We came – we learned – we sailed – we conquered……..
Our final blog………we had just turned north at the time of writing the last blog after some fantastic sailing through the Bass Strait. With 350nm still to go we were still following our Skippers tactics: relax then pounce-were we still in touch with the other two yachts? The Army were well ahead over 100nm and the RAF were 70nm – was this too much-or could we dig even deeper and find an inner strength as a team to begin the chase?
We had hugged the coast hoping for better winds – having had gale force winds throughout the Bass Strait – we were surfing big waves and at certain points we were getting 15 knots (and more) out of our beloved Adventure as we exited the strait we had 3 reefs in the main and were on the number 3 yankee – the wind started to leave us and began to back even further so we shook reefs out one by one and upped the foresails until we were on full main and the No 1 Yankee – we then tried the heavyweight spinnaker and achieved sound progress overnight on Friday. The wind shifted yet again and was not good for the spinnaker but our “Ninja” Royal Marine Brigadier eked out 6.5 knots into wind using this downwind sail!! Eventually even he couldn’t overcome the force of nature and the Genoa was called for and finally got an airing on Saturday morning. The wind kept decreasing and decreasing – were we beaten? – were we to give up? – were we to consign ourselves to coming third? The whole crew gathered into the cockpit and our options were discussed – Dig deep and work hard or have a day of sun and rest – the whole boat backed our Skipper and went for the former – those that had had night watches gave up on sleep – those that were working below worked harder to help out on deck and those that were on watch oversaw the activity. The spirit onboard was amazing – a true togetherness.
Saturday 5th of December will remain in all of the crew’s minds for a very long time…………….
The decision was made – the wind had backed sufficiently to put the spinnaker back up – it was slicker – the sail change was quicker and we had speed – 8/9 knots – trimming the sails as required getting every last bit out of the boat that we could – even the dolphins were with us – seemingly pulling us along and criss-crossing our bows in delight at our new found energy. – The wind died again another shift – what to do – the lightweight spinnaker was our last throw of the dice, the heavy spinnaker was down and through into the centre of the boat in no time - the magnificent, huge sail opened majestically sucking in the wind and our speed increased yet again – we were gaining on the other yachts – the distances had decreased significantly and we had the bit between our teeth. The heavy spinnaker was packed away for the second time in
12 hours and prepared yet again but the chute was really eating up the miles – then we were dealt yet another card – the wind increased yet again – putting the chute out of limits, with 20 knots of wind and increasing – another change – chute down - through into the boat - packed away and the heavy spinnaker up again in a cyclical motion that any racing crew could be proud of. ‘Look – is that the RAF’ – they were visible – over twelve hours we must have been doubling their boat speed and we now had a visible target – we were gaining and we were gaining fast. In what seemed like no time we were level with them and the wind died again – we were now a crew with polished drills – we took the heavy spinnaker down – and the radio chirped with a call from the RAF stating ‘it looks like you have now stopped in the water’ – as if goaded the lightweight spinnaker filled for the second time – ‘the tortoise’ sprung into action and gradually we forced ourselves into a narrow lead. Our wake glinted in the sun as the crew reflected with true fulfilment on 24 hours of extremely hard work.
After a while –the calls were made on the radio and it was agreed by the skippers to put the iron spinnaker (engine) on – we had done it!
We had overhauled the RAF and got within 25 nm of the Army – a truly tremendous achievement. In our first blog we talked about Commitment, Self-Confidence, Courage, Leadership, Teamwork, Determination, ADVENTURE, CHALLENGE AND DISCOVERY. The last two weeks have seen all of these values in all of our crew culminating in an amazing day of sailing right to the finish. We were shattered, but each and every one of the crew had taken part in the whole effort – we were a merry band of men and women indeed – we had all contributed to our ADVENTURE and we all felt true fulfilment and satisfaction at our achievement.
Congratulations to the Army for winning Leg 5 but on the Royal Navy boat we all feel like winners too for our own individual triumphs alongside the accomplishment of the Team – it can honestly now be said ‘The Team Works’.
Life is supposed to be about the journey and not the destination but hello……..we are going into Sydney. Standby Sydney the Royal Navy is in town.
A big thank you goes out to all those who have followed our blogs and we will all be back amongst our loved ones very soon.
Tactics Corner
So it almost worked, we were dealt a cruel blow at the beginning of the race but determination, wind shift predictions, solid onboard training and the consequent slick drills got us into second place with minutes to spare. Well done to the whole crew for a brilliant display of dedication. - I am resigned to the fact however that we would have achieved 1st place had it not been for the lack of carbohydrates after the sad demise of the potatoes! Sydney is minutes away and the nearest Spudulike is going to get a visit from 15 yachtsmen and women tonight…
Personal messages
From Neil, first to the RN/RNR; sorry I couldn’t quite match the well- drilled Army racing crew but the bit will be back between my teeth next month for Leg 7. Hi to all at home, looking forward to a few days break in Australia now; hope you all have a great Christmas and New Year and I look forward to seeing you all next year.
From Mike, hello to all the family and friends following at home. I have had a fantastic last few days and am now looking forward to a few days in Sydney ☺ Look forward to seeing you all soon, xxx.
From Pete – what a rush! I want to do it again! See you all soon xx
From Steve – we have done it – it was character building but I am richer for the whole experience - home soon and really looking forward to Christmas and New Year – love to all xxxx
