Bequia finishes at 21:20:43 HST.
We are showered, leid, rested and showered. All us well at beautiful Kaneohe yacht club.
Aloha!
Monday, July 30, 2012
Sunday, July 29, 2012
25mile Check-in complete
:)
-----
At 7/28/2012 8:40 PM (utc) our position was 2142x15725
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
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-----
At 7/28/2012 8:40 PM (utc) our position was 2142x15725
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Day 12: Land Ho and Final Hours
There is no phrase that evokes the exact same feelings as "Land Ho!" It represents accomplishment, safety, loved ones, relief, a lifting of the latent awareness of the perils of the sea, an exhilaration, and the promise of...... MAI TAIs!
Kaneohe Yacht club goes all out for the racers. they meet each boat at the finish line with a guide boat who leads you past the coral through the channel and into the harbor. there are line handlers to help the tired sailors dock and tie up the boats. each boat is met by the Mai Tai cart with Hawaiian music, slices of fresh pineapple and the signature drink of the race. that happens whether the finish is at noon or 4 am. it is in a protected bay away from the wildness of the ocean. There is a lovely pool and a bar full of people with the same amazing experiences you have just weathered.
During the final hours, as Bequia approaches the beautiful Kaneohe bay on the windward side of Oahu, we are excited. For as stated, the goal of every race is to finish, but one cannot help but reflect on the setting and the journey. The vastness of the ocean bewilders for sure, but that 5 people in a 41' plastic boat spanned a part of the globe highlights the ever decreasing size of the human world - and emphasizes the global environmental challenge. As for the journey, the ups, downs, saltwater awakenings, and glorious beauty and friendship, moments of charging through the night with spray above the deck, racing squalls of wind and rain, eating fantastically, recovering from spontaneous gear disassembly, pouring over weather faxes and grib files, various setbacks and failures, as well as grand successes and moments of glory mark the time. These events forging a crew in support of each other and ever willingness to contribute more of themselves despite heat, cold, aches, and extreme fatigue in any way necessary to continue forward, overcoming hurdles placed before us, for stopping is not an option. We are truly grateful for the privilege and honor of such a voyage.
-Bequia Crew
-----
At 7/28/2012 8:40 PM (utc) our position was 24°20.00'N 153°48.32'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Kaneohe Yacht club goes all out for the racers. they meet each boat at the finish line with a guide boat who leads you past the coral through the channel and into the harbor. there are line handlers to help the tired sailors dock and tie up the boats. each boat is met by the Mai Tai cart with Hawaiian music, slices of fresh pineapple and the signature drink of the race. that happens whether the finish is at noon or 4 am. it is in a protected bay away from the wildness of the ocean. There is a lovely pool and a bar full of people with the same amazing experiences you have just weathered.
During the final hours, as Bequia approaches the beautiful Kaneohe bay on the windward side of Oahu, we are excited. For as stated, the goal of every race is to finish, but one cannot help but reflect on the setting and the journey. The vastness of the ocean bewilders for sure, but that 5 people in a 41' plastic boat spanned a part of the globe highlights the ever decreasing size of the human world - and emphasizes the global environmental challenge. As for the journey, the ups, downs, saltwater awakenings, and glorious beauty and friendship, moments of charging through the night with spray above the deck, racing squalls of wind and rain, eating fantastically, recovering from spontaneous gear disassembly, pouring over weather faxes and grib files, various setbacks and failures, as well as grand successes and moments of glory mark the time. These events forging a crew in support of each other and ever willingness to contribute more of themselves despite heat, cold, aches, and extreme fatigue in any way necessary to continue forward, overcoming hurdles placed before us, for stopping is not an option. We are truly grateful for the privilege and honor of such a voyage.
-Bequia Crew
-----
At 7/28/2012 8:40 PM (utc) our position was 24°20.00'N 153°48.32'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
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Saturday, July 28, 2012
Day 11: Sunset
A beautiful sunset on the water with wonderful cloud formations. hard to tell yet whether to tonight will be peaceful like last night, or have some whoppers in it - clouds seem to have yet to decide.
We're reaching along with the spirit of 83' and making excellent time toward the island. Good pace so far for a great day. The weather ahead will dictate when we finish, looking more likely to be in the early night of Sunday - since maintaining our current 1 hour average of 8.9kts seems unlikely!
We saw our first fishing boat leaving HI for the very waters we fished a few days ago. Definitely a sign of impending civilization. As we get closer, we will see increasing commercial fishing and other traffic - a slow ease back into the world of land and fixed objects.
The finish process works as follows (and may be viewable from the pacific cup website)
We will have a radio check-in to the finish line at 100 miles and 25 miles. 100miles is a long way, so once that happens we still have another 11-13 hours of sailing left. 25miles is about 3-4 hours and then we finish. The word used by the Pacific Cup is "pau" the Hawaian word.
In <1.5 hours, we will cross back into United States of America's national water. There are no signposts, but it is a bit of a warm feeling - a reunification of the little piece of USA we've been on, and the country she left just 11 days ago.
-Beqweeeee
July 29 0503Z, July 28 2203 PDT 1903HST
23 45'N x 154 53W 210nm from Finish
_______________________________________________________________________
NOTE: There has been some trouble with the blog -- several of the last entries didn't post due to a glitch (Days 9, 10). We are getting the posts through another method now.
We're reaching along with the spirit of 83' and making excellent time toward the island. Good pace so far for a great day. The weather ahead will dictate when we finish, looking more likely to be in the early night of Sunday - since maintaining our current 1 hour average of 8.9kts seems unlikely!
We saw our first fishing boat leaving HI for the very waters we fished a few days ago. Definitely a sign of impending civilization. As we get closer, we will see increasing commercial fishing and other traffic - a slow ease back into the world of land and fixed objects.
The finish process works as follows (and may be viewable from the pacific cup website)
We will have a radio check-in to the finish line at 100 miles and 25 miles. 100miles is a long way, so once that happens we still have another 11-13 hours of sailing left. 25miles is about 3-4 hours and then we finish. The word used by the Pacific Cup is "pau" the Hawaian word.
In <1.5 hours, we will cross back into United States of America's national water. There are no signposts, but it is a bit of a warm feeling - a reunification of the little piece of USA we've been on, and the country she left just 11 days ago.
-Beqweeeee
July 29 0503Z, July 28 2203 PDT 1903HST
23 45'N x 154 53W 210nm from Finish
_______________________________________________________________________
NOTE: There has been some trouble with the blog -- several of the last entries didn't post due to a glitch (Days 9, 10). We are getting the posts through another method now.
Day 11: Sunset...
A beautiful sunset on the water with wonderful cloud formations. hard to tell yet whether to tonight will be peaceful like last night, or have some whoppers in it - clouds seem to have yet to decide.
We're reaching along with the spirit of 83' and making excellent time toward the island. Good pace so far for a great day. The weather ahead will dictate when we finish, looking more likely to be in the early night of Sunday - since maintaining our current 1 hour average of 8.9kts seems unlikely!
We saw our first fishing boat leaving HI for the very waters we fished a few days ago. Definitely a sign of impending civilization. As we get closer, we will see increasing commercial fishing and other traffic - a slow ease back into the world of land and fixed objects.
The finish process works as follows (and may be viewable from the pacific cup website)
We will have a radio check-in to the finish line at 100 miles and 25 miles. 100miles is a long way, so once that happens we still have another 11-13 hours of sailing left. 25miles is about 3-4 hours and then we finish. The word used by the Pacific Cup is "pau" the Hawaian word.
In <1.5 hours, we will cross back into United States of America's national water. There are no signposts, but it is a bit of a warm feeling - a reunification of the little piece of USA we've been on, and the country she left just 11 days ago.
