TAHIRA ARC BLOG
D-Day 5 [24-Nov-23] to
Location: North of Cape Verde
Lat: 20.52N Long: 22.59W
STAYING ON TOP OF THINGS
An old Army friend once commented that 'no-plan ever survives contact with the enemy'. Whilst in his context the enemy were an opposing military force, in our case it is the challenges posed by the sea and the weather. Having a clear and effective plan was critical to our preparation, but ultimately it will be our ability to cope with things that go wrong that will determine the success or failure of our mission to cross the Atlantic.
Today we were given some stark reminders of the challenges of undertaking an Atlantic crossing.
Demasting
One of the boats in our fleet - Hilma, was demasted. We do not know the details, but losing your mast means you cannot sail, and so effectively her crossing is over. Several other ARC vessels came to her aid, coordinated by the ARC admin team - one of the major benefits of being part of this event, and Hilma is now heading for safety in Cape Verde.
Water is our life blood
Water, water everywhere, yet not a drop to drink. Drinking water is the most vital commodity on board for the survival and health of the crew. We are dependent on the water in two 100litre tanks, water in 5l and 1l bottles, and on the use of our desalination pant to convert salt water to pure drinking water. Yesterday we managed to empty one of our largest tanks by mistake - losing perhaps 30% of our total drinking water in a 2 hour period. We have since corrected the issue and are generating pure water again, but it was a salutary reminder of our need to stay focused on critical aspects of this voyage.
Torn sails
Whilst on the evening watch last night, John noticed moonlight coming through one of the sails next to an earlier repair. This could have been small pin pricks from the stitching or could have been more serious tears that would get much worst if not dealt with. So the next morning, the whole crew were involved in investigating the damage, lowering the foresails, applying Tony's sail patches to great effect, and resetting the sails. It was a great team effort, and whilst we may have lost half the day on the repair, we avoided a much bigger potential issue.
Crew injury
We have now also had our first injury of the voyage. Whilst working on the foredeck a technical break resulted in a cut to Bryan's nose (don't worry - he still has his good looks :), and he was also knocked off his feet. The injury was minor but was again a timely reminder to be vigilant, particularly when working on the foredeck and when the wind is high.
The daily routines are helping us to identify and anticipate issues as early as possible - such as the torn sails, helping us to deal with each as an issue before it results in a crisis. We are in good shape.
Tomorrow we will pick up on the next of our in-depth interviews with crew member - the still good looking Bryan 'Q' Hammond.
Blog author: Andy Bruce