BVI, Tortola to Bermuda 6^th May 2010

We departed at 11.59 crossing the line reserved for the ARC Europe Fleet  a full,  considerate, one minute before their moment of glory. It was a bit like Alonso nipping past Massa in the pit lane the other week.  Although..to be fair to Alonso, I seem to think that he was, actually, an entrant?

So as a pre-cap, we are going first to Bermuda, and then to the Azores after which the boat will head for Dartmouth, UK.

On board we have an eclectic mix of Brits and Johnny Foreigner... which is to say, Skipper, Mike Blackledge, ( The Hoff), Michael Beer (The Hopp), Thomas Grossmann (Thomas the  Yank Engine),  Martin  Gunderson(The Saint)  and  Mike (Mogul) Fullalove.

We have been going for about 31 hours and we all seem to have adjusted to the watch keeping without too much trauma. The watches are 4 hours on, 6 off and during the 6 hours off the boat is cleaned, food prepared and cooked, washing up done etc.. and then the odd bit of sleep if anyone feels they need it.

Dinner tonight was a nutritionally balanced meal of sausages, mashed potatoes and baked beans. I just hope Raymond Blanc doesn’t get to hear about this or we will probably be on TV upon our return.  ‘an now my hown new version hov saucisses, beans et tomates au four et pommes purees. I can see it now.

The wind and weather have been excellent so far, 10 – 20 knots wind and boat speeds between 6 and 8.8 knots, We have been close hauled all day, yacht and crew loving it.

The sun is going down now, the nav lights are on and our first blog photo is being prepared.  Guesses in place of data, put our distance run at a shade under 200 NM  which is about 150/perhaps 160 per 24 hours.

This message will be sent to some individuals for forwarding, but we would like to try and send the messages as a blog to www.mailasail.com and then you log on to Knightime. Kindly try this and let us know if you can’t get it? Reply to knightime {CHANGE TO AT} mailasail {DOT} com. So far everything is going well and the weather forecast for the next 48 hours is similar.

All on board are well and looking forward to more great sailing ..

Goodnight from the newest Knightriders, The Hoff,, Michael, Thomas, Martin and Mogul++

might get the info by subscribing to my ‘Knightriders Kiss and Tell Revelations’ soon to be serialised into 200 thrilling episodes. Book early to ensure disappointment. Likewise, I have had several complaints that I did not reveal our Lactic John the Baptist’s name yesterday. Sorry, but I cannot even reveal his initials and that’s that!

As the trip draws to a close, it has been impossible to avoid calculating the number of miles to go and hazarding a guess when we might arrive.  Want to join in the fun? Right now, at about 21.30 UT (GMT to some of you) we have about 121 miles left to run, to a little island close to Rodney Bay called Pigeon Island, which is itself about 1.5 miles from RB. There! You have the info, so get guessing. Our recent speeds have been 6.5 to 7.2 knots. Isn’t this fun?

I was looking back and remembering those little things that left  with us but will sadly, not be returning. The first is Lappy T .. the skip’s favourite computer. Bought for a song but not worth a light!  Then there was Rod. All those weeks hidden in the First Class accommodation and as soon as he got the feel of a fish he literally cracked up. Bad Rod... No Fish cakes! Perhaps less obvious is the lining to my bathing shorts. Imperceptibly the lining morphed into something akin to a cheese grater with my tush in place of the cheese. Life is so much more comfortable now.

 Of course there is also the broken shackle that cost us a lot of time and necessitated Cap’n Kitt climbing cat like up the forestay.  And finally, although they are still on board, the less than fabulous Solar Showers. The design has not been thought through at all, so that when the water bottle is hung up, the water pipe which is supposed to deliver the gentle trickle of warm water to the bather, falls off and the warm water runs away. Perfect. This item will soon be in a Caribbean bin where it belongs.

Our weather for the last night is....more of the same, good winds, chance of squalls and we are all looking forward to landfall when it comes.  Meanwhile, we wish you a restful night with your Ovaltine(other Brands are available) slippers by the fire, and spare a little thought for us, sweltering in the heat and working all hours. I am definitely checking the small print in the brochure when I get back.

Sweet dreams... and stay tuned.. All the best

Choff, on behalf of El Hoff and all the Knightriders