-Beqweeeee
July 29 0503Z, July 28 2203 PDT 1903HST
23 45'N x 154 53W 210nm from Finish
-----
At 7/28/2012 8:40 PM (utc) our position was 24°20.00'N 153°48.32'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
We're reaching along with the spirit of 83' and making excellent time toward the island. Good pace so far for a great day. The weather ahead will dictate when we finish, looking more likely to be in the early night of Sunday - since maintaining our current 1 hour average of 8.9kts seems unlikely!
We saw our first fishing boat leaving HI for the very waters we fished a few days ago. Definitely a sign of impending civilization. As we get closer, we will see increasing commercial fishing and other traffic - a slow ease back into the world of land and fixed objects.
The finish process works as follows (and may be viewable from the pacific cup website)
We will have a radio check-in to the finish line at 100 miles and 25 miles. 100miles is a long way, so once that happens we still have another 11-13 hours of sailing left. 25miles is about 3-4 hours and then we finish. The word used by the Pacific Cup is "pau" the Hawaian word.
In <1.5 hours, we will cross back into United States of America's national water. There are no signposts, but it is a bit of a warm feeling - a reunification of the little piece of USA we've been on, and the country she left just 11 days ago.
-Beqweeeee
July 29 0503Z, July 28 2203 PDT 1903HST
23 45'N x 154 53W 210nm from Finish
-----
At 7/28/2012 8:40 PM (utc) our position was 24°20.00'N 153°48.32'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Day 11: Sun and Lighter
Looking down the course, the boats that have already finished (which started 3days after us!) slowed down near the end. That helped B fleets overall standings for now, but should get re-corrected later. The forecast is for lighter breeze as well, and we are making course adjustments now to partially compensate - but the arrival time is slipping to the right notably. You can probably see on our Yellow Brick as we sail generally VMG to the changing wind conditions. We warned you earlier about the incessant calculation of ETA that marks the final stages of any race. 282nm (322mi)to go. In a car, it would be about 5.5-6 hours, in a boat, between 35 and 50hrs.
A strange reference thing happens in the ocean; "light" wind is anything under 20kts. In the bay or near shore sailing, a 13kt day is 'pretty good', a 15kt day is excellent and over 20 is "exciting windy". Here, because of a combination of the large wave state and the desire to have the boat at max speed all the time, anything less than 20 and the boat feels like it is "wallowing" along at 7.5 kts - a great clip anywhere else.
Last night was clear and warmish, no real squalls and plenty of stars and a moon to shine upon and guide us. We sailed along a silvery road toward the glowing orb until it set into a distant bed of clouds- and revealed an even more brilliant starry night. The calmness allowed us to use a two person watch and let the standby person sleep. That caught the crew up on rest a bit.
We are doing another water update, and expect to pump out about 20 gallons (160lbs), plus whatever is in the aft tank (probably 10-15 gallons). This leaves us ~25 gallons, plus 5 emergency. Should be plenty for 5+1 days (in case we break something important).
HF radio propagation continues to be a challenge - possibly shorter and less frequent updates.
A strange reference thing happens in the ocean; "light" wind is anything under 20kts. In the bay or near shore sailing, a 13kt day is 'pretty good', a 15kt day is excellent and over 20 is "exciting windy". Here, because of a combination of the large wave state and the desire to have the boat at max speed all the time, anything less than 20 and the boat feels like it is "wallowing" along at 7.5 kts - a great clip anywhere else.
Last night was clear and warmish, no real squalls and plenty of stars and a moon to shine upon and guide us. We sailed along a silvery road toward the glowing orb until it set into a distant bed of clouds- and revealed an even more brilliant starry night. The calmness allowed us to use a two person watch and let the standby person sleep. That caught the crew up on rest a bit.
We are doing another water update, and expect to pump out about 20 gallons (160lbs), plus whatever is in the aft tank (probably 10-15 gallons). This leaves us ~25 gallons, plus 5 emergency. Should be plenty for 5+1 days (in case we break something important).
HF radio propagation continues to be a challenge - possibly shorter and less frequent updates.
Day 11: Sun and Lighter
Day 11:
Looking down the course, the boats that have already finished (which started 3days after us!) slowed down near the end. That helped B fleets overall standings for now, but should get re-corrected later. The forecast is for lighter breeze as well, and we are making course adjustments now to partially compensate - but the arrival time is slipping to the right notably. You can probably see on our Yellow Brick as we sail generally VMG to the changing wind conditions. We warned you earlier about the incessant calculation of ETA that marks the final stages of any race. 282nm (322mi)to go. In a car, it would be about 5.5-6 hours, in a boat, between 35 and 50hrs.
A strange reference thing happens in the ocean; "light" wind is anything under 20kts. In the bay or near shore sailing, a 13kt day is 'pretty good', a 15kt day is excellent and over 20 is "exciting windy". Here, because of a combination of the large wave state and the desire to have the boat at max speed all the time, anything less than 20 and the boat feels like it is "wallowing" along at 7.5 kts - a great clip anywhere else.
Last night was clear and warmish, no real squalls and plenty of stars and a moon to shine upon and guide us. We sailed along a silvery road toward the glowing orb until it set into a distant bed of clouds- and revealed an even more brilliant starry night. The calmness allowed us to use a two person watch and let the standby person sleep. That caught the crew up on rest a bit.
We are doing another water update, and expect to pump out about 20 gallons (160lbs), plus whatever is in the aft tank (probably 10-15 gallons). This leaves us ~25 gallons, plus 5 emergency. Should be plenty for 5+1 days (in case we break something important).
HF radio propagation continues to be a challenge - possibly shorter and less frequent updates.
-Bequia
July 28, 2022Z 24d 22'N x 153d 46'W
-----
At 7/28/2012 8:40 PM (utc) our position was 24°20.00'N 153°48.32'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Looking down the course, the boats that have already finished (which started 3days after us!) slowed down near the end. That helped B fleets overall standings for now, but should get re-corrected later. The forecast is for lighter breeze as well, and we are making course adjustments now to partially compensate - but the arrival time is slipping to the right notably. You can probably see on our Yellow Brick as we sail generally VMG to the changing wind conditions. We warned you earlier about the incessant calculation of ETA that marks the final stages of any race. 282nm (322mi)to go. In a car, it would be about 5.5-6 hours, in a boat, between 35 and 50hrs.
A strange reference thing happens in the ocean; "light" wind is anything under 20kts. In the bay or near shore sailing, a 13kt day is 'pretty good', a 15kt day is excellent and over 20 is "exciting windy". Here, because of a combination of the large wave state and the desire to have the boat at max speed all the time, anything less than 20 and the boat feels like it is "wallowing" along at 7.5 kts - a great clip anywhere else.
Last night was clear and warmish, no real squalls and plenty of stars and a moon to shine upon and guide us. We sailed along a silvery road toward the glowing orb until it set into a distant bed of clouds- and revealed an even more brilliant starry night. The calmness allowed us to use a two person watch and let the standby person sleep. That caught the crew up on rest a bit.
We are doing another water update, and expect to pump out about 20 gallons (160lbs), plus whatever is in the aft tank (probably 10-15 gallons). This leaves us ~25 gallons, plus 5 emergency. Should be plenty for 5+1 days (in case we break something important).
HF radio propagation continues to be a challenge - possibly shorter and less frequent updates.
-Bequia
July 28, 2022Z 24d 22'N x 153d 46'W
-----
At 7/28/2012 8:40 PM (utc) our position was 24°20.00'N 153°48.32'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
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Friday, July 27, 2012
Day10: Sun and Weird!
After a nice sail all night, 3 good squalls, some we did under main only. An improved crew utilization strategy increased the sleep quotient for the night. We had a great morning with squalls throughout the day. Some the squalls had us changing course dramatically over about 2 min, while still having 20+ of wind, hard to imagine in ones head how that works, but it does!
