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Challenger 3 - Challenger 3 Blog from start to 25 Nov



Friday 18th November
ARC Prep


The pontoons of Las Palmas Marina have been a hive of activity this week as crews rush around to complete the final boat preparations before venturing across the Atlantic Ocean.

Shimmering sunshine has bathed boats and crews alike, making labour intensive jobs a hot and sweaty affair! Crew bonding has commenced!

Gangs of excited sailors drifted aboard throughout yesterday after plane journeys, and a chilled out evening of beers, storytelling and bristling enthusiasm filled Challenger 3 – For those of us that have been aboard fixing, planning and prepping the arrival of the rest of the crew was a welcome step up in crew morale…It really feels like we are about to depart on an adventure now!

Earlier in the week saw Ricky, the Skipper, and Kirstie, the Mate with their heads firmly buried in the engine bay.  After a day of problem solving, grease, oil and wires everything began to run smoothly.  More impressively, Andrew, one of the Watch Leaders and Radio Extraordinaire was tasked to solve the mysterious Sat-C communications problem.  With the pressure of the whole crossing depending on the outcome of his findings and fixings, a sweaty and tireless 4 days of work was rewarded with a working system!  Big sighs of relief and big commendations!

Every spare inch of the boat is now stored high with food provisions, boat parts and kit (and people!).  The freezer looks like an abattoir, there’s a leg of Pork hanging in the sail locker and later today there will be a supermarket’s worth of fruit and veg arriving, including a huge hand of unripened bananas.

It’s a lot of weight to race with…to add to this a mistake on our milk order has left us with a quarter of a tonne of long-life milk.  That’s a lot of porridge and milkshake to get through!

Currently all sails are being checked, repaired and repacked on the pontoon.  The jobs list is slowly decreasing, but as ever, on boats there is never enough time to complete them all.

Best get back to it! 
Kirstie, Mate

 

Sunday 20th November
ARC Day 1

At last… some of us had been in Las Palmas for 10 days or more (not to mention those among the crew who delivered the boat), and the excitement and adrenaline had reached fever pitch, which only intensified as we bobbed around among the floating tankers and jolly-boat well-wishers crowding the harbour before the start.

But at 12.45, we were finally off, racing across the start line as the most downwind boat in our class (and therefore the ‘stand on’ vessel – i.e. with right of way over the other boats). We have a friendly competition with our sister boats Challenger 2 and Challenger 4, and we were ahead of both (although we are now taking a slightly different course to them) for much of the afternoon.  The crew spent the afternoon on deck, getting our sea legs, which also involves learning to resist the incredibly soporific lull of the waves, beneath a gentle sun which came out for us finally in the early afternoon. 

There is a very large ham swinging and sweating in the sail locker. The hand of bananas has been chopped up (controversially), and bunches now swing lazily in a long line beside the ham. Relative novices like this writer lazily practiced their knots on deck. Senior members of the crew traded war stories (literally, in a few cases).  The mood on the boat is very relaxed, as evening draws in, and we approach the first watch.

A quick word finally about the farewell party at Las Palmas Real Nautic Sailing Club, which was hosted with great enthusiasm by members of the Gran Canaria and St Lucia tourist boards. Members of Challenger 2 crew led the charge on the dance-floor, to the delight of the local bigwigs, and our cries of ‘una mas! Una mas!’ were rewarded with the chance to jump around madly to Billy Jean before the plug was finally pulled and we all staggered back to the boat along the beach. Magic.

Ralph Goodchild
Deckhand

 

 

It was an interesting slip from the pontoon, with an anchor laid with about 40m of chain in the marina. I know this is a super yacht technique and it was requested by the marina, but with other vessels trying to depart and a side wind, retrieving the anchor from the fairway of the marina was a little unusual. After that though we left with banners flying past the photography point and into the harbour for our start.

