| At sea. Oryx quest: Daedalus report day 58 |
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| Thursday, 07 April 2005 | |
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Time 1400 hours UTC Position 16 . 25 S 51 . 52 E Wind SW 15 kts Course Due North Sky Grey / Cloudy Barometer 1000 mb rising Boat Speed 20 / 25 kts We have now passed the Tropical Storm Isang. There were moments when I believed the narrow passageway we had to sail down, between Mauritius and the centre of the storm was closing, it was worrying. Lee Bruce, our shore based weather router and on board navigator Nick Leggatt have done a great job. We have all treated the last few days sailing very, very seriously, a wrong move could have put us at least four or five days behind our present position. You stand on the helm, everything around you is pitch black, apart from the red light of the steering compass, you are doing around 25 kts, instinctively feeling how the boat is working with the mountainous seas. One minute the boat feels like an out of control roller coaster and the next you know you have her under control,surfing down the long ski like slopes of yet another wave. At surfing speeds of 30 kts plus, ones mind has got to be totally focussed on what you are doing, no wandering off into another world. It seems that we could have favourable winds until the Equator and maybe to the Doldrums. This would be tremendous and give us a chance to close the gap a little more on Doha 2006. When one comes out of the tail of a major storm or hurricane, if one is on the right side of the weather front, one will have good following winds for some time, and it is important to use these winds to ones very best advantage, because they will die away and you can end up in a vacuum of no wind, fighting to keep going. All on board are in good fettle, no injuries, clear thinking, with each and everybody beginning to really enjoy going on deck. No more freezing conditions and razor sharp spray continuously whipping across the deck. The warm winds and gentle spray of the Indian Ocean is a far cry from the roaring forties of the southern ocean. James Dunning has been busy with the camera, Goncalo de Melo, the Watch Leader, has been enjoying the helm ,and Simon Redding , our crew member who is also a top class boatbuilder has done his usual rounds, checking over all the vital equipment on board. Some of the guys are down below in their bunks. They have to get their sleep now because they will be on watch in a couple of hours, and then it is total concentration and getting on with pushing the boat to its limits and as fast as Mother Nature will allow. As for me, I have just prepared a lobster bisque soup to have with some very freshly baked and crispy bread, maybe a little cayenne pepper in the soup. Then I have the large rack of roasted lamb, with a little basmati rice, couscous, roast potatoes, and a selection of fresh vegetables, followed with some stilton, celery and oatmeal biscuits and course, some Blue Mountain Coffee, from Jamaica, definitely the best in the world. Oh well, I can dream, and I do hope and pray that some of my dreams come true. Tony Bullimore. www.teambullimore.com. www.oryxquest.com |
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| Last Updated ( Thursday, 07 April 2005 ) |
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