Squalls in the day are not unusual at this latitude, and they are grand majestic and very dark underneath, with cold rain and nice breeze. When you can see the waves in the day, which remain pretty large and coming from about 3 directions, the driving is much easier - not nearly as many surprises. One of the clouds formed a near perfect Budda - not joking, we weren't even tired at the time!
The spinnaker halyard shackle decided to open today during a routine stirring of the cryo tanks, (tightening the furler - must have pulled the lanyard somehow - yes it was taped too), The crew recovered the kite and rehoisted on the port spin halyard. No problems. That meant later in the day, a recovery effort. Between two of the squalls we hoisted Shana up the rig on the jib halyard. Dennis did a great job driving in the 25kt wind and confused seas doing 11kts... didn't bounce her around much at all. Unfortunately, we were in a bit of a hurry, so didn't get any pictures from the top of the rig.
The Nemo taco's were excellent, a bit of spanish rice, and some nifty sauce - yummy.
Today is spagetti with red sauce (and red wine in it) :)
With our current range of 412 miles, we seem closer than ever, but still have a long way to go. (we are now a "coastal cup" away for you CA sailors.) Our predicted arrival, is corrected (or more likely previously miscalculated) to be Sunday eve - if we hurry, before sunset. Finishing in the dark is significantly more challenging (and less pretty) then the daylight. There is actually a reef about 1/2 mile past the finish line to keep you on your toes. The line itself is harder to find in the day than you might think, and extremely difficult at night. Because of the depth of water, and extreme length of rode used for the bouy - which is small and poorly lit compared to the swell height and background lights of Kaneohe Bay, locating the little bugger is hard. One more little incentive to finish quickly!
As a side note: due to HF radio wave propagation realities, it is harder to get email out in the daylight hours - has to do with change in the ionosphere when then sun is out. Expect most posts delayed and in the late eve. There are also fewer stations to connect to, HI is the best option, but 50 boats trying to do that... getting a slot can be a challenge. But all is well!
We sail on, though gorgeous scenery, amazing weather and beauty with even more to come.
-Beqweeee
-----
25 26'N x 151 43'W (July 28th 0357Z) (July 27 2057 PDT) (July 27 1757 HST)
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Squalls in the day are not unusual at this latitude, and they are grand majestic and very dark underneath, with cold rain and nice breeze. When you can see the waves in the day, which remain pretty large and coming from about 3 directions, the driving is much easier - not nearly as many surprises. One of the clouds formed a near perfect Budda - not joking, we weren't even tired at the time!
The spinnaker halyard shackle decided to open today during a routine stirring of the cryo tanks, (tightening the furler - must have pulled the lanyard somehow - yes it was taped too), The crew recovered the kite and rehoisted on the port spin halyard. No problems. That meant later in the day, a recovery effort. Between two of the squalls we hoisted Shana up the rig on the jib halyard. Dennis did a great job driving in the 25kt wind and confused seas doing 11kts... didn't bounce her around much at all. Unfortunately, we were in a bit of a hurry, so didn't get any pictures from the top of the rig.
The Nemo taco's were excellent, a bit of spanish rice, and some nifty sauce - yummy.
Today is spagetti with red sauce (and red wine in it) :)
With our current range of 412 miles, we seem closer than ever, but still have a long way to go. (we are now a "coastal cup" away for you CA sailors.) Our predicted arrival, is corrected (or more likely previously miscalculated) to be Sunday eve - if we hurry, before sunset. Finishing in the dark is significantly more challenging (and less pretty) then the daylight. There is actually a reef about 1/2 mile past the finish line to keep you on your toes. The line itself is harder to find in the day than you might think, and extremely difficult at night. Because of the depth of water, and extreme length of rode used for the bouy - which is small and poorly lit compared to the swell height and background lights of Kaneohe Bay, locating the little bugger is hard. One more little incentive to finish quickly!
As a side note: due to HF radio wave propagation realities, it is harder to get email out in the daylight hours - has to do with change in the ionosphere when then sun is out. Expect most posts delayed and in the late eve. There are also fewer stations to connect to, HI is the best option, but 50 boats trying to do that... getting a slot can be a challenge. But all is well!
We sail on, though gorgeous scenery, amazing weather and beauty with even more to come.
-Beqweeee
-----
25 26'N x 151 43'W (July 28th 0357Z) (July 27 2057 PDT) (July 27 1757 HST)
----------
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Day9: And Straight on Till Morn.
Day 9:
As the Yellow brick tracker reveals at this point, our optimal track is straight to HI - A drag race to paradise! (A drag race we are not currently winning :( ) We lost ground last night and are 6hrs out of 3rd place. The boats ahead are sailing well, and there are fewer and fewer passing lanes left as we all enter the tradewinds and consolidated near HI.
The wind was very light all night, except when it blew 30+kts. Squalls piped up quickly with rain and wind well above the ambient flow. The first one of these caused a round up which again, blew off a sheet shackle quickly. Again it was taped - there is lots of wear on the hinge of the sheet shackles, perhaps that is leading to this issue, it is not one we've had before. In this case, as in the last, chaos follows, and we reset the kite 1.5 hours(ish) later. Meanwhile, light air reduced boat speed to a mere 5kts. The crew worked most of the night, dropping and raising sails, and little sleep was had. Some attention had to be given to a 9'x12' concrete dock that had been spotted by a previous boat near our current coarse. We passed 20nm down current/wind of it, to give it a wide berth (haha). Between that, and few other periods of light air, and you're quickly out-gunned.
This morning we are broad reaching toward HI at 8kts, the sun is out, its warm and beautiful. We invited Nemo for dinner again, and being the enthusiastic youth that he is, it wasn't long before he replied. If he was a 30" mahi mahi he will be featured at a dinner in his honor. Mahi mahi in the water are a two tone combination of iridescent blue and yellow. Alarmingly bright, almost neon. Once out, they change very quickly to grey and bluish. It's a strikingly fast change.
Onward we go, sleeping when we can, and sailing along in a beautiful ocean, on a beautiful day and a Bequitiful Boat.
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
As the Yellow brick tracker reveals at this point, our optimal track is straight to HI - A drag race to paradise! (A drag race we are not currently winning :( ) We lost ground last night and are 6hrs out of 3rd place. The boats ahead are sailing well, and there are fewer and fewer passing lanes left as we all enter the tradewinds and consolidated near HI.
The wind was very light all night, except when it blew 30+kts. Squalls piped up quickly with rain and wind well above the ambient flow. The first one of these caused a round up which again, blew off a sheet shackle quickly. Again it was taped - there is lots of wear on the hinge of the sheet shackles, perhaps that is leading to this issue, it is not one we've had before. In this case, as in the last, chaos follows, and we reset the kite 1.5 hours(ish) later. Meanwhile, light air reduced boat speed to a mere 5kts. The crew worked most of the night, dropping and raising sails, and little sleep was had. Some attention had to be given to a 9'x12' concrete dock that had been spotted by a previous boat near our current coarse. We passed 20nm down current/wind of it, to give it a wide berth (haha). Between that, and few other periods of light air, and you're quickly out-gunned.
This morning we are broad reaching toward HI at 8kts, the sun is out, its warm and beautiful. We invited Nemo for dinner again, and being the enthusiastic youth that he is, it wasn't long before he replied. If he was a 30" mahi mahi he will be featured at a dinner in his honor. Mahi mahi in the water are a two tone combination of iridescent blue and yellow. Alarmingly bright, almost neon. Once out, they change very quickly to grey and bluish. It's a strikingly fast change.
Onward we go, sleeping when we can, and sailing along in a beautiful ocean, on a beautiful day and a Bequitiful Boat.
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
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Wednesday, July 25, 2012
MOON!
Just sailed for a bit under the silver light of a shimmering moon as the day was passed to night by the amber sun peaking through the clouds.
