Waiting for the start of the ARC
Sawsealady
David Moore
Sun 19 Nov 2006 14:27
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WAITING FOR THE START OF
THE ARC
On the way down we ate
well thanks to Mike's cooking
 Donald wasn't asked again after he tried to
warm up a baguette !
 We were sorry to see
Mike leave us after nearly a month on board. He was tremendous help getting
the boat ready for the ARC.
 In
the Marina
Most of the ARC yachts are together on
4 pontoons. To accommodate them local boats were "moved" by the port
authorities.
 We have a strange whine from the saildrive
when sailing so we got a diver the check it.
He used a compressor instead of a
tank.
 The yachts vary enormously, from modern
state of the art racing machines, to older boats.
 There are many boats which have been
cruising Europe and the Med for some years, and are using the ARC en
route to the West Indies.
You can recognise them by their bicycles
which they take with them !
 A number of large boats can't get into the
Marina so moor outside. There is usually a cruise ship in the
docks.
 There are 24 nations represented by the
yachts taking part this year. We have a large Russian steel yacht on the end of
our pontoon. Individual countries tend to have pontoon parties with their
countrymen.
One of our neighbours had a Swedish party
for children from other Swedish boats. They are all cruising the world
before starting school !!! Note the hurricane lamp to save
electricity.
 But the weather is not always kind.
Cold, wet North wind makes us feel at home.
 The yachts have been asked to fly the white
ARC flag and dress overall.
Quite dramatic with over 200 boats and more
to arrive.
The Scottish boat is a long way from
home.
 Diversions
Some yachts are getting anxious about
whether they will be ready in time. The on-going safety checks have required a
number boats to get more equipment.
The Russian boat crew, after sailing here
from Russia, went off and bought lifejackets and dan buoys
!!!
Our only safety failure was that we couldn't
find our first aid book so had to buy one for big ship masters.
It includes useful items such as what to do
if one of the crew is trying to commit suicide !!!!
We are ready to go. Mike has gone home so
David and Donald went on an ARC bus tour of volcanic Gran Canaria.
 They were very taken with
the bubbly tour guide.
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