ARC Day 19 - Finally Finished - 14:04 N 60:57 W - 9 December
Neki
Thu 9 Dec 2010 16:21
Saint Lucia is finally in our sites. The wind cooperated right to the end as
we had a fantastic run to the finish. We remained above the mark for the
whole race and slowly headed south in our course. This put us on a port tack
for the last 5 days of the race and it served us well into the finish line.
Interestingly, the Oyster 70, Apollonia and Neki were closing in our each
other as the distance to finish dwindled. Apollonia was coming from a more
Southern course while we were North. As the sun rose on 9 December our two
boats were 15 miles apart and closing fast. As we approached the Eastern
shore of Saint Lucia the distance was less than three miles. We passed
Pigeon Key to Port and hardened up into a stiff breeze. The finish line was
only a short distance upwind and mercifully we made it without having to
tack. Apollonia came into view as we doused our sails and readied the boat
for shore. She finished a scant 13 minutes behind us after 18 + days at sea.
Remarkable! Congratulations to the Apollonia crew for a job well done.
The crew of Neki had a fantastic time! It was an incredible experience for
me personally and I feel I can speak for the rest of the crew that they feel
the same way. It was exciting, boring, tedious, eventful, educational, and
introspective. All of us missed our families tremendously and we are all
deeply appreciative of the sacrifices they made to allow us the privilege of
going on this adventure. I want to personally thank all the families that
were back home and cheered us on. I appreciate your commitment to this event
as much as I appreciate the crewman you sent along.
Enough cannot be said about the crew. It has been said that sailing is a
metaphor for life. Like life sailing is not always easy. However, my crew
performed extremely well and exceeded my expectations throughout the trip.
Six individuals with different skill sets stepped on Neki in Las Palmas and
a team jumped ashore in Saint Lucia.
Thanks to Mike, Senior, Shawn, DJ, and Tater for a job well done! It was a
trip I will cherish for the rest of my life.
John