Good morning PSP Watchers,
I am writing this in a quiet moment some hours before our 0600 deadline. At the moment, we are languishing in a windhole, so I am not missing much on deck. It is a proper windhole, with the sea absolutely glassy, and not even a ripple to indicate any forward motion of the boat. Low grey cloud hangs over us, and we have nothing for company apart from several other Clipper Race yachts spread around the horizon, and, of course, a mass of fishing boats. I am hoping that by the time it comes time to send this blog off to the Race Office the wind will have filled in, and we will be cruising around the south coast of Hainan Island on our way to Zhuhai.
The waiting does have a bright side. It has given us the time to compare stories of our rather epic stopover in Vietnam. It really is a truly amazing country, and the people are so incredibly hospitable and welcoming. Some of our crew were adventurous and travelled to all parts of the country, while others remained within Ha Long City itself, just enjoying the food and the friendliness. It left us all refreshed and ready when we stepped on the boat yesterday and slipped lines for our final motor out of the bay towards the Le Mans start.
We had a very solid start. Nicky and Dale had drawn us at the windward, favoured end of the start line, and we charged all through the night under a lovey 15 knot breeze, eating the miles southwards. As predicted though, dawn brought us this windhole, but also a fantastic breakfast of egg sandwiches, on top of our usual cereal, granola, dried fruit, fresh fruit salad, fresh bread, jam and Nutella. All washed down with 'posh' French press coffee and, of course, a steaming mug of Yorkshire tea.
On on PSP
Mike, Lottie and the steadily moving crew of PSP Logistics