Ok ladies and gents, this may very well be the last blog I send before we arrive in Cape Town. How exciting is that!?
God, I am looking forward to getting in and having a nice long shower, changing my clothes, and having a perfect, cold beer. Actually, I may not do it in that order but you get the idea. I know that the rest of the team are equally excited and as I type, the winds are hitting 18 knots and the crew are sailing well.
It's been a shorter ride this race around but to echo some of my fellow skipper's thoughts, it seems to have felt like a long race all the same. We've had cold, cold nights, big waves, a lot of splashes, and everyone has really stepped up to the plate when it came to sailing in more pressing conditions.
I'm very proud of Team Liverpool 2018 and regardless of what position we finish the race in, I'll know that everyone tried their best. Having said that, I've told them that they need to beat Visit Seattle and Sanya Serenity Coast and hold fourth place or else they won't be fed in Cape Town...
Speaking of food, we had an extraordinary meal last night for our penultimate dinner. The dish was Beef Orlando which was delicious, but the really special part was who cooked it. It was none other than 'The Fish Queen' Mrs Rich, Carrie 'The Fish Whisperer' Rich's mother! You see, I've often wondered where Carrie got her fish whispering abilities from and now I know. The answer is so simple, her mother is part fish. I'm not sure which part of her is fish and which part isn't, nor did I see any scales on Mrs Rich when she came aboard, but all I know is this:
Carrie bragged about her mum's cooking and I called her bluff saying that we needed to eat it. So, Carrie sent out an email via the satcoms to her parents in Nairn, Scotland, asking her mum for the recipe. Within eleven hours we heard a strange banging on the hull and sent over a line to retrieve Mrs Rich. It appears that rather than letting her own daughter cook her personal recipe, she instead swam from Scotland to the boat and made it in record time! Again, the only logical explanation here (and yes, I'm fully aware that logic holds no sway on this boat) is that Mrs Rich is part fish.
In any case, the beef was fantastic. Thanks Mrs Rich.
Actually, keeping with the theme of Mothers, there's one other special lady that deserves a mention - me ol' Mum, Mumma Cap'n Lance. I found out recently that her knitting group in Cleveleys have been getting together in their local church (or was it the library) to make bobble hats. Apparently, all these gorgeous old ducks have been following the race tracker daily and when not talking about the latest gossip of who served cucumber sandwiches to whose ex-husband, they have been discussing race tactics and points of sail and all the rest of it. I'm so proud of you Mum!
Bobble hats have a long-standing history in my family and I pride myself on having a wide range to choose from when racing. Whether it's my Fisher-Patten Royal Marine beanie which has my unit's colours on it, or if it's the bright pink fluffy number I found in Punta del Este, all of my hats are important to me. In fact (and this is only if the fine ladies of the Cleveleys Knitting Club are up to it), I've been thinking that Team Liverpool 2018 might commission a number of pink woolly head warmers which we can then on-sell to raise some funds for Unicef. Give it a think mum and get back to me. If you need to send a message just find Mrs Rich and ask her to swim back to us.
Finally (yes Andy I'm writing a long and surprisingly articulate blog this time), I'd like to farewell those of our crew who will be leaving after Race 2. Some of these guys and gals have been with us since the start in Liverpool and some have only been with us for a short, but great, 18 days. All of them though have been amazing crew and we will miss them dearly. So, to the following I say see ya later and thank you.
Carrie 'The Fish Whisperer' Rich - you are always positive, inquisitive, and keen to learn. Your step up to Assistant Watch Leader on Leg 2 was completely deserved and the watch benefited from your personality and experience. See you back for Leg 4! Bring more Beef Orlando with you.
Richard 'Bossman Wes' Wesencraft - Thank you for always being so supportive and positive. Your learning has been through the roof and you are such a valued member of our crew.
Julie 'Chatterbox' Ashmore Dann - Goodness me you can talk, but I'm so excited to have you back for Leg 8 to hear all your stories. You kept all of our spirits up with your great conversations.
Stephane 'The Frenchie' Leloup - You always have a smile on your face and we will miss you dearly. Salut!
Steve 'Cliffy' Clifton - I'm sorry that you're leaving us early but I know you had an amazing time, and so did I whenever we were on deck together. I hope the race was everything you wanted.
Bas 'Baby Face' Van Ecke - You are an absolute asset to the team and your hard work drive is matched by your friendliness and great personality. Can't wait to have you back for Leg 7.
'Marky Mark' Whitely - Goodbye, you salty sea dog! For everyone's sake, please keep the beard and the hat and I'll see you on Leg 7 too.
Nick Redman - Good bye and good riddance.
Ta,
Lance
P.S. I'm secretly devastated that Little Red is leaving but I can't tell him because every time I look into his well chiselled face and dreamy deep brown eyes I well up with emotion... please just go. Just go.