We had a great start clear of other vessels at the pin end, and clear of an anchored cargo vessel which caused a bit of a blockage and resulted in an incident with the Girls For Sail boat being T-Boned and having to return to the marina. A very different start to last years ARC, downwind yes, but with a flat sea and 10 knots of breeze on the beam it was all very pleasant.

Challengers 2 and 4 are stuck together with Challenger 2 still marginally ahead. They are currently six miles to the east of us and marginally to the South. We are playing a slightly risky game by being closer to the wind shadow caused by the volcanoes, but we are closer to the Caribbean and the rum. With 2645 miles to go to the finish line, we have just clocked up 55 miles  towards our destination today, and have a long and hopefully exciting race ahead.

Ricky (Skipper Challenger 3 – First Class Sailing)


 

Monday 21st November
ARC Day 2

Well Monday morning dawned with the lighter winds as forecast. The fleet seems divided as how to cope with them. Lots have chosen to stay on or return to a Port Gybe and try and get out of the light winds. It looks like Challenger 4 has opted for that strategy as she didn’t gybe when we did, and has now dropped off AIS. Challenger 2 is sticking with us and heading West with a smidge of North to keep some apparent wind.

We launched the kite an hour or so ago, but apart from being prettier, it hasn’t done very much to our boat speed.

The forecast promises a shift in wind direction and a gradual building of the wind, so by Wednesday we should be hard pressed in 18 knots on the beam with a larger sea state. Perfect weather for a challenger, maybe not so great for the smaller boats who all seem to be high tailing it South. Forecasts – you trust them and they invariably let you down but what else can you race using ?

Tony is on Mother Watch today and is coping with the challenges of cooking for 16 and keeping on top of our mountain of fruit and veg and keeping it all in good order. We need to eat down the weight of potatoes to help the boat speed, so come on guys eat up !

Ricky (Skipper Challenger 3 – First Class Sailing)

 

Tuesday 22 nd November

ARC DAY 3

Second day out. The winds remained light, dropping during the day but with a forecast front in the evening. We flew the spinnaker at 11am, holding 5 kts and pulling away from Challenger 2.  Then the wind dropped again. Ricky fixed an asymmetric spinnaker – but still the wind decreased. However the good news was that Challenger 2 had slipped 10 miles astern, with Challenger 4 deciding on a southerly course and going AWOL from AIS.

Spirits are high on Sarah. Our 9 nation crew has confounded Brexit and formed a real team – at least in the crew’s estimation.  The food remains excellent although 200 bananas in the forward locker and 1600 litres of milk has set minds buzzing.  Milk shakes look likely. Milk is added to all courses  - even the beef curry which replaced the pre-ordered lamb..

Where would you find a Russian, Frenchman, Swede, German, Taffy, South African, Pole,  Dutchman and the odd brit drifting gently towards the Caribbean without a cross word said.

Ricky and Kirsty remain inspirational. We will win our class, but the only question is  by what margin. The test comes to-night with fresh winds forecast. The spinnaker will come down at twilight whilst we enjoy the curry cooked by Tony.

Ah well, we are pressing  on regardless for our Skipper’s  OBE.

 

Bill Southcombe ( deckhand)

 

Quite a slow and frustrating day in terms of racing today.  The aforementioned jibe at 6am served us well for a while before the midday wind hole gripped us and would not let go!  Even though mentally prepared for this expected situation, twiddling thumbs and restlessness ended up with us playing with our sail plan.  Spinny up worked well for a while and the crew got us some good speeds by trimming the spinnaker sheet.
Our pretty blue and white sail soon started to sag and look sad in the dying whisper of a breeze.  Ricky pinned the sail in before dropping it and opting for the yankee one once again.
Andrew monkeyed up the mast to look for wind and boats as the crew held the helm carefully to try and catch the slightest of winds and not cause friction with the rudder.

A cheerful sunset and fantastic beef curry has set us up for the night watches.  Currently heading south and making a little west at 3 – 4 knots.  Looking forward to the approaching stronger winds!

