Race 10 - Day 1
Crew Diary - Off to Sea
21 March
It’s midnight on Monday 20th February and we are finally off to sea. We’ve all spent two weeks, or four, or six in Subic Bay, Philippines waiting and working to get the boats ready to go, the boats themselves have been waiting there for two years, but now we have left. Our boat, GoToBerumda, like the others, has been cleaned inside and out, her engine, generator, and winches have been serviced, her sails, lines and guardrail net have been fixed, she has a new hob, new lifeboats, and new kettle, her tanks have been topped up with water and diesel, her cubbies stuffed with spare parts and all our gear, her nets with fresh fruit and veg, and all the cupboards filled with food for five weeks. At 12 noon exactly, 12 hours ago, we pulled out of the dock and paraded about with the other ten boats, each of them decked out in their banners and flags, then we had yet another man overboard drill, and then, yes, finally, we were on our way. We won’t start racing for another four days, we’re still doing training as we sail north to the official starting line for Race 10, but we won’t go to land again until we’ve crossed the north Pacific and made it all the way to Seattle. Yeah! Hip hop hurray, we’re finally off to sea.
Our first day at sea, yesterday, by the way, was just lovely, we beat our way north over smooth seas with a fresh breeze filling all three of our white sails and heeling the boat over. By 4pm we were into our watch system already with some of the crew crawling into their bunks for their first nap, others heading to the galley to cook our first hot meal, and yet others staying on deck to sail where Wavy, our captain, spent hours working one on one with us helping hone our skills helming or trimming or even just general boat procedure. A lightning storm, far off to our starboard side, filled the night sky for several hours but then the clouds blew off to reveal a bowl of stars overhead and an almost full moon high above us. It feels like positive omens are everywhere. And it’s certainly wonderful to be off to sea.
Emily