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Webster - Record noon day run hurries Webster into a wind hole



Monday 19th May 2014. Position noon 33 48N 51 22W noon run 190nm

The boat had been piling on the miles last night with winds from the WSW of around 15-20+ knots with the sea moderating. With the jib boomed out still as it had been all day and with two reefs in the main the rig was balanced and fast and Igor has once again proved himself to be the best Slovenian helmsman we have with us. This has continued this morning and has resulted in a noon day run of around 190nm, a record for the boat and for all on board. However we know its only propelling us more quickly towards a no wind zone in the Azores high which is lurking the other side of the wind band produced by the passing low pressure system, but we will take it thank you very much.

I was awoken this morning with a real start - Igor was leaning over me in the saloon berth trying to reach an apple. His face, what with his white beard, glasses and red beaney hat looking for all intents and purposes like Papa Smurf, was no more than five inches from mine when I opened my eyes. I nearly had a heart attack and probably will be subjected to Smurf nightmares for time immemorial.

I had a go this morning as the SSB net controller as Aurora was too far east, Reberth had returned to Bermuda with alternator trouble, Sea Eagle had not yet even left and the only other controller Simon on Bertha could not do it every day. It was actually quite good fun but with the radio on transmit for a prolonged period it really eats up battery power. Everyone is experiencing similar weather and going in much the same direction which I suppose is fairly obvious but there are decisions to make about what point do you head into the wind hole.

We are all a little concerned to hear the news of the First 40.7 Cheeki Rafiki which had been taking in water and was abandoned some time Thursday last on route to the Azores and the upturned hull of which had been found by search and rescue teams to the north of us but with no signs of a life raft; the search had gone on for two days and eventually abandoned. This news may make it into the British press as the 4 guys on board were Brits by all accounts but just to reassure all at home we are fine, just hope that they are found safe and sound.


We have been proceeding all afternoon with full sail and boomed out jib in a decreasing breeze from the WSW and this evening it has died right off. The boat is still ghosting along at 4-5 knots which is extraordinary as there seems so little wind. The longer she can achieve these speeds in hardly any wind the better as we are very short on fuel should we need to motor for days on end. Mentioned on the SSB net that we may have to resort to eating Dave and invited Aurora over for dinner should this be the case. Dave is now frantically finding ways to ration our meat reserves and indeed has got the fishing line out, albeit unsuccessfully as usual on this boat.

The question of ships time has come up again and arguments as to whose watch is going to be extended to allow for the clocks to move forward to eventually coincide with Azorian time. An interesting dilemma but we shall probably just stay as we are with the sun rising at 0530 and setting at 2000. As the Azores are some 4 hours ahead of us we will either arrive after the pub has shut or have an additional 4 hours drinking. My liver is already voting for the pub shut option as Neal contemplates a night out on Mojitos.

We have seen all manner of floating objects today now the sea has calmed down. Neal has spotted an orange tennis ball, a pink plastic scraper of some description, a 50 gallon fuel canister and, more alarmingly an entire tractor tyre still on its rim which, should we have run into it at speed would have been potentially dangerous.

Oh well, my turn on watch although we are on auto pilot in little wind with the rig crashing about in the slight breeze. Not a cloud in the sky and the stars are amazing, not to mention the vivid green shooting star we saw. Its just a bit damp now in the evenings but we can't have everything I suppose after such a lovely hot sunny day.

Hi Ho!

Charlie

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