Race 10 - Day 25
Crew Diary - Steve Smith 13 April
13 April

Everything today seems a little Deja Vu…Probably because it's literally groundhog day for us. Yesterday we crossed the International Date Line, or today, depending on how you look at it?! It was a cool moment for the crew and the cameras were out to snap a quick pic of the moment we officially crossed 180 degrees longitude...albeit slightly anti-climatic as you never actually see the GPS show 180 as we are moving too fast!

It was a landmark moment in the race for us as a crew, as it marked another “section” of the race complete, and we celebrated with a bottle of bubbly….of the Coca Cola variety!

We continue to press ahead at the front of the fleet, which is a great morale booster, seeing our plan come to fruition. That said we are under no illusion that it's a done deal and continue to work hard on deck to maintain every bit of speed, even if that means hoisting and dropping sails more frequently to try and maximise the knots available.

With downwind sailing and surfing waves firmly on the agenda (finally!) it makes for a slightly flatter and more pleasant living experience down below – another great morale booster! Our Mothers have certainly welcomed the flatter conditions. Bread making is now a daily occurrence in readiness for the following day's breakfast, although results have been a bit of a mixed bag. Andrew did come to the rescue the other day with a quick morning loaf, after the attempt from the previous Mother’s (who will remain anonymous!) resembled more that of a cricket bat than an edible loaf of bread! It really could happen to any of us, as trying to find anywhere on the boat warm enough to prove the dough and help it rise is a challenge in itself.

On a more serious note, we have reached a dire moment on board, as we’ve begun to run out of snacks! Despite the efforts of our great victuallers to hide away snacks for later on in the race, their efforts were no match for hungry crew members! Snack options are getting a little creative, and the go to bowl of instant noodles has returned amidst that cold, late night watch!

Signing off for now, the rolling surf of the North Pacific beckons me!