Race 1 - Day 24
Crew Diary - Race 1 Day 24: Liverpool to Punta del Este
13 September

Helen Lane
Helen Lane
Team Liverpool 2018
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I mean, what is a girl to do? Some things don't change even on a 70 foot yacht. What to wear... Over the last 2 or 3 days I have been struggling with a proper wardrobe dilemma. Gone are the worries of “Little Black Dress” versus slinky red number. Behind us are the days of trying on every outfit in the wardrobe, discarding them one by one onto the bed as unsuitable, only to return to the first item tried on. This is partly because the options contained in a 20kg bag are a little more limited, but also partly because the bunk does not accommodate more than a couple of pieces of clothing before unceremoniously dumping them on the floor as the boat lurches through the next wave.

Strictly speaking I suppose it is t-shirt and shorts weather – well temperature-wise at least, and that sounds simple enough. The issue arises when you get doused with water every 20 minutes or so from the waves coming over the bow and running down the deck, or waves hitting the side of the boat and climbing over the edge in massive showers, or falling as rain from the frequent squalls passing overhead. Good money is passing hands for the “drier” seats on deck. Not guaranteed, of course, just the likelihood of completing a watch slightly damp as opposed to totally soaked. Just ask one unfortunate crew member who, fresh and shiny from their Mother Watch shower, in clean and (for now) dry clothes, barely got one foot on deck before a cascade of water came over the companionway hatch cover straight on top of them. A bit like having a bucket of water tipped down your neck when you are facing the other way. (Apologies to Skipper for the ensuing wiggly course – helm was crying with laughter and could not see the compass.)

True, we all have a set of foul weather gear designed to keep us dry, but they also keep us pretty warm. So, your choice becomes going with the approach of wearing only board shorts (not quite, but you get the idea) and attempting to dry them after each watch. But the trouble is that you very quickly bump up against that 20kg kit limit again – there are just not enough pairs of pants to sustain this for long. Alternatively, you can get togged up in your wet weather salopettes and splash jacket (a lightweight, almost waterproof top) and staying reasonably dry, if we ignore the steaming in your own sweat aspect (I would use a more delicate phrase, but there is no delicacy in this conundrum). It really all depends on how much you like having wet underwear to sit around in, or indeed to sleep in! I imagine this is what it is like being a toddler. Crew members have tried, variously, just splash tops (if you like wet pants), just salopettes (and run the risk of water over the top and wet insides as well as wet outsides!), and just underwear beneath their salopettes and splash tops.

Not sure anyone has quite cracked it. So, we continue to have a range of clothing items “drying” behind the helm, squeals as water hits the next victim, and cries of “mind the potholes” as we fall off the top of the next wave. Such is life in ocean racing.

Written by Helen Lane

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