7.15S 105.40 Friday 14^th March and our son Vic’s18th Birthday – Happy Day! – 15 to 20 knot SSE winds and only 35 degrees to go to our destination!! 

Bennett made a tentative foray into the cockpit today and effected his first watch for a few days and will do another tonight.  His ears are still very painful so I have dug out an old blue heidi hi skiing hat with little strings and bobbles on the end to protect them.  His only saving grace is that it will be dark and nobody will see him!  I have now contracted the dreaded BB (Bennett’s Bug) but am dosed up with paracetamol and hoping to fight it off. 

We’re all tired and or ill so have been a bit introspective today………we are just so lucky that the boat is performing so well and the weather has been so kind to us during our malady!  I’m not sure that illness entered my equations when originally working out the watches.

We heard on the six o’clock net that Cayuko has had a problem with his rigging as one of the chain plates has lifted off the deck but there are quite a few of us coming up behind him if he needs help.  Also he is a ketch (two masts) so perhaps he can rob some parts off the other and do a temporary lash up until we get to Marquesas.  Apart from that no reported problems and our fleet of 30 is steadily moving forward…….