Getting one over on the old man
Greetings on a beautiful morning from a steadily defrosting Our Isles and Oceans crew. The last time I wrote a blog was on a similarly pleasant morning somewhere off the coast of Tasmania, reflecting on a New Year’s Eve to remember. On leg 7, as of yet, we haven’t had any such occasions, but it’s already been a thoroughly enjoyable race for us.
We set off from Seattle in high spirits and were treated to some spectacular wildlife on our motor out of Puget Sound. Watching orcas swim past less than 20 metres away is already a highlight that few things will top. The race started in conditions that weren’t quite expected – a bitterly cold wind twisting around from Alaska. That meant we spent most of the first few days with far more layers on than planned. I maxed out on my dedicated cold weather gear for the leg and had to launch an ambitious raid into my duffel to grab another pair of thermals. Other similar heists were undertaken by other crew in the opening days.
Fortunately, as we’ve ventured south, the weather has warmed and we’re almost at the point now where sleeping bags are becoming a bit too much. We still haven’t seen any shorts up on deck but it won’t be long now. I’m sure in no time at all we’ll be grumbling about the heat.
In the opening week, we decided as a crew to make a play for the scoring gate. After making very good headway over the first few days, we felt confident that we were in for some points, although Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam, and Zhuhai were both chasing us down with impressive speed. This little battle was doubly exciting for me because for this leg my dad is also competing. He is racing on Ha Long Bay, Viet Nam and I’ve had no end of stick from him after their previous leg win, so it was particularly satisfying to pip them to the line. It’s not entirely accurate to say that a lot of my motivation for this race is just to beat him, but there’s definitely an element of truth to it. For now, at least it’s good to have the bragging rights.
After a few days under white sails, we’ve had the spinnaker up this morning and it feels good. We had an unusual problem where the Code 3 got caught in a broken Yankee 1 hank mid-hoist, causing us all sorts of issues overnight, and definitely costing us a few places. Fortunately, it is up and flying well now, and we’re relieved to be back in the race.
The future is very much looking like light winds and oppressive heat. We’ll enjoy the last whisper of the cold while we have it. For now, onwards to Panama.