Rachel's space

The challenges of ocean racing….

From day one there have been many challenges of ocean racing, starting with the daunting thought that you will be crossing an ocean, for me this has long since gone, but for the new leggers this was something they had to overcome, which seemed strange so late on in the day. 

This is my last ocean crossing on the Clipper race, the Atlantic for the 3^rd time, but you can never assume you will know what it will be like.  This time we are in the North Atlantic and despite the fact it is late June it is very cold, with freezing fog and ice burgs to watch out for.  The cold front pushes down the Labrador Sea from Greenland reminding us round the worlders how cold it can get, however nothing has yet matched the Yellow Sea into China.

We left in very little wind and going on the past few races, half expected to have to motor to a rendezvous point to at least get the race started, but the wind picked up enough for some close tacking and some very competitive sailing out to the Atlantic.  Then the wind turned lighter and as we all sat here wondering where the Grand Banks and the perfect storm were, little did we know they were right around the corner.  As we came past the edge of Newfoundland and turned to follow the great circle the wind started to increase, probably not the best way to settle the new leggers into their first ocean.  The mixture of icy wind, slamming large waves and cold water coming over the deck, complete with a few rough headsail changes, made the ocean racers stand out from the fair weather sailors.  I can not actually remember ever having three reefs in the main sail and the Yankee 3 up (our smallest headsail) but it must have happened fairly early on.  The weather continued to be rough for a few days leaving the crew short staffed due to tumbles and falls from the battering being had on the foredeck and below and to add to that most of the crew have had flu and fevers, leaving the watches down to three at some stages.  Below deck looked like a hospital ward with someone having to do the rounds at the start of every watch.  I’m trying to stay clear of the flu ridden but it is very hard with only 68ft to play with.

Last night saw the end of the beating for now and as the sunset the wind started to back.   As the night sky set in and the stars came out we went for a spinnaker hoist leaving Jamaica behind in the dark.  This morning New York and Qingdao our about five miles off our bow and we keep on pushing on in an attempt to regain our 1^st place on the podium. 

As you can see the challenges of ocean racing don’t just start with sailing, there are the mental and physical capabilities of each and every crew member.  There is seasickness and everyday illnesses that can still be caught onboard no matter how clean the boat is.  Once you have dealt with those you can move on to the constant discomfort of living onboard, no central heating or air conditioning for the hotter climates, constantly wet or damp clothes and lack of sleep due to the continuous thrashing of the boat, not forgetting the lack of showering particularly in the choppier seas.  Another problem you could face is getting on with up to 20 people for months at a time, with only the mast or the end of the spinnaker pole to bring a few minutes’ piece and quiet.  The food onboard tends to be of the one pot variety and can get a little repetitive, especially when the food has been bought in countries with language barriers!  Onboard H&H we have had some excellent food and also the odd disaster and arriving in port is always a blessing when fresh meat is concerned.  So, you are now living onboard and you think you are doing pretty well, you’ve made new friends and you are coping with your cold, you’re a little battered but the bruises are helping keep you warm.  Then you suddenly find you have a job to do!  You have to sail a yacht, not only do you have to sail it; you have to race against a fleet of 9 other yachts.  Headsail change after headsail change, spinnaker hoist and spinnaker drop, you’re exhausted, but you have tried your hardest, only to find as the results come in, you’ve lost miles on the rest of the fleet.  At this point all you can do is go back on deck and do it all again and hope you do better next time!

The race from Halifax to Sydney is not actually part of the point system for the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race but was set up so that the international fleet of ten identical ocean racing yachts to celebrate 250 years of democracy in Nova Scotia, in an attempt to inspire the younger generation to vote and to continue their proud maritime history. 

After saying goodbye to Gareth on one of the first sunny mornings in Nova Scotia a colourful display of clipper 68s gathered at the starting line for the short race up to Sydney.  The day started downwind with most of the fleet poling out their headsails other than Nova Scotia who raised their spinnaker.  We crossed the start line at the back of the fleet with the intention of keeping out of trouble due to a container ship coming out of the port.  Due to light winds we slowly gained on the rest of the fleet and within a few hours we were in 3^rd place behind Western Australia and Uniquely Singapore.  

The weather forecast had predicted strong winds of gusts up to 40 knots so the Hull and Humber crew were delighted to be sailing in 20 knots for a while, only to be woken during the night for an “all hands on deck” to drop the Yankee 2 headsail complete with two reefs in the main and to continue to sail with just the stay sail acting as a storm jib, when the winds finally did hit over 40 knots.  Little did we know that whilst we were battling the storm, Nova Scotia had destroyed their mainsail and Uniquely Singapore had retired due to missing a mark.

We were now in survival mode, but with only a few miles to go we had both Western Australia and Liverpool in our sights.  As we approached the finish line, we saw both WA and Liverpool drop back on the radar but unsure of how close WA where to the line. 

 Hull & Humber had clinched by a whisker and won the D250 race by a mere 32 nail biting seconds. 

Arriving in Sydney couldn’t have been more of a relief after the battering we had been through; surfing into the harbour at 15 knots was not however the preferred means of arrival!  The crew were greeted with a warm dinner and refreshing local beer.

The hospitality in Sydney was second to none and at the prize giving we were given a glorious trophy and medallions for all the crew of H&H. 

Rachel