The 200+ boats of the cruiser fleet got away in a great start today at 11:00. As we left the marina various boats showed great style – an Italian team wearing matching red Hawaiian shirts emerged to the sound of Tony Bennett singing “Amore” – the name of their boat! Another boat was playing the Dam Busters March! A fabulous atmosphere enjoyed by everyone.

Torrential rain settled in shortly after the start, together with a NE force 6 breeze and fairly big seas. Conditions reminded us of summer in the Channel or North Sea – everyone dressed in oilies, lifejackets and harnesses.

Eventually the rain stopped and the wind rose to 25+ knots in the wind acceleration zone South of Gran Canaria, we took in our second reef and had a great run – Tim hit a record 16.5 knots on one surf!

So – we are averaging 8.5 knots to the South West – on our track towards Cape Verde Islands where we plan to turn West towards St L. The Atlantic swell is about 3 metres from the North, so it is on our lee quarter and results in some quite lively rolls!

Tim has just cooked a super first night meal – minute steak, fresh mushrooms & boiled potatoes in the pressure cooker – pretty challenging in the conditions.

The real time tracking system is now operating and you can follow our progress on the WorldCruising.com/arc  Club web site  - look for the fleet viewer (tracking system) button on the left of the screen. It will take you to Yellow brick’s web site. iPhone users  may need to download an app to follow us.

We are boat number 241 in the Cruiser division…

More tomorrow!

Bye for now, on a lively first evening, having fun, going fast…..

Mike, Tim, Barbara & Mike