15 47 396N 028 21 704W
Fair Do's VII, Atlantic 2008....
Professor John Shepherd
Sat 29 Nov 2008 06:18
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Dear Chris,
Position is (as above) or: 15 47 396N 028 21
704W
Heading is 270
Boatspeed is 9 Knts (with the A2, which has been up
since around sunrise [0800] yesterday)
Windspeed is 10.6 Knts
TWD is 050
General overview, last 12 hours,
ranges:
TWD: 092 - 044
WIndspeed Speed: 8 - 14.5 (slight increases in
pressure under clouds from a max of about 12- 13) Knts
Since the last report we hoisted the A5 before dawn (0600) and changed to the A2 at 0800, on
starboard tack heading around 300. We gybed onto port at 1020 got a great angle
surfing on Starboard tack at about 268 and held that until approx 1400 when
we suddenly and dramatically ran out of pressure. By 1515 we were on port
steering between 180 and 220 (only angle we could get any forward motion)
with a strength between 4 and 8 knts, and very shifty
Breeze filled in gently at first at around 2020, at
which point we focussed on getting south, 180 and later 200, before sailing
deeper once we had worked into the new pressure for some time. Breeze veered
round to enable us to get down to about220 - 225 in the pressure and then
began to back after 0200 eventually getting to arpprox 045, when we gybed on
starboard at 0300 enabling us to steer approx 270 satisfied that we had
banked quite a lot of south.
As per yesterdays positions most of our competitors
were very close (within 30 miles) and slightly north of us (apart
from Geisha) who was 720 miles NNW at a lattitude of 28N, so are hoping our
friends (Nisida and Desna who are in a right scrap with to the finish)
immediately north got more becalmed than us and that those way up north run into
adverse upwind conditions.
We are also a little vulnerable to Stormvogel, to
our SE (60 miles) and Nova One 120 miles
(SSE) the Volvo 60. Gilly B also remains a threat 170 miles ENE as we give her 6
hours already.
I guess we have been trying to be mindful of
opposition whilst always trying to tend towards best ultimate pressure now and
down the track. We are hoping that the lattitude we are down to will give us a
painful route through the funky breeze which looks set to affect all of us in
some way. Thoughts Chris? Hard for us to go down much lower without taking more
risks with our ultimate assymetric gybe angles into St Lucia - particularly in
the absence of the now dessimated A3.....
Look forward to the update and hopefully delightful
newws of reliabel 15 - 20 knot trades, which we hoped would materialise
yesterday all the way home to the rum shack!
More to follow later blogmeisters.
P.S. Big up to the Reunion Island followers who win
the prize for greatest distance/most exotic location to follow from - you win
the chance of a romantic meal with one of our crew selected at random, and
you'll be delighted (or maybe mildly happy) that we have drawn Ian Clingan out
of the hat - she will be a very lucky lady!
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