Further thoughts
Imagine of Plymouth
Arthur
Sat 8 Dec 2007 18:20
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OOW log, stardate: don't know, lost track of time
on here now.
On a voyage, somewhere. Gybed so many times, we
don't know if we're off to Greenland or Papagonia!!
Anyhoo.......
Shakespeare...............................
The 12th
night..............................
Ok, so I'm not really one for his type of
literature, as I found out at school, but........
I tell you what, our 12th night was not poetry or a
good story. Actually, neither was the 11th or 13th for that matter.
Absolutley shocking, but I think Rudy has outlined the events in the earlier
blog, so I will spare you more details apart from when Chris and I were on from
4am....talk about being surrounded. We really thought things were out to get
us.
We had 10 squalls in a line on the radar screen
just below our position, and as we watched, they all seem to goad us, join up
and hit us within minutes and stayed with us for over 2 hours. Heavy wind and
rain. At first we were forced to change course towards south Africa, then we
were off to Greenland.
It was interesting to see the echosketch of our
path on the computer this morning. Talk about sunday drivers, hehe.
Anyway, after our exhilerating morning of riding
waves at up to 16.5 knots, the weather has at last calmed a bit, and we have the
sun out, although we know it is only a short restbite. There is still lots of
wind and squalls forecast out there, but we are quietly hoping that we have
manouvered away from them. A lot of boats have been advised to sail down to 16
degrees North, where we happen to be now anyway. So that's all
good.
Off have come the oilies, and back to shorts to dry
out for a while.
Admiral Chris has really got into this sailing
lark. He is constantly on his virtual sailing machine, down below, in the
orrafice, checking all the facts and figures. Hang on Chris, that's not sailing,
that's about wine!
Right, I have been doing a little digging in to the
crew's thoughts and have asked them a few questions about their trip on the good
ship IMAGINE OF PLYMOUTH.
I know it's a bit early, with 3 or 4 days to go,
but I thought it would be fun to see anyway, and I'll tell you at the end if the
answers have changed.
These are just general Q's about the
trip.
1. What have you missed most?
Robert : Annette and the
kids
Rudy : Clare and his
sax (I think that's what he said)
Chris : Denise
Arthur : Renate
Mark : TC
2. What are you most looking forward to when you
get to St Lucia?
Robert : Stable platform, space
and getting off this b..... boat.
Rudy : Bed
Chris :
Denise
Arthur : Renate. A cold
beer. ( I don't know in which order)
Mark : A cold Caribe,
and the 27th.
3. The worst bit/ moment of the trip?
Robert : Last 24 hours with the
weather that we have had
Rudy : Motoring for 11
hours during the night with no wind.
Chris : The perpetual
rolling of the boat.
Arthur : Rudy burning his
fingers
Mark : Rudy fighting
with the spinnaker and getting rope burns, and motoring.
4. What have you enjoyed the most about the
trip, your highlight?
Robert : Realising the enormaty of the
ocean - it's unbelievable.
Rudy : Huge waves, and
surfing down them.
Chris : Sailing down wind
under the Spinnaker.
Arthur : Helming down wind with
the kite up, and not broaching.
Mark : Surfing
down waves at over 16 knots.
5. Best thing/bit of kit that you brought with
you?
Robert : Waterproofs (and we
think also his sat phone so he could talk to his wife
and kids all the time).
Rudy : Lifejacket. (
and we all think the worst were his damn shirts. Turn them down
Rudy)
Chris : Spare
reading glasses (Thanks to Rudy, they came in very handy).
Arthur : Sailing
gear
Mark : Wet
weather jacket.
6. Your thought/comment about the
trip?
Robert : It's not a walk in
the park, it's an endurance.
Rudy :
Awesome.
Chris :
Awesome, 1st time sailing.
Arthur : Good,
but too slow, and it's not been brochure weather.
Mark :
Absolutley fan bloody tastic. Bout time I did it...
7. What will you miss the most and least
about the trip?
Robert : Most: It's
the end of a challenge, so box ticked.
Least: Inability to get
off, or go anywhere. Too many restrictions.
Rudy :
Most: Nature, and being with the elements.
Least: Lack of
sleep
Chris : Most: The
whole enviroment, being at 1 with nature.
Least: Banging my head in the
cabin, all the time.
Arthur : Most:
The sailing.
Least:
The bed.
Mark :
Most: Surfing the huge Atlantic swell
Least: I've got 2 here. 1st being to not have to put up with being a
pinball
flying around the forepeak, and 2nd, if any1 can remember that
the
floor
of the heads used to float when you showered. Well, they don't
float anymore, they spin you around like a record on a turntable
now. So, not going to miss trying to not smack your head on
the
door handle when on toilet and boat pitching and healing like
a
bugger, then when you get up, suddenly being swung around
hitting
various
rails on way to being dumped in handbasin and headbutting
mirror when spinning on the turntable.
And that ladies and gentlemen, is life on the ocean
wave.
So, tune in same time, next time for more
adventures of the sailing vessel IMAGINE OF PLYMOUTH, and her oh so adventurous,
and lost, crew.
Bye for now.
Mark, Arthur, Rudy, Chris and Robert.
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