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
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-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
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Day 8a: Spirit of 83
Early this morning, we unreefed the main, furled the jib and rehoisted 'Spirit of 83'. We are making 7.0+ down the great circle on port pole. So far, the angles look good, and should get better... we are now in 5th - 3 out of 54th, 4 hours out of third, and 6 out of 2nd. It was a strange night. The crew is more rested and focused on getting enough sleep today for a big night tonight.
We have also reached a point in every race that is sort of a watershed. Prior to this point, you focus on the day, and setting up the race, after, the focus becomes the end game. What is that point? we started calculating ETA. The goal in any race, is for that race to be over - as soon as possible. We sail 2000nm races, because we don't want them to be over so fast! None-the-less, our current ETA is approx 4.2 days from now, so midday of Sunday the 29th. Internally, we will now say to ourselves "if we go X speed we can be there as early as Y" about a billion times. We will also presumably start making wagers - the mai-tai's at Kaneohe Yacht Club are really good, (once rated second greatest in HI, (so as not to compete with mai-tai's from San Diego). They are also great wager payment. We'll update the ETA as we get closer, hopefully it moves to the left!
Last night, while not fast, was a beautiful night occasionally, with a plethora of shooting stars and a planet rise that somehow was neat. The waves are very mixed, 5-10 ft from 2-3 directions resulting in strange interference patterns and amazing poles and zeros, sorry, peaks and valleys. It is not uncommon to look at the helmsperson and see a wave fifteen feet back and two feet over his/her head. Today the weather is getting warm, a blue of ocean that I've only seen here, and an infinite sky and majestic cloud structures.
Today we sort of continued our celebration of half-way with a bottle of champagne believed to be from the 2010 race. (broken gear forced a return before half-way). It was Yummy or should I say Mummy!
Two crew sleep, two drive, and one has yet to decide which...
-Beqwee!
p.s. I did that on purpose, you may be a programmer and not know it if you noticed. ")"
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
We have also reached a point in every race that is sort of a watershed. Prior to this point, you focus on the day, and setting up the race, after, the focus becomes the end game. What is that point? we started calculating ETA. The goal in any race, is for that race to be over - as soon as possible. We sail 2000nm races, because we don't want them to be over so fast! None-the-less, our current ETA is approx 4.2 days from now, so midday of Sunday the 29th. Internally, we will now say to ourselves "if we go X speed we can be there as early as Y" about a billion times. We will also presumably start making wagers - the mai-tai's at Kaneohe Yacht Club are really good, (once rated second greatest in HI, (so as not to compete with mai-tai's from San Diego). They are also great wager payment. We'll update the ETA as we get closer, hopefully it moves to the left!
Last night, while not fast, was a beautiful night occasionally, with a plethora of shooting stars and a planet rise that somehow was neat. The waves are very mixed, 5-10 ft from 2-3 directions resulting in strange interference patterns and amazing poles and zeros, sorry, peaks and valleys. It is not uncommon to look at the helmsperson and see a wave fifteen feet back and two feet over his/her head. Today the weather is getting warm, a blue of ocean that I've only seen here, and an infinite sky and majestic cloud structures.
Today we sort of continued our celebration of half-way with a bottle of champagne believed to be from the 2010 race. (broken gear forced a return before half-way). It was Yummy or should I say Mummy!
Two crew sleep, two drive, and one has yet to decide which...
-Beqwee!
p.s. I did that on purpose, you may be a programmer and not know it if you noticed. ")"
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
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Day 7b: Overpowered...
The naviguessing break turned into a bit of a long fallderah. After a jibe to port to see how it looked, the wind and wave state has put us in a sail selection quandary. The mixed ocean is running about 8-10ft from two directions resulting in equivalent periods between slow and 5 seconds. The wave may be only 30ft from trough to trough, but 8-10 feet as a nice standing peak in the middle. Combined with wind that is varying from 18 to 30kts with about a 20min semi period. Result is that we can't consistently hold the 1.5oz AP kite ("Red Apples") without significant risk to the sail, and jib reaching angles are horrible and inconsistent. A brief period of wing-on-wing proved equally risky to the main from frequent waves forcing the main to jibe. ugh... Yellow Brick path probably reveals our various trial directions... this is the sort of thing that used to be rolled up into "slow day", but now is well documented!
We passed half way this morning! shortly after our 0800 position. The trials of today have not really allowed the usual sort of party. Though Shana made cinnamon rolls from scratch! Some were tired enough to sleep through dinner, which smelled fantastic - so are looking forward to catching up on the yummy calories. (wind currently piped up to 33kts, boat doing 9kts at 160twa)
All are well, and we're plugging along - not quite as clean and pretty as yesterday, but making progress and enjoying the ocean. Onward!
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
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We passed half way this morning! shortly after our 0800 position. The trials of today have not really allowed the usual sort of party. Though Shana made cinnamon rolls from scratch! Some were tired enough to sleep through dinner, which smelled fantastic - so are looking forward to catching up on the yummy calories. (wind currently piped up to 33kts, boat doing 9kts at 160twa)
All are well, and we're plugging along - not quite as clean and pretty as yesterday, but making progress and enjoying the ocean. Onward!
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
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Monday, July 23, 2012
Day 6: Long Night
All
Yesterday was a great beautiful day, glorious skies and an ocean blue that pierces the soul and fills one with wonder.
The Sunset was incredibly dramatic as well. A dark layer in front, puffy clouds behind, and the sun setting in fiery red through a peep hole in the cloud bank. That transitioned into a orange crescent moonset and a most incredible night sky. The Milky way stretching across the sky and basking the ocean in it's starry light revealing just enough of its flowing swells and ever moving face.
We saw a satellite flare, a few shooting stars, and a few planets we think, but didn't bring the decoder ring...
After that, the night turned into a total ruckus. We did 100nm in the first 12 hours and knew we needed a 200nm day to really put the pressure on. Around 2am this morning, the boat speed went from hanging in the 9-11 range and plopped solidly at 6.7kts. Investigation under the boat didn't show anything, but something was down there. In the 4-7ft seas and 20-24kts of wind, 'backing down' was the only real option. The crew reorganized, doused the kite, and tacked around, backwinded the main on the port afterguy, and backed, stern first toward HI for a few boat lengths - clearing whatever we had caught on the boat. We then started putting everything back in place and off we went. That took about an hour and cost between 4 and 7 miles. While we are still in third, the lead two boats made small gains, and the 4th place boat (same rating) is only 10nm behind. Due to timing, several crew worked 20hr days yesterday to keep the boat going fast. It is certain the crew will sleep through their off watches today.
Evidence of the devastation and magnitude of the tsunami in Japan continues to float by - a sandal and a Japanese license plate are two of the notable ones in the last day. Very Humbling.
Later in the night we could look over our shoulders and see a huge north to south blackness that extinguished stars as if it were eating them one by one. The horizon disappeared in the towering dark. A look back from the cabin made it look like Shana was racing away from "The Nothing" in "The Never Ending Story." The race continued through several drivers until The Nothing finally conceded defeat and passed to the south.
The race continues, we continue to make adjustments trying to improve boatspeed and some very challenging decisions are ahead in the next few days.
Now off to eat breakfast which is a wonderful looking stack of omelet with sausage and cantaloupe - Thanks Mark!
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
"Swazik" - a Swan 69, (E div) passed to the North today, great pictures of her beneath huge clouds.
----------
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Yesterday was a great beautiful day, glorious skies and an ocean blue that pierces the soul and fills one with wonder.
The Sunset was incredibly dramatic as well. A dark layer in front, puffy clouds behind, and the sun setting in fiery red through a peep hole in the cloud bank. That transitioned into a orange crescent moonset and a most incredible night sky. The Milky way stretching across the sky and basking the ocean in it's starry light revealing just enough of its flowing swells and ever moving face.
We saw a satellite flare, a few shooting stars, and a few planets we think, but didn't bring the decoder ring...
