An update on dates

I have just spent 50 minutes typing all the dates, places, marinas etc into my blog only for it all to disappear into the ether when I tried to add a photo.  It all needs re-doing so here goes......

Clipper have just announced the marinas for Rio and the Whitsundays (Queensland, Aus) along with departure dates and estimated arrival dates in the various ports.  Some of this you already know but here goes:

Race 1


Leaving London at the start of
the 2013-14 race

Depart London (St Katharine Docks) - 30th August 2015
ETA Rio de Janeiro (Marina da Glorio), Brazil 26th - 30 September 2015

Race 2
Depart Rio - 7th October
ETA Cape Town (Victoria and Albert Waterfront) 21st - 25th October

Race 3
Depart Cape Town - 31st October
ETA Albany (Albany Waterfront Marina), WA 22nd - 26th November

Race 4
Depart Albany - 1st December
ETA Sydney (Cruising Yacht Club of Australia) 12th - 15th December



Sydney Hobart race
December 2014

Race 5
Depart Sydney - 26th December (Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race)
ETA Hobart 30th - 31st December

Race 6
Depart Hobart - 2nd January 2016
ETA Airlie Beach (Abel Point Marina), Whitsundays, Queensland 13th - 14th January 2016

Race 7
Depart Airlie Beach - 18th January


Qingdao 2014

ETA South East Asia (location TBC)               mid-February

Race 8
Depart South East Asia (TBC)
ETA Qingdao (Olympic Sailing Harbour), China 10th - 13th March

Race 9
Depart Qingdao - 20th March
ETA Seattle (Bell Harbor Marina), USA    15th - 20th April

Race 10
Depart Seattle - 28th April
ETA Panama (Flamenco Island Marina) 25th - 27th May

Race 11
Depart Panama (Shelter Bay Marina) - 30th May  (This date is a best estimate as Clipper have no control over the Panama Canal scheduling)
ETA New York 12th - 14th June

Race 12
Depart New York - 20th June
ETA Derry Londonderry (Foyle Marina) 7th - 11th July

Race 13
Depart Derry Londonderry - 17th July
ETA Europe (location TBC) 23rd - 24th July

Race 14
Depart Europe (location TBC) - 28th July
ETA St Katharine Docks 30th July

It has now been confirmed that I will be away for 11 months and will celebrate my birthday during the stopover in Derry Londonderry.  Awesome!!

The other great thing that is taking up my time at the moment is moving house.  23rd July is the date we move, in just over one week's time.  The house we are moving into is probably about half the size of the one we are in now and so serious down-sizing is having to take place.  Every time I open a cupboard I am horrified at what I find there; 18 years worth of 'stuff'.  We have so many possessions, the majority of which haven't been used for years.  The garage if now full of black plastic bags full of bits and pieces to go to charity shops.  A couple of charities