We are on day 6 of our Atlantic crossing and have sailed more than 800 miles in blistering conditions.
Quite unexpectedly we have had winds force 5-6, in gusts 7 and more (20-40 knots) in our first week and have reached cracking speeds under No 3 gib and reefed main (1 1/2). We did not know 20 ton boat can surf like a dinghy. The boys are trying to crack the top speed of 13,4 knots reached by Karen steering while John was sorting out something on the bow, he was a bit frazzled when he returned into the cockpit.
Our watch system of two hours on during the night and three hours at daytime seems to work well and nobody has complained about the cooking yet. The kids are ok, Finn is a bit lethargic and does not eat well but they are enjoying watching a movie every afternoon and talk to some of their friends on the SSB every night.
The waves are huge, the slow trade wind sailing they show in the movies has not been experienced yet, the boat is trucking like a freight train down the waves and at night I find it quite scary sometimes. We still see the odd boat, mainly at night when you can see their lights. Weather routing invaluable and we love listening to other boats's experiences on SSB