After that, the night turned into a total ruckus. We did 100nm in the first 12 hours and knew we needed a 200nm day to really put the pressure on. Around 2am this morning, the boat speed went from hanging in the 9-11 range and plopped solidly at 6.7kts. Investigation under the boat didn't show anything, but something was down there. In the 4-7ft seas and 20-24kts of wind, 'backing down' was the only real option. The crew reorganized, doused the kite, and tacked around, backwinded the main on the port afterguy, and backed, stern first toward HI for a few boat lengths - clearing whatever we had caught on the boat. We then started putting everything back in place and off we went. That took about an hour and cost between 4 and 7 miles. While we are still in third, the lead two boats made small gains, and the 4th place boat (same rating) is only 10nm behind. Due to timing, several crew worked 20hr days yesterday to keep the boat going fast. It is certain the crew will sleep through their off watches today.
Evidence of the devastation and magnitude of the tsunami in Japan continues to float by - a sandal and a Japanese license plate are two of the notable ones in the last day. Very Humbling.
Later in the night we could look over our shoulders and see a huge north to south blackness that extinguished stars as if it were eating them one by one. The horizon disappeared in the towering dark. A look back from the cabin made it look like Shana was racing away from "The Nothing" in "The Never Ending Story." The race continued through several drivers until The Nothing finally conceded defeat and passed to the south.
The race continues, we continue to make adjustments trying to improve boatspeed and some very challenging decisions are ahead in the next few days.
Now off to eat breakfast which is a wonderful looking stack of omelet with sausage and cantaloupe - Thanks Mark!
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
"Swazik" - a Swan 69, (E div) passed to the North today, great pictures of her beneath huge clouds.
----------
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Sunday, July 22, 2012
Day 6: Life is Good!
A huge day, 181 miles this early in the race is a notable feat. It was however about 6-7 miles short of what was needed to hold onto second. We had a couple of light spots, and that may have been the difference. We need to put about 6 miles a day on those boats due to the way the boats are rated. If the wind stays in the <18kt range, we should be golden, if it fills in as predicted to 20+, we can expect those two boats to be very hard to catch. We have made an adjustment to the strategy that is slightly more aggressive - we won't know how well it worked for about 3-5 days. Such is the crucible of ocean racing. Either way, we have a task ahead!
This year has seen significantly more trash than in past years, partially from the Japan debris field. The fleet has been asked to report specific debris recognized as from the tsunami. This apparently could include things like refrigerator doors. Possibly eerily, we saw a hard hat, but of unknown and hopefully peaceful origin. Most of what we see has been fishing gear, and industrial foam.
Bequia has extended a formal invitation to Nemo. With luck, he will join us for dinner soon ;)
Last night the phosphorescent was spectacular. The wake produces a wonderful background light with additional points of brilliance and flare. As the boat accelerates, the wake becomes brighter, revealing the power, force and life of the ocean. Waves curling over in the distance flash green, catching your eye and then return to darkest black of night. Perhaps James Cameron used them as inspiration for scenes in Avatar, for it is absolutely wondrous.
The menu continues to delight. Banana pancakes for all (but TK) this morning. For lunch, Chef TK made PBJSCoW* sandwiches which went well with the left over Thai chicken. unlike sometimes, no one is losing weight. like always, everyone is getting stronger working out on the wheel and just hanging on as the boat constantly changes its orientation in all three directions.
The weather is getting warmer and warmer, and brighter and brighter - more brilliant every day. The crew is using half as many warm layers at night, simple foulies and wind-breakers are sufficient for warmth and to repel the spits of rain, tee-shirts and pants in the day. We are approximately at the latitude of San Diego, and that would be a fair description. The ocean is blue, the "Spirit of '83" has been up for two days, the wind is blowing 18-20kts, and we are broad reaching making 8-9+ kts of boatspeed.... it would be an understatement to say - life is good here, it might be one of the best days of sailing ever...
-BequWeeeeeeeeee
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
*Peanut butter jelly salami and cheese on wheat,..... of course.
Update: 2021 PDT: We just completed 100miles in 12 hours. It's been fast, we'll see if we can keep it rolling!
----------
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for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
This year has seen significantly more trash than in past years, partially from the Japan debris field. The fleet has been asked to report specific debris recognized as from the tsunami. This apparently could include things like refrigerator doors. Possibly eerily, we saw a hard hat, but of unknown and hopefully peaceful origin. Most of what we see has been fishing gear, and industrial foam.
Bequia has extended a formal invitation to Nemo. With luck, he will join us for dinner soon ;)
Last night the phosphorescent was spectacular. The wake produces a wonderful background light with additional points of brilliance and flare. As the boat accelerates, the wake becomes brighter, revealing the power, force and life of the ocean. Waves curling over in the distance flash green, catching your eye and then return to darkest black of night. Perhaps James Cameron used them as inspiration for scenes in Avatar, for it is absolutely wondrous.
The menu continues to delight. Banana pancakes for all (but TK) this morning. For lunch, Chef TK made PBJSCoW* sandwiches which went well with the left over Thai chicken. unlike sometimes, no one is losing weight. like always, everyone is getting stronger working out on the wheel and just hanging on as the boat constantly changes its orientation in all three directions.
The weather is getting warmer and warmer, and brighter and brighter - more brilliant every day. The crew is using half as many warm layers at night, simple foulies and wind-breakers are sufficient for warmth and to repel the spits of rain, tee-shirts and pants in the day. We are approximately at the latitude of San Diego, and that would be a fair description. The ocean is blue, the "Spirit of '83" has been up for two days, the wind is blowing 18-20kts, and we are broad reaching making 8-9+ kts of boatspeed.... it would be an understatement to say - life is good here, it might be one of the best days of sailing ever...
-BequWeeeeeeeeee
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
*Peanut butter jelly salami and cheese on wheat,..... of course.
Update: 2021 PDT: We just completed 100miles in 12 hours. It's been fast, we'll see if we can keep it rolling!
----------
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Saturday, July 21, 2012
Day 5: The Stalking
The crew today was pleased to see the progress and climb up to second place. (The second day in a row with the longest day's run! Great job to the hard workers who sweated it out putting on a fresh bottom before the race: Dennis, Jack, Mark and Shana.) The strategy so far has paid off, now comes the 5 day stalking. The boats are all sort of lined up in a slot of weather, it's expensive to adjust your lane, so from now until Tuesday, we have to focus on boat speed and the little things. How little? The entire gains of yesterday were due to sailing 0.16kts faster than our competitors - and our position assumes that we continue to do that! For the first time, we can see another sailboat in the race. It is 'Lightspeed' (the fleet leader), and she is dead ahead just on the horizon. we can see the color on her sails and we hunt.
The wind angles finally opened up enough to launch the 0.75oz full size kite. In honor of the upcoming America's Cup, this spinnaker's name shall be, "Spirit of 83'" - for she is a dragon slayer! She is a nice crispy kite, and seems to be doing us well.
We got our first subtropical rain squall thingy. Light winds, but we progressed along at just over 7kts though a world reduced in size to a mere 400yards by an opaque drizzle. There was only us for a time. as we sailed out, it was glorious sunlight and water as far as can be seen. It would remind some of the infinite, but certainly how far we've gone, and how far we have to go. (In the next few hours, we will have completed 25% of the miles, but most of the race is yet to come)
Across the fleet different boats face different challenges. Many of the boats have had failures of a most diabolical type. The head. for them, buckets are their friends. We on Bequia have dual redundant system. One head forward, one head midships. While some would say this solution is heavy, others would point around the fleet with a cringed face and plugged nose. This kind of luxury is what Bequia is known for, that and enough wine to go around. The boats continue to work well, power, coms, navigation, software, stove, refrigeration, heads(2), and water systems are all nominal. The sails and lines are also still 100%.
All is well here, we are making dinner (pot roast), a glass of wine, and other yummy items. we appear to be closing range on Lightspeed and now it's time for a nap!
