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Gitana - Less than 24 hours to run.




With the miles dropping off over the last 24hours or more, our attention
is being turned to 'what's the first you'll do when you get home?' 'What
are you looking forward to the most?' 'What's the hardest thing about the
crossing?'

> - Uniquely shared experiences
Talking to the other boats on the radio over the last few days, the most
common theme among them is how the days have flown by and the 'spare time'
we expected to have to do things like write, complete odd jobs, we really
haven't had. No-one has been bored of 24/7 on a boat for 17/18 days so
far, we're all agreed that life at an angle has presented a range of
challenges, but not the normal challenges that we're used to on a boat
when you're leaning one way or the other. Few of us have sailed directly
downwind goose-winging the sails for as long as this, and as a result the
incessant rolling has made everything from sleeping and using the heads to
cooking and cleaning infinitely harder and it takes a lot longer to
complete basic tasks. That said – we've loved it. Everyone we've spoken
to on VHF has relished the challenge can can't wait to see St.Lucia very
soon!

> - It's not all plain sailing
Amidst the excitement, it's easier to forget that we're still in the
Atlantic, yes we're in motoring distance now, but the day to day quirks of
a yacht continue to provide problem solving tasks at every turn.
Yesterday i'd considered going through a 'day in the life' of Gitana from
start to finish. I'd started logging things at 6am when I was on watch,
but at 10am when we started up the engine (out of gear) to be able to
charge our batteries, an series of 'thumps' came from the engine which
worsened quickly. The next 6hours the crew were quieter than normal as
the reality of being so close and yet maybe needing last minute urgent
assistance from others around us.

ARC yacht Safena had been behind us over the last 2 days and we'd chatted
to them again in the morning, turns out its the owners wife's birthday,
they happened also to have a specialist engineer onboard (incidental
information at that point). So when engine problems threatened to scupper
us, we them up so they could stand by in case and offer advice. Remember
what I said about the reasons for joining the ARC – this is one of them!!

Now I know it seems weird to talk about the engines as a source of
problems, this is a sailing rally and we have in fact been sailing
uninterrupted for 18days, the engine when run out of gear lets us charge
our boats systems and run the water maker – two crucial features of our
TransAtlantic planning.

> - Problem Solving – is it something on the outside?
Using the GoPro on a boat hook, we were able to lower the camera below the
boat to check the rudder, the propeller and general look of the underside
of the boat, watching some of the footage live and the rest on playback.
Another yacht had heard our predicament and called us just before to say
that in the night they had hit a huge raft of Sarcasso seaweed that had
damaged their rudder and steering – they'd spent 2 hours drifting whilst
sorting before they were recovered enough to continue their journey!

As our attentions turned back to our issues, the rudder was clear, there
was something on the prop but we couldn't see clearly what it was,
whatever it was small, the prop blades weren't behaving as expected and
running the engine again revealed the noises and the engine shuddered
violently which unnerved our own resident engineer.

I know very little about diesel engines (unless it's a bongo campervan
engine – then I'm your woman!) so left Mike, James and Dave to that part.
We started switching power systems off to conserve energy as we couldn't
charge anything. That included the fridge, the AIS and our trusty Poppy
(autohelm) – she seems a bit miffed not to be able to safely support us to
the finish. Back to handsteering! We alert rally control that we may
have an issue, at worst we'd need assistance here, at best we'd make the
finish line and need a tow to our berth in St.Lucia.

> - Problem solved?
After a few hours, lots of systematic tinkering with the engine, chats
with the engineer on Safena and the trusty engine manuals, eventually we
were able to run it. First 5mins ok, then 10, then 30 and so on... To our
relief, the engine and prop were now behaving and we seemed to have
resolved the issue and were charging! First job, return Poppy to her
steering duties and return to thinking about how 'life at an angle' on the
ARC crossing will soon be over.

> - Life's about how you handle plan B
I finished reading my second book of the crossing today, perhaps 'Adrift'
by Tami Oldham Ascraft wasn't the best choice today of all days, but it
shows just how quickly things can change, influence your thoughts and it's
what you do next that truly defines you. For Tami it was 41 days adrift
in the Pacific alone after a hurricane destroyed her boat, using every
ounce of everything she had left she had to survive – our engine 'issues'
pale into insignificance by comparison but it makes you think hard about
your choices and what you'd do.

> - Life on a level plain?
So what's the first thing I'll do when I land back home? My daughter will
be there and I don't think she'll let go the whole way home! Charlie dog
will be waiting to pounce and then sleep probably! For Des, he can't wait
to see his wife and hug her! Then start to get ready for the excitement
of Christmas with his beautiful granddaughters, the real heart of Des
along with his wife and family. Dave's family are flying out to meet them
here, so for him it's that arrival for them to share the next bit of this
adventure together until the new year. Mike and James are staying in the
Caribbean until the new year (no, they're not a couple!) but hey you never
know, they may meet some like minded free spirits along the way and who
knows where their futures lie. For James though, arrival in the Caribbean
priorities – get in safely then find a burger and a beer!

None of us can quite believe that we've covered over 2700nautical miles
already, one day's run left! I wonder how many boats will arrive with
us? I wonder how many we'll speak to today, can't wait to get into my
bunk tomorrow when it's rolling from side to side whilst bouncing a
little... making a cup of tea on moving ground, moving work tops, moving
everything – then it being still? Will we get land sick? Ha there's a
thought!

It's 8am Gitana time on the penultimate day of our crossing, let's see
what adventures we can have today!!

Gitana signing off, have a good day all!

--
SY Gitana

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