasant for the past few days with large waves that you slam into and then fall off with a huge crash at the bottom. This all means little sleep for the off watch as you are woken up by the huge bang or the feeling that you are going to be thrown out of your bunk.
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| Sir Robin Knox-Johnston on hand in Hong Kong |
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| Matt and Sir Robin fix the forstay |
Light winds were forecast for the race start and 10 minutes before we were due to cross the start line we were seeing only 5 knots and then this suddenly increased to 30 knots, heading into the wind, so it has been very unpleasant for the past few days with large waves that you slam into and then fall off with a huge crash at the bottom. This all means little sleep for the off watch as you are woken up by the huge bang or the feeling that you are going to be thrown out of your bunk.
It has also gone from shorts and t-shirts weather to full wet weather gear in the space of a day; now I'm back to 7 layers and drysuit on, and I suspect it will only get colder as we head north.
This morning the wind has decreased allowing us all the reorganise our belongings and get some rest, on the weather reports it seems the rest of the fleet will be entering into a large wind hole, that hopefully we will be able to avoid!
You’re right only crew can give a valid opinion. Motor sailing due to weather conditions is beyond anyone’s control. However across the fleet there do seem to have been numerous failures and breakages all along the way, and of course problems were found with Mission Performance when lifted out of the water in Sydney.
ReplyDeleteI guess if one looks at it from the perspective of it being first and foremost an adventure, then overcoming challenges and disappointments is part of the character building aspect of it, but you are the only guys with a valid opinion. I say just keep on truckin'.