-Bequia Crew
33-19.5' N x 132-13.95'W
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
The wind angles finally opened up enough to launch the 0.75oz full size kite. In honor of the upcoming America's Cup, this spinnaker's name shall be, "Spirit of 83'" - for she is a dragon slayer! She is a nice crispy kite, and seems to be doing us well.
We got our first subtropical rain squall thingy. Light winds, but we progressed along at just over 7kts though a world reduced in size to a mere 400yards by an opaque drizzle. There was only us for a time. as we sailed out, it was glorious sunlight and water as far as can be seen. It would remind some of the infinite, but certainly how far we've gone, and how far we have to go. (In the next few hours, we will have completed 25% of the miles, but most of the race is yet to come)
Across the fleet different boats face different challenges. Many of the boats have had failures of a most diabolical type. The head. for them, buckets are their friends. We on Bequia have dual redundant system. One head forward, one head midships. While some would say this solution is heavy, others would point around the fleet with a cringed face and plugged nose. This kind of luxury is what Bequia is known for, that and enough wine to go around. The boats continue to work well, power, coms, navigation, software, stove, refrigeration, heads(2), and water systems are all nominal. The sails and lines are also still 100%.
All is well here, we are making dinner (pot roast), a glass of wine, and other yummy items. we appear to be closing range on Lightspeed and now it's time for a nap!
-Bequia Crew
33-19.5' N x 132-13.95'W
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
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Friday, July 20, 2012
Day 4B: The Die Is Cast
The huge day yesterday was a thrill, and we're sure our competitors hear the roar of Bequia charging through the waves in the back of their minds. We see them in our minds to, but more like prey. We've been headstay reaching as tight as we can (60-70deg apparent) with the 1.5oz kite "Red Apples" a.k.a. "Green Monster". The wind often shifting and changing speeds. Even getting light enough for a switch to the 0.5oz satin weave. (Thursday morning had a VERY calm few hours, but finally filled back in beautifully.) We've been expecting for the wind to veer and lift us toward the island of our destination. That finally happened today, and we're focusing more on trim as we continue to press, cast the die of our path, and let the winds of fate choose who is just.
As the crew continues to drive the boat through the race a few custom terms show up. The forward bunk area is now called the magic carpet. Not just because we're sleeping on the floor, but because it heaves and pitch the most of anywhere on the boat. It is also one of the narrowest (and therefore most secure) places to sleep.
Jack took on the role of sue chef and made some great blueberry-oatmeal pancakes. Shana took on the roll of cooking game show host yesterday, with a chicken, vegetable over rice dish that was fantastic. The crew continues to be well fed.
Apologies for the delay in the blog posts, they were being sent to the wrong address:(. Hopefully they posted in order.
We sail on, in light air, nearly flat sea's and makinig 7+ towards the welcoming beauty of Kaneohe bay.
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
As the crew continues to drive the boat through the race a few custom terms show up. The forward bunk area is now called the magic carpet. Not just because we're sleeping on the floor, but because it heaves and pitch the most of anywhere on the boat. It is also one of the narrowest (and therefore most secure) places to sleep.
Jack took on the role of sue chef and made some great blueberry-oatmeal pancakes. Shana took on the roll of cooking game show host yesterday, with a chicken, vegetable over rice dish that was fantastic. The crew continues to be well fed.
Apologies for the delay in the blog posts, they were being sent to the wrong address:(. Hopefully they posted in order.
We sail on, in light air, nearly flat sea's and makinig 7+ towards the welcoming beauty of Kaneohe bay.
-Bequia
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
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Day 1: Animals Under Glass
All,
The crew got a great start with Ashley and Carly cheering us on from the deck of the St. Francis. Also, Stephen and Andy sailed down to Richmond on Tutto Bene Monday and out to the start line with us on Tuesday. It was nice to see her and have good friends and family there as we started this adventure. We moved quickly out of the bay escorted for a while by a dolphin. It is quite rare to see a dolphin in the bay - surely a good sign overall.
Sunset was classic, no clouds perfect gradation from pink to the deepest violet. Very nice view.
Soon after the gate, wind speed dropped. At the time I'm writing this (0400) we have cleared the Farallon Islands. We were becalmed for a short while, the rest has been just moving along at 0.5 - 3 kts. Which maybe the world knows just as well as we do with the new tracking devices. Yes, that track looks pretty funny but you will go to great extremes to find wind during a race. Luckily the wave state has been 0 or 1 (gentle rollers) so, we aren't slapping around too much. We actually set the 0.5oz bedsheet, have jibed twice, and are starting to get some momentum (we hope). As the night went on it got more frustrating as we would get a puff off our left shoulder and then on the right side of your face and then nothing....then it would start over with a different pattern. When you don't know where the competition is, you try everything you can think of to find something to push the boat.
We'll see where we are in the morning, 2-3 boats got a big jump, others took very different routes, we will have to work hard to catch them anytime soon. Again, though, you have better situational awareness than we do! (the link to the right of this blog takes you to the "yellow brick" plugin and you can select us, or our whole fleet,updates every 15 min(ish)) We only get position reports once a day on the other boats. The rest of the time we are guessing.
'The ocean is a desert with it's life underground and the perfect disguise above' : we have seen and heard large numbers of dolphins, whales, whale spouts, sea lions and birds almost continuously.
The bird calls are near and far add sound, sometimes like babies or cats. The eating must be good out here for them! One whale was within 50 yards of the boat - they are really huge. Other dolphins and sea lions have swum up behind us and we can hear them breath,close aboard, but can't see them. Erie, and cool!
We are all settling into the watch scheme and doing well. Dinner for us was grilled chicken. Sleeping has been easy, aided by various meds preventing mal-de-mare. Spirits are high despite the VERY slow start. Perhaps we can make it out to the high tomorrow - a full weather analysis will be downloaded shortly. Today is Mark's birthday! One more birthday in the ocean on Bequia.
This morning at 0800 we found out there was a hitchhiking chunk of kelp snagged on the rudder. Dennis thought of looking using a camera held underwater behind the boat.
Shawna handled those undersea duties. BTW, the water is 50+ degrees cold. Then Mark took off his shirt and grabbed the boathook. He poked around getting some of it off. Finally, Travis put on the goggles and stuck his head under so he could see it directly. Off it came. Film at 11 ..... days from now. Multiple avenues were explored before a diving mask was procured and we leaned over the transom backward and fished the kelp off with a boat hook. This was a great thing since the only other option was a very chilly morning saltwater swim!
The roll call reveals that our night of frustrations were shared by the whole fleet. Our "day run" of 38 miles seems short compared to our 150-200 mile runs later in the race. On the other hand, in a race, everything is relative. We are excited when the wind speed hits 5kts true. the whoops and hollers that just happened at 1100 hours were the first 5kts wind we've had in a long time.
From the crew, we wanted to say "thank you" to all those who have helped make this happen. It has been a bequitiful day.
-----
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
The crew got a great start with Ashley and Carly cheering us on from the deck of the St. Francis. Also, Stephen and Andy sailed down to Richmond on Tutto Bene Monday and out to the start line with us on Tuesday. It was nice to see her and have good friends and family there as we started this adventure. We moved quickly out of the bay escorted for a while by a dolphin. It is quite rare to see a dolphin in the bay - surely a good sign overall.
Sunset was classic, no clouds perfect gradation from pink to the deepest violet. Very nice view.
Soon after the gate, wind speed dropped. At the time I'm writing this (0400) we have cleared the Farallon Islands. We were becalmed for a short while, the rest has been just moving along at 0.5 - 3 kts. Which maybe the world knows just as well as we do with the new tracking devices. Yes, that track looks pretty funny but you will go to great extremes to find wind during a race. Luckily the wave state has been 0 or 1 (gentle rollers) so, we aren't slapping around too much. We actually set the 0.5oz bedsheet, have jibed twice, and are starting to get some momentum (we hope). As the night went on it got more frustrating as we would get a puff off our left shoulder and then on the right side of your face and then nothing....then it would start over with a different pattern. When you don't know where the competition is, you try everything you can think of to find something to push the boat.