Kirstie Rowe
Mate Ch 3

 

Light wind sailing can always be a bit frustrating, but it is a fact of Ocean Racing and races are won and lost at night and in light winds normally. Anyone can make a boat go fast in strong winds. Still, it takes patience, perseverance and fortitude to keep a fifty ton boat gliding forward in three knots of fluky wind.

We have been rewarded finally with some steady light winds from a reasonable direction, pretty much as  forecast and are currently heading in the right direction at 4 knots. If the forecast is correct, we should see these conditions build and build and be in twenty knots of breeze by Wednesday and be doing 8 or so knots towards the finish line.

We have Challenger 2 visible on AIS, and it looks like they have been having a similar day and have coped just as well. Races are only won in light winds if the competition fair less well than you… Challenger 4 has dropped off our AIS, but we have a midday position for them and chatted to them on VHF earlier and they have also done well, may be a bit better than us, being a bit further South.

Dolphins finally paid us a visit, a pod of about 15, but I think they were so disgusted with our pitiful boat speed and the lack of any bow wave that they soon gave up and sent in search of fish or faster boats. We have seen the occasional flying fish and a few birds but that’s pretty much it for wild life so far, at least off the boat. We have had some great stars to look at, a moon halo this morning and off course fantastic sun rises and sun sets.

The crew are all coping well, and our only sea sick colleague us now feeling much better. Chocolate Brownies have been made by Andrew and consumed, the mother watch system is working well, and the fruit and veg is holding up well and being appreciated and enjoyed by the crew.

At 4am this morning the wind filled in nicely and the Challenger heeled over and started doing what it does best, charge upwind at 10 knots. We still had the Yankee 1 up, and after initially being pleased at the sudden burst of speed, as the wind strength built, the elation turned to concern. So as the crew whooped and high-fived each other, I woke Kirstie who was busy falling out of her bunk as were most of those crew living on the high side. We prepped for and then dropped the Yankee 1 in favour of our smaller and stronger Yankee 2. Boat speed the same, but a much happier skipper. Also a soggy Mate muttering about how nice her earlier fresh water shower had been and how clean she had been for half a watch…Salt water showers on the foredeck at 4am are apparently not as enjoyable.

If this wind is true to forecast it should build a bit more, then veer and eventually we should be broad reaching, at which time the Yankee 1, now safely stowed in its bag, may make its reappearance. I guess I have an emotional attachment to “big yellow” with it’s 48 sail number in the tack corner - it’s the sail I raced around the world with in 2004/5. I also don’t want a repeat of last year when we blew our Yankee 1 early on the ARC, although it did provide for crew entertainment hand stitching it back together again over a period of six days.

Ricky (Skipper)

22 Nov. 16

Well, after wishing for wind…we got it!
After clinging on to my bunk like a bat at 4am and debating popping my head on deck, a patter of feet announced the arrival of Ricky asking for assistance to get the Yankee one down and a change to the smaller Yankee 2.  A strong foredeck team of Ricky, myself, Andrew, Yana and Charlie fought the sail down supported by a Pit team led by Peter.  The sodden foredeck team were relieved and sent to get dry.  (Top quote from Charlie “I’m a fair weather sailor”.  On deck at 0630 saw a beautiful pink sunrise and excellent close hauled sailing conditions.  I ramped up the concentration levels by suggesting a helming speed competition (in the correct direction).  The reigns were taken on by Ralph who, new to sailing, cracked out a 9.5 knots, I couldn’t resist and managed a 10.7 high score….nearly beaten promptly by Hillary with a 10.6!

The wind is due to come around on to the beam and we are concentrating on coaching good helming and sail trim.  Challenger 2 are south of us and are currently pretty much matching our speed and course.  Challenger 4 are still lost on AIS so we anxiously await the noon day report to see how much damage our becalment caused us last night.

All is running smoothly and there are huge smiles all round about the amazing sailing conditions…even if they are a bit unusual for the ARC!

