50.09.150N 005.03.747W

1630hrs 4 June 2012

The start to the Rally Portugal has had to be delayed due to the expected gales in the Bay further into the week. The consensus amongst the rally participants was that this was a good decision and one that we all would have made as individuals if we had been on our own. Strangely, I think that I would have set off had we been advised that the Rally was going ahead. This tells me something about my group behaviour! – A note to myself “remember to make up my your own mind in future – baaa!”. On land it can be a great advantage to meet challenges head on; to step up to the plate; to tilt at windmills... but this rarely results in your early demise. The sea is a cruel master and has no regard for how big your boat is, how well equipped, or how much safety gear you have invested in. The result is the same as far as the Bay is concerned. Three brave souls decided to sail to Camaret on the basis that at least they would be further south – and not still in Blighty. But most of the skippers opted to stay put. Whatever the choice everyone is keen to avoid crossing the bay later in the week with the prospect of spending 4 days in a gigantic washing machine waiting for the spin cycle to kick in.

The Rally organisers have instead arranged for us to have a day sail to Falmouth. The morning dawned, warm and blustery with white cumulous scudding across a blue sky. Lovely sailing weather. Everyone was glad to let go the lines and romp along the coast. The only incident was being hailed by HMS Sutherland to be told we were crossing a live firing range with firing commencing from “now till 1400”. What do you mean “now!”...we boldly just held our course and tried to ignore them as the warship cut across our stern and turned some of the rally boats away who were coming up behind...Plane Magic reported that they had hear some irate fisherman use Ch.16 to direct a well aimed expletive across the bows of HMS Sutherland. The outcome of that confrontation is not known.

The evening found the Rally boats rafted up in Mylor Marina, Falmouth. It was nice to be welcomed so warmly by the berthing master, to be assisted with the rafting and to even be handed a power extension without having to ask.

We await the evolving plans to restart the Rally…