Pipistrelle - Log Day 1 We are on way!

Helloall   First of all, verymany thanks to all who have emailed their good wishes to us.  It is reallyheartening to know that so many of you have remembered our big day, and what aday it was!   We had an earlystart as there was still a lot to do, and at 10 a.m. Pedro at the Texaco fuelpontoon right opposite us started pounding out Canarian music, and gave afarewell greeting to the yachts as each one motored slowly past.  The sunwas shining and everyone was in good spirits.  There was a crowd ofspectators all along the walls leading to the exit, with World Cruising Clubstaff taking photos of each yacht as they left the marina.  The crew onboard are Bob & Elaine, Alan Painter and Paul Lund, good friends from theOffshore Cruising Club (Overlord), and Nick. read more...

Pipistrelle - Log Day 2 Sun shining and steady winds

Helloall   We achieved 180 nm in our first 24 hours to 1300yesterday, taking it steadily with reefed sails.  The second 24 hours islooking respectable as well.  We have now altered course having cleared thewind shadow created by the Canaries and are running on a southwesterlyheading towards stronger trade winds and the Caribbean, though further coursechanges will be necessary in a few days.   Yesterday afternoon we had a matinee performance by yetmore dolphins, and clear skies last night gave us a sky studded withstars.  The wind then eased, and whilst we still have a reefedmain, the genoa is now poled out.    Alan is doing a stirling job with his watch system,which enables us to have 6 hours off every now and again, which. read more...

Pipistrelle - Log Day 3 & 4 Broken mainsail batten and Paul's first catch!

Hello allWe achieved 175 nm in our second 24 hours, and a further 168 nm to 1300 yesterday, and are now running towards St Lucia with a poled out genoa, and reefed main, only 2174 nm to run!. We had our share of drama yesterday morning with a broken sail batten almost at the top of the mainsail. The repair involved dropping the main, removing and replacing the batten, and then rehoisting the sail. Sounds simple, but with the Atlantic swell, and 20 knots of wind from the NE, it required at lot ofteam effort!Day time temperatures are 25.2 C with a sea temperature of 24.8C, and the skies are generally clear providing long periods of sunshine. However, it gets damp early, with condensation in the cockpit from about 1600, and it is getting dark by 1900. From this time until 2100 we charge our. read more...

Pipistrelle - Log Day 5: Great sailing conditions - by Nick

20:48.5N 27:09.7WHow fortunate to have consistently fair winds and great sailing conditions for the first 6 days  - let's hope this continues for the rest of the crossing. With more stable winds and sea state, we have been able to improve the sail configuration and the average speed. Logged distance in the 24 hours to midday today (Friday) increased by 16% to 170 nm. The boat continues to perform well and we are enjoying some great sailing in marvellous conditions. The watch system, which is working well, has been varied from time to time according to a curious formula known only to Alan - he claims that changes are the result of 'divine intervention'! Night watches have been rewarded with some spectacular night skies and numerous shooting stars. We have enjoyed some excellent cuisine. read more...

Pipistrelle - Log Day 7: Still superb sailing conditions - by Elaine

20:44.34N 30:26.88W After seven days at sea, we are still benefiting from consistently favourable winds and now with one reef in the main and two in the genoa, Pipistrelle continues to perform extremely well.  Last night we changed course to a more westerly heading, slightly above 20 degrees N to keep us out of the forecast squall area further south.  At noon today we had sailed a total of 1040 NM - so we're not far off the half way mark! Four of our crew (Bob, Elaine, Alan and Paul) sail a classic yacht called 'Overlord' which is run as a club in the UK.  This evening is the Annual Dinner at home so we thought it appropriate to hold an outport gathering on board when Alan and Paul will be presented with 'The Venables Bowl' for winning the recent club regatta.  But it may yet have to be. read more...