32:17.42N 64:47.24W

We thought we might treat ourselves to a night in the marina next to the customs dock but pretty quickly we decided to stay for two nights.  We were given a prime location on the quay, with easy access to the town, and lovely shower and laundry facilities.  One of our first tasks was to rinse and dry out the boat, both inside and out.  Widdow Twanky comes to mind!

Our crew for the passage, Cordelia, Cathie and Mike, very kindly took us out for a meal in the evening to say thank you for the ride.  It seems the two days of discomfort were quickly forgotten!

The following day we motored around to Hamilton and docked at the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club, where we met up with Milo and Richard, who would be joining us on an IOD to compete in Bermuda International Invitational Race Week.  Rick Thompson, the man who has managed to get us an invitation to this prestigious event so many times over the past 35 years, was also there to greet us.  We’re indebted to you Rick!

SailGP, one of the professional race series, was racing in Bermuda for the weekend and we paid to anchor next to the race course for an excellent spectacle and onboard lunch for lots of friends.  I’ve ringed us in a snapshot from the official coverage below:

On then to Race Week.  We were competing in a series of ten races against eleven other teams from Bermuda, Sweden and the USA in International One Designs (IODs).  They’re just over ten metres long and take five people to crew them. 

On our boat I had Milo, Cordelia, Richard and Mike for the first two days, before friends Armand and Will replaced Mike when he flew home.  Jane decided to opt out to avoid aggravating her hip before the crossing.  Such a shame but what a great team the others were.  My starts were proof of my conversion to “Caribbean Time”, so instead of crossing the start line when we should have, we crossed it when we got there.  Fortunately, the rest of the team helped to get us up to the front of the pack on most days and we were lying second overall going into the final day.  Sadly, we drew the infamous dog boat on the last day and ended the week third overall.  Still a result to be proud of, as only the two local teams beat us.

Left to right: RBYC RC House, me, Rick, Milo, Cordelia, Will, Richard

Our lovely Bermudian friend Hartley treated us all to lunch on our last day in Bermuda, at the Coral Beach Club, where he is a member.  Extremely generous.

Milo, Cordelia and Richard departed and we’re now down to the four of us who will make the passage to the Azores.  Jane and I have been joined by Will King and Toby Pascoe.  The cold front with its thunder and lightning passed overhead last night and we’ve been left with a flat calm.  We’d quite like something in between please!  Light winds for the next couple of days, so we’re off today.  Fingers crossed!

Giles