Race 1 - Day 30
Crew Diary - Race 1 Day 30: Liverpool to Punta del Este
19 September

Erik Ferm
Erik Ferm
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Changing Conditions by Erik Ferm

Many years ago, someone told me this incredible story about an aircraft with a flawed control system which lead to it suddenly flying upside down when it crossed the Equator. I am not sure how true that story was, but I am happy to report that, even after several days in the Southern hemisphere, the mast on Visit Seattle is still pointing up and the keel is still in water.

As we are approaching midnight here, it is hard to imagine that it was only a day or so ago that we were struggling to get a kite out of the water and back on the boat in 30 knot winds and waves that made the boat look rather small. The task right now is to make the boat move as fast as possible through an area of very light winds. So the crew is sitting on the low side as far forward as possible in order to lift the transom out of the water to reduce turbulence behind it and to make the hull cut through the water as well as possible.

Life on board is less frantic in light winds and we have spent the day repairing lines that were damaged over the last few weeks and catching up on other house keeping tasks. Faced with the interesting challenge of how to keep itself entertained without internet access, the crew has really shown its creative side. When I came up on deck for watch changeover this evening, the first thing I saw was Nikki concentrating on applying a felt-tip pen tattoo on the back of another crew member. The result was really good but I am not sure how permanent it will be so please don't be disappointed if you come to Uruguay and find your crew member without a tattoo.

As we were within VHF range of Unicef this evening a little quiz was organised between the two boats and we were challenged with questions such as why the White House is white and what the name of Unicef's sewing machine is (I understand these blogs are censored so I won't give the answer here!).

With less than 600 miles to go, it is impossible to not try to imagine what it will be like to be back on terra firma. Personally, I really look forward to enjoying simple pleasures such as horizontal floors and sitting on a chair (the number of chairs on the boat is zero). However, I really look forward to coming back for Leg 7 next year to continue the adventure and catch up with all the amazing people that make up our crew.