Kirstie Rowe
Mate Challenger 3

Wednesday 23rd November

Third day out. We are well ahead of Challenger 2 and 4; we a on a northerly course so morale is high in this highly competitive crew.

Bill did mother yesterday. The food was ok, despite a complete breakdown in his humour when he lifted a boiling pan of spaghetti water at the exact time that Ralph decided to practice his crash jibes. Fortunately Kirstie was the other crew member in earshot and remarked that she had never heard such a concentrated stream of invective. Calm descended in minutes.

Ricky and Kirstie remain inspirational. The Watch leaders are helpful and the paying guests are obeying orders which contributes so much  to the success of this multi national crew,

So we forge ahead into the Unknown. We are reaching the point where Columbus’ crew mutinied because they were soon to reach the edge of the known world. We know better. Ricky has promised us Baccy and Rum when we reach the promised land. Every mile takes us closer to our destination and the land of Trump.

Bill

 

All is good on Challenger 3, the Pineapples are slightly alcoholic, or maybe we are just willing it so. We have enough potatoes to begin a Vodka distillery soon. Food continues to be excellent and the three watch system is giving the crew plenty of time to enjoy life on deck and marvel at the big Atlantic swell, even though it seems devoid of wildlife at the moment.

The wind forecast seems a little disappointing after Sunday when, if they are correct, we will be back in very light winds and struggling again to keep the boat moving. Maybe that will be a good time to start the distillery.

Strategy wise, we are sticking as far North as we can. This will allow us to gybe at some point and get a good wind angle when the winds are due East which is due to happen in the next day or so. We are still flying our Yankee 2, preferring to keep our bigger Yankee 1 intact for the forecast lighter winds to come. Hopefully staying North will also keep us in the stronger winds for longer. We are matching speed with Challenger 2 and have pulled back a 16Nm gap after they closed it down to 13Nm during the morning. The challenge is to stretch that to 20Nm by dinner time, and the max speed competition is in full swing, currently the top speed is 12.1 knots.

 

Ricky (Skipper)

 

 

 

Thursday 24th November

Fourth day and no signs of mutiny yet. The food has remained exceptional with Ricky keeping a watch on our budding Escoffiers who can create masterpieces at 45 degrees of tip.

We pulled ahead from Challenger 2 overnight and we now  have 14.88 nm separation (the .88 is important. They lie about 6 nm to the south on a parallel course.

Yana is cook today. The porridge and bread were exceptional and we have only just started.

Otherwise the crew have resorted to type. Helena and Fabrice read, Yana and Bill spar              ( gently), Bill doesn’t sleep but keeps the heads spot-on and banters all day, Charlie tries to sleep, and Tony does. Ralf (German) writes his diary and Ricky and Kirstie trim sails and talk tactics. Hilary looks after John who is recovering by the day, but also does a mean helm as well.

Bill

Ex RAF layabout

 

 

All is good aboard Challenger 3. The crew have all got their sea legs now and life on board the house that rocks and rolls has become more natural. The seas calmed down a little and thankfully the wind is still suitably strong where we are “oop North” and it is not grim at all.

Ricky (Skipper)

 

This morning the sun took a long time to rise and brighten the dark, cloudy night.  The sunrise was an uninspiring event that just happened.
Fun, downwind helming conditions prevailed and Helena and I improved on our speed records (12.6 and 12.8…still 13.2 to beat!).  Peter sat at the back whilst Fabrice and Bill both took their turn at the reigns.
Tomasz worried myself and Hillary by dancing to “You can leave your hat on” before disappearing below and resurfacing with hat in hand! ;)

Whoops and giggles exploded as dolphins approached at high speed from all angles, jumping high and showing off with their best bow surfing skills.  Ralf headed for the bow and enjoyed a spectacular show.

