in the same boat
Panatlantic
Sat 12 Jan 2008 12:50
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hi there everyone,
well the winds are blowing but progress is still
frustratingly slow. we are determined to stay positive as we know we will get
there albeit a little later than expected. contrary to nialls blog i am yet to
have a full on break down, sure i get down at times but then im only human,
niall doesnt get down but im yet to figure out what he is! my mood is affected
by the weather but on the whole i am quite upbeat. for me the hardest thing is
not knowing if il be home for england v wales. the longer we stay out here the
bigger impact the experience will have on my future. im being made to wait when
patience isnt my strong point, im in a routine where im very much random and im
striving towards a very clear goal rather than dwindelling through life
aimlessly as i was before. the experience has already changed me for the better
and will continue to do so, it will change my outlook on life and certainly
highlight the real priorities.
the next time i am stuck in terrible weather i
shall laugh and think to myself 'it could be worse'.
well we are stuck in this crap weather along with
two other boats - ocean summit (scott and neil), and mission atlantic (andy,
justin, mark and nick). im not sure if you guys can read this or have it sent to
you, but id thought id send you a message.
it was an absolute pleasure to meet you all, scott
and neil on those very useful ocean navigation courses and the mission
atlantic guys duringt our first sea trial, during which we raced and niall and i
kicked ass but thats irrelevant now! im sure you are feeling as frustrated as we
are but the most important thing is that we are still making ground towards our
goal. this is a once in a lifetime adventure and the most important thing is to
finish no matter how long it takes. id imagine that like niall and i you have
planned this for months prior to the start and have now spent 6 weeks at sea, so
for that reason a week or even 2 extra on the end shouldnt matter too much. in
fact the longet it takes the sweeter that first beer will taste in antigua.
there will be no way to describe the feeling when you finish and it will make
all the hard times so worthwhile.
so my message to you guys is dig in, keep rowing,
stay positive and you will get there! stay safe guys, il see you at the other
side.
as i write this the wind is blowing strong and has
been for about 5 days now, if it wasnt for the confused sea state im sure we
would be making good progress so hopefully it will settle out soon. our speed
for the last few hours is 1.9 knots per hour which given what we have been doing
previously is pretty good. shortly il be going over the side to scrape the
bottom of the boat in the hope we might gain a little more speed.
our predicted finish is now the first week of
february but who knows, anything can happen! to put into perspective how unlucky
we have been with the weather, the pairs record is just over 40 days which is
tomorrow. come tomorrow we will have 1000 miles left and if we are lucky will be
just under 3 weeks from the finish! it just goes to show that anything can
happen when you decide to row an ocean, we have been lucky in that we have not
endured hurricanes as they did in the last race so we are thankful for that.
the most important thing is that we will keep going
until we get there, with 1000 miles to go it starts to look a lot closer. sure i
will have good and bad days before the end but im fully prepared for that. my
biggest frustration is still not being able to tell my girlfriend when il be
back home but she continues to be amazing and so supportive. i guess the longer
it takes the more special it will be when i see her next.
well thats me for today, my next blog is a little
story i have to tell you as we have just met doras boyfriend and his brother.
apparently they are pretty notorious in the atlantic and are know as the cray
fish!
james
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