Wind at the start was a good 22 kts. out of the NNE so a reef in the main and a no. 3 jib. We were 4th over the line surfing at 10.6 kts ! First night the wind increased and the seas were huge. Went down 1 wave at 15.8 kts. !! White water everywhere. Then at just before 9 the following morning the steering wire snapped leaving us with no wheel. Caroline quickly put the autohelm on and reduced sail. Emptied the lazarette and found that 1 of the steering wires had snapped. We had bought some dyneema and bulldog grips for just this eventuality and so, not without a lot of cursing we managed to regain steering. Unfortunately it only lasted 4 hours before it went again. We will wait for daylight on Tuesday before deciding how to fix it. Turning back is not an option !! In the meantime we are sailing nicely on the autopilot averaging about 6 kts. Well reefed so as not to strain anything. Crew all fine but very tired. Grabbing a few hours whenever they can.

More tomorrow.

Chris J