Race 1 - Day 33
Crew Diary - Race 1 Day 33: Liverpool to Punta del Este
22 September

Michael Fahy
Michael Fahy
Team Garmin
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Wow! Day 33 and Punta del Este is now tantalisingly close at less than 200nm. It seems like a lifetime ago since we left Liverpool to an emotional bon voyage from family and friends. Being cocooned in an isolated world with 21 others and little interaction with the outside world other than that immediately around us is a unique experience, and in fact it is quite nice being isolated from having to hear about the latest Trump shenanigans or hearing about Brexit.

Having sailed over 6,500nm in nearly 5 weeks, it is probably a good point to reflect on expectations coming into the race and thoughts now we are near the end of the longest single leg in the race. Signing up for something like the Clipper Race, you are going in eyes wide open to a mixture of adventure and challenge, though you can never really be ready for the reality of such an extreme endeavour.

I would characterise the adventure as the unique experience of sailing across an ocean alongside three continents and through the Equator. The sea generally looks the same wherever you are, deep and blue sometimes calm, but more often with big swells or choppy waves. The night sky however seems to change all the time and on a clear night is literally carpeted with stars with new ones being revealed or hidden depending on our latitude and with a completely different panorama between the Northern and Southern Hemisphere. One of the magical effects of the starlight is where it lights up our wake with a bright phosphorescence of dancing lights following the boat. Particular highlights on the wildlife front have been sailing through a large flock of birds who were diving into the sea on a combined fishing exercise with large school of dolphins who broke cover just as we sailed through them, leaping high out of the water and diving back in. This was just as the sun was setting behind us so was a surreal, beautiful moment. Another dolphin-based highlight was when a school of 20-30 dolphins appeared from nowhere and raced over to swim alongside our yacht, some surfing our bow wave 4-5 abreast in perfect synchronisation while others swan alongside showing off with somersaults and backflips. They clearly had come over just to say hello and put on a show.

The challenge bit covers the endurance of what our skipper GT correctly describes as an extreme sport. This is an ocean racing yacht, which is as similar to a cruising yacht as a racehorse is to a pet horse, and just like a racehorse it is liable to unseat you and bite you in the process if you lose control or concentration just for a for a moment. Life on deck is tough with continuous sail changes to suit the constantly changing wind and sea conditions, not to mention the stress of helming, with little to no night visibility in choppy seas and our spinnaker sails up. Though this is chicken feed compared to the endurance of life below deck, especially when heeled up at 45 degrees where everything is now 10 times harder than it was when even keeled and even more so than the same things on land. Just getting your sailing boots on is a challenge, not to mention trying to go to the toilet in what seems like a particularly bouncy fairground ride.

I am signed up for Leg1 and 2 which is a big enough challenge for me. I do however have the utmost respect for the Round the Worlders who are signed up for 11 months of challenge and adventure. It takes a special type of character to sail around the world on a racing yacht, but I have no doubt all 10 of our RTWs will make it.

I would like to say au revoir to the leggers getting off in Punta del Este. We have a fantastic crew with everyone getting along and helping each other whilst having a laugh wherever possible. It will be sad to see a few depart and I am sure we will all keep in touch, but the consolation is we have new crew members joining so can regale them with tales of Leg 1 and get to know them over the next leg.

Before I sign off I would like to wish my cousin Ann-Marie Davis who is sailing on HotelPlanner.com a belated happy birthday. I look forward to buying you a glass of rum to celebrate when we get into port. Having raced over 6,500 miles, we are sailing within 10 miles of each other as I type this so the race is on for family honours.

Last but by no means least I would like to wish my wonderful wife Ros a happy 26th wedding anniversary. I wish I was there to tell you personally how much I love you and miss you, speak to you soon and hope to see you in Cape Town. All my love to Connor and our little bud Pip.

Adios, Michael