We'll see where we are in the morning, 2-3 boats got a big jump, others took very different routes, we will have to work hard to catch them anytime soon. Again, though, you have better situational awareness than we do! (the link to the right of this blog takes you to the "yellow brick" plugin and you can select us, or our whole fleet,updates every 15 min(ish)) We only get position reports once a day on the other boats. The rest of the time we are guessing.
'The ocean is a desert with it's life underground and the perfect disguise above' : we have seen and heard large numbers of dolphins, whales, whale spouts, sea lions and birds almost continuously.
The bird calls are near and far add sound, sometimes like babies or cats. The eating must be good out here for them! One whale was within 50 yards of the boat - they are really huge. Other dolphins and sea lions have swum up behind us and we can hear them breath,close aboard, but can't see them. Erie, and cool!
We are all settling into the watch scheme and doing well. Dinner for us was grilled chicken. Sleeping has been easy, aided by various meds preventing mal-de-mare. Spirits are high despite the VERY slow start. Perhaps we can make it out to the high tomorrow - a full weather analysis will be downloaded shortly. Today is Mark's birthday! One more birthday in the ocean on Bequia.
This morning at 0800 we found out there was a hitchhiking chunk of kelp snagged on the rudder. Dennis thought of looking using a camera held underwater behind the boat.
Shawna handled those undersea duties. BTW, the water is 50+ degrees cold. Then Mark took off his shirt and grabbed the boathook. He poked around getting some of it off. Finally, Travis put on the goggles and stuck his head under so he could see it directly. Off it came. Film at 11 ..... days from now. Multiple avenues were explored before a diving mask was procured and we leaned over the transom backward and fished the kelp off with a boat hook. This was a great thing since the only other option was a very chilly morning saltwater swim!
The roll call reveals that our night of frustrations were shared by the whole fleet. Our "day run" of 38 miles seems short compared to our 150-200 mile runs later in the race. On the other hand, in a race, everything is relative. We are excited when the wind speed hits 5kts true. the whoops and hollers that just happened at 1100 hours were the first 5kts wind we've had in a long time.
From the crew, we wanted to say "thank you" to all those who have helped make this happen. It has been a bequitiful day.
-----
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
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Day 3: Water World
All,
The race continues! The biggest change for us has been that we are clearly in the water world. Huge sky, vast ocean of deep blue, cloud structures all around and well into the pace of the watches, and life at sea. Everybody is comfortable and doing well. Crew dynamics are warm and jestful. The Chef continues to amaze, with great food and a devotion to the crews health. (i just looked at the table -Capresse salad with lasagne and wine! Awesome)(note later: it was fantastic!)
The boat has drawn first blood - Dennis cut a finger, and Travis hit his head on a corner getting into bed. Neither were smooth moves, but no real harm done.
Gotta Run for now: time to set a kite and see how it goes!
1915PDT- Kite is working.... We are down near 210M, but ok with that for now. Boat speeds are up to steady 8kts (9mph) after some slow periods at 6kts. For the last two days, we've not needed any help from the "standby" crew member. With the kite up on a tight reach, we will most certainly need more help on deck. Going to be a tougher night.
In the meantime, we are collecting weather fax and Dennis has the volume turned up pretty loud; He calls it "music". It sounds worse than a normal fax machine! The crew fought back, and we've now turned it down.
The two boats in front seem to be really fast in these conditions, we're going to work to reel them in a bit, time will tell.
We're back to sailing, task: sail into sunset!
-Bequia Crew
p.s If you want to send a few sentences to the crew, please email the people below: "<>"substitute for the thing... (prevents bots from spamming their address>
Becky Ronk <lastname>co@aol.com
Roshawn Bowers <firstname><lastinitial>@gmail.com
Nicholas Vetter <firstName>.<Lastname>@gmail.com (Still on honeymoon till ???)
p.p.s. current water depth, 15,300ft!
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At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
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At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
The race continues! The biggest change for us has been that we are clearly in the water world. Huge sky, vast ocean of deep blue, cloud structures all around and well into the pace of the watches, and life at sea. Everybody is comfortable and doing well. Crew dynamics are warm and jestful. The Chef continues to amaze, with great food and a devotion to the crews health. (i just looked at the table -Capresse salad with lasagne and wine! Awesome)(note later: it was fantastic!)
The boat has drawn first blood - Dennis cut a finger, and Travis hit his head on a corner getting into bed. Neither were smooth moves, but no real harm done.
Gotta Run for now: time to set a kite and see how it goes!
1915PDT- Kite is working.... We are down near 210M, but ok with that for now. Boat speeds are up to steady 8kts (9mph) after some slow periods at 6kts. For the last two days, we've not needed any help from the "standby" crew member. With the kite up on a tight reach, we will most certainly need more help on deck. Going to be a tougher night.
In the meantime, we are collecting weather fax and Dennis has the volume turned up pretty loud; He calls it "music". It sounds worse than a normal fax machine! The crew fought back, and we've now turned it down.
The two boats in front seem to be really fast in these conditions, we're going to work to reel them in a bit, time will tell.
We're back to sailing, task: sail into sunset!
-Bequia Crew
p.s If you want to send a few sentences to the crew, please email the people below: "<>"substitute for the thing... (prevents bots from spamming their address>
Becky Ronk <lastname>co@aol.com
Roshawn Bowers <firstname><lastinitial>@gmail.com
Nicholas Vetter <firstName>.<Lastname>@gmail.com (Still on honeymoon till ???)
p.p.s. current water depth, 15,300ft!
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Day 4: Camp Granada
Psst..... i gotta tell you, it's bad out here. Stuck in a little space with these folks. You know, they wake you up at all hours of the day and night and make you put on these ridiculous outfits with fifteen layers of clothes you'd never be caught dead in during a regular day. I mean, what style puts your good clothes on the inside and then puts layer upon layer of junk over it?? "Nice shirt/sweater/pants" under that big bulky jacket? i don't think so.
And the activities they plan for you at this camp are obnoxious. Hang out doing nothing but look out at the ever changing cloud formations. They do have their redeeming moments at sunset and sunrise, i have to admit. as a matter of fact, I've seen more sunrises in this week than i have in months at home. All right, they are pretty cool.
And then there's the boring ocean around all the time. just a bunch of water, really, as far as you can see. we haven't seen any big wave action which i was looking forward to, only these rolling prairies with valleys fifty yards wide that have a complicated little side story going in a different direction. A little bit pretty if you like that sort of thing
oh, there's the work they make you do. Steering this rocket ship with a spin out to windward and a bad case of the slows to leeward. Balancing the up and down moment by moment with the wind forces changing all the time and the waves and swell giving you a unique challenge each ten seconds. sometimes a lot of muscle, sometimes fingertip balance. The thrill of saving the boat from the surprise turn up into the wind and "disaster" with just the proper pressure and a masterful bit of timing on the release. When it works, it makes you feel like a big league pitcher and an orchestra conductor all at the same time. a good feeling that makes the work part of it not so awfully bad in the end.
the different noises the water makes as it rushes by, you can really notice at night. low notes from the beam of the boat in an irregular rhythm with high notes beating out a staccato next to and below your feet. kind of a shh shhh shh shhh shhh like a steel brush on the high hat. and then there is the noise you get as a reward when it all comes together in a burst of speed. A bass crescendo with soprano highlights as the splash leaps up and strikes the side of the boat. Whew, i wish i could share that part with you.
if you make me admit it, i do like sharing the food and eating all together with the folks that are trying, like me, to do a kind of cool thing and win a two week long, multi thousand mile challenge over man and nature.
OK, OK, it's stopped raining at Camp Granada. I'll be back next year.