Another great lunch and the sun is now shining…just another day on Ch 3 J
Kirstie (Mate)  

 

 

Thursday 24 November

As I am typing I can hear the sound of feet on the deck, sheets being ground on and grunts of happiness, I think its happiness anyway, as Nic’s watch grind the yankee over in preparation to gybe, drop the starboard pole and raise the port pole and re-set the yankee 2. On this gybe all of us will have the opportunity to become best friends with  the starboard side of our bunks, and for some the use of our starboard lee cloths, strap in all, including teddy bears, that means you Uncle Albert.

Lunch was another success, thanks to Yana and several helpers, I can recommend the date & sultana loaf yum yum.

Well I’m off for some zzzzzzz after a great morning watch with good speeds and at times we were even on course, only kidding Watch you were awesome. As the day broke it was odds on the rain may come, but the sun prevailed and should make for a pleasant afternoon, enjoy Nic’s watch.

Snoozetime

Peter (Watch leader – the best looking watch, of course)

 

A great afternoon sailing, with poled out head sail, wind on the beam and 18kts of breeze. A following swell adds interest to the helming  but the coaching of Ricky and Kirstie has helped enormously. We were very fortunate to be  visited by a pod of about 50 dolphins who demonstrated their agility effortlessly, playing at the bow and leaping around in the swell. Camera work was tricky. On a heaving deck and camera shy dolphins we ended up with a selection of photos of washing on the guard rail, the insides of pockets and sea scapes. There is a rumour that Nic has captured a ‘fin’ shaped splash in one of the 200 shots he fired off in the 10 minute encounter. Referring to the photo, Nic was later heard bragging in the galley that he was going to “sell it to National Geographic.”   

We now sit in 5th  out of 12 in our racing division, and 57th out of 220 overall. Challenger 2 and 4 still trailing in our wake has kept us on our toes with constant attention to our speed. Nic’s watch still hold the record at 13.2

A late squall came through, which clashed with a number of urgent tasks that suddenly required attention below decks, including a phone that needed charging and a cup of tea that was on the edge of going from tepid to lukewarm. This left three, soaking, witless plonkers, who were too slow on the draw and were left steering the ship.

 

Nic, Hilary, John and Tony of B Watch (Widely regarded as the fastest Watch)

 

1800 – 0000 Watch
14knots (tactful surf) – sorry Nic J
Kirstie

 

Friday 25 November

Night shift

 

At around midnight Captain Ricky called for a gybe so that we could move further north toward what are expected to be more reliable winds. This would require a series of coordinated moves in the pitch black on a rolling deck in a force 6. Shortly into the operation the boat was hit by a monsoon, lashing the crew with rain and causing the wind direction to become unpredictable.

As conditions became more hazardous the tasks leading to the gybe were stopped to allow the wind to settle. Soaked to the bone, cold and miserable, the crew were huddled together murmuring in the cockpit like tramps around a fire in a squat. Mutiny could not be far away. That was until a packet of Wine Gums was located in the treats cupboard. In a Neanderthal like manner, the crew set about the Wine Gums.

With the wind settled, the rain abating and spirits soaring, we managed to complete the gybe, setting our course for fairer winds, and with it, hopefully victory.

Tony – the finder of the Wine Gums, aka the hero of the Atlantic.

Challenger 3. Out.

 

25 Nov. 16
Finally a good nights/off watch sleep.  And no wonder!
At the end of my midnight watch we decided to gybe to keep ourselves in the narrow stream of stronger winds to the north.
With the Yankee blown through to the correct side and the pole down, all was set in the rolly, black seas to gybe.  However torrential rain brought shifty winds, and Ricky on the helm, we hunkered down to ride it out.  The 10 minute squall lasted a good 30 – 40 minutes, by which time every inch of skin was not only wet but actually running with water.
As the winds calmed we carried on with gybe, and the new pole set the yankee sped us up into the faster winds. 
Spanish Omlette and sunshine for breakfast J Happy days!

Kirstie Ch 3 

 


 

Friday 25 November Day Shifts

 

  

Ricky Chalmers

 

Skipper

Challenger 3


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