:)
Bequia
Mid Pacific
34.53.110N by 128.31.240W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
And the activities they plan for you at this camp are obnoxious. Hang out doing nothing but look out at the ever changing cloud formations. They do have their redeeming moments at sunset and sunrise, i have to admit. as a matter of fact, I've seen more sunrises in this week than i have in months at home. All right, they are pretty cool.
And then there's the boring ocean around all the time. just a bunch of water, really, as far as you can see. we haven't seen any big wave action which i was looking forward to, only these rolling prairies with valleys fifty yards wide that have a complicated little side story going in a different direction. A little bit pretty if you like that sort of thing
oh, there's the work they make you do. Steering this rocket ship with a spin out to windward and a bad case of the slows to leeward. Balancing the up and down moment by moment with the wind forces changing all the time and the waves and swell giving you a unique challenge each ten seconds. sometimes a lot of muscle, sometimes fingertip balance. The thrill of saving the boat from the surprise turn up into the wind and "disaster" with just the proper pressure and a masterful bit of timing on the release. When it works, it makes you feel like a big league pitcher and an orchestra conductor all at the same time. a good feeling that makes the work part of it not so awfully bad in the end.
the different noises the water makes as it rushes by, you can really notice at night. low notes from the beam of the boat in an irregular rhythm with high notes beating out a staccato next to and below your feet. kind of a shh shhh shh shhh shhh like a steel brush on the high hat. and then there is the noise you get as a reward when it all comes together in a burst of speed. A bass crescendo with soprano highlights as the splash leaps up and strikes the side of the boat. Whew, i wish i could share that part with you.
if you make me admit it, i do like sharing the food and eating all together with the folks that are trying, like me, to do a kind of cool thing and win a two week long, multi thousand mile challenge over man and nature.
OK, OK, it's stopped raining at Camp Granada. I'll be back next year.
:)
Bequia
Mid Pacific
34.53.110N by 128.31.240W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Day 2: close...
1430PDT: We can no longer see the Farallon Islands! We continued to see seals out way past the islands- a bit of a surprise!
Multiple Sail changes so far this morning - trying to get the most out of the available wind. The swells are building, perhaps a early sign of some wind to come?:S
We have finally lost sight of any part of California. A big accomplishment in the conditions, and a sure sign that we are truly off on an ocean adventure.
2200PDT, 0500Z: The winds have filled in! We are now close reaching toward HI at a great clip. We've been 1-2 people on deck, just getting faster and faster as the night rolls on. The race optimization software has varied solutions based on tiny perturbations of the inputs. Classic optimization sensitivity. We are taking all this into account and will revalidate after the next weather download. The next roll call should be interesting; who got the wind first? Did everybody get it? How did they adjust their track based on info from yesterday?
It has been a really nice evening with wonderful food cooked by Mark, including excellent tomatoes and mixed green salad! 4 of us ate around the table, left Jack upstairs to single hand for a bit - he looked so happy. (and then happy again when he got to join in with dinner)
The ocean seemed big today - clouds WAY off in the distance, and a glossy sea. The swells were huge, but the gap between was also very large - seemed like long rolling hills as far as the eye could see. We have passed a few tankers/freighters, but have not seen our competitors since mid last night.
-Bequia Crew, blasting through the night
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Multiple Sail changes so far this morning - trying to get the most out of the available wind. The swells are building, perhaps a early sign of some wind to come?:S
We have finally lost sight of any part of California. A big accomplishment in the conditions, and a sure sign that we are truly off on an ocean adventure.
2200PDT, 0500Z: The winds have filled in! We are now close reaching toward HI at a great clip. We've been 1-2 people on deck, just getting faster and faster as the night rolls on. The race optimization software has varied solutions based on tiny perturbations of the inputs. Classic optimization sensitivity. We are taking all this into account and will revalidate after the next weather download. The next roll call should be interesting; who got the wind first? Did everybody get it? How did they adjust their track based on info from yesterday?
It has been a really nice evening with wonderful food cooked by Mark, including excellent tomatoes and mixed green salad! 4 of us ate around the table, left Jack upstairs to single hand for a bit - he looked so happy. (and then happy again when he got to join in with dinner)
The ocean seemed big today - clouds WAY off in the distance, and a glossy sea. The swells were huge, but the gap between was also very large - seemed like long rolling hills as far as the eye could see. We have passed a few tankers/freighters, but have not seen our competitors since mid last night.
-Bequia Crew, blasting through the night
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
-----
At 7/14/2012 12:11 AM (utc) our position was 38°06.27'N 122°16.02'W
----------
radio email processed by SailMail
for information see: http://www.sailmail.com
Tuesday, July 17, 2012
Re: On our way...
So amazing! Be safe & have fun!
On 7/17/12 2:14 PM, Paul Petrowsky wrote:
Good luck! Sent from my iPhone On Jul 17, 2012, at 2:07 PM, "Travis Vetter" <travis.vetter@gmail.com> wrote:We are off! <IMAG0679.jpg>
Re: On our way...
Good luck!
Sent from my iPhone
On Jul 17, 2012, at 2:07 PM, "Travis Vetter" <travis.vetter@gmail.com> wrote:
> We are off!
> <IMAG0679.jpg>
Sent from my iPhone
On Jul 17, 2012, at 2:07 PM, "Travis Vetter" <travis.vetter@gmail.com> wrote:
> We are off!
> <IMAG0679.jpg>
Monday, July 16, 2012
Some start, Bequia lies in wait.
The first start is today! As boats venture out into the pacific we wish them well, and look forward to joining them tomorrow.
Weather looks a bit slow in the first part of the race. The east pacific high has moved very west, leaving a gap between the coast of CA and the normal wind pattern. We will watch the first boats intently at their 8am roll-call.
Today, the brave and already prepared part of the crew are delivering the boat from Vallejo to Richmond Yacht Club, while others are making last min. purchases from Candy Store #1 (REI) and Candy Store # 2 (West Marine). The sailing crew is having more fun already!
We hope to run a radio email check today or tomorrow verifying all is working well. And will also release a coms plan on how to get very short messages to the crew by email. (some form of relay is needed). In the mean time, you can subscribe to the blog and receive nightly emails from the days events in the lower right, and check out the tracker page to see where all the boats in the fleet are (updated about every 15min via GPS and the iridium constellation). You can also subscribe to get the daily position reports emailed to you around midday by subscribing to pacdpr+subscribe@googlegroups.
-Bequia crew
Weather looks a bit slow in the first part of the race. The east pacific high has moved very west, leaving a gap between the coast of CA and the normal wind pattern. We will watch the first boats intently at their 8am roll-call.
Today, the brave and already prepared part of the crew are delivering the boat from Vallejo to Richmond Yacht Club, while others are making last min. purchases from Candy Store #1 (REI) and Candy Store # 2 (West Marine). The sailing crew is having more fun already!
We hope to run a radio email check today or tomorrow verifying all is working well. And will also release a coms plan on how to get very short messages to the crew by email. (some form of relay is needed). In the mean time, you can subscribe to the blog and receive nightly emails from the days events in the lower right, and check out the tracker page to see where all the boats in the fleet are (updated about every 15min via GPS and the iridium constellation). You can also subscribe to get the daily position reports emailed to you around midday by subscribing to pacdpr+subscribe@googlegroups.
-Bequia crew
Saturday, July 14, 2012
Progress on coms
The skippers meeting is happening now, but the email service is running (delivers nightly) and this is the first post from the boats email account.
The sea calls...
The sea calls...
Friday, July 13, 2012
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Getting Closer
The crew is getting ready and so is the technology!
The "YellowBrick" trackers are up. Check out the page / set favorites. This is a really cool thing, updates every 15mi. or so using GPS and the iridium satelite network.
You can learn more at
you can also sign up to the blog (to recieve emails automatically) Put your email address in the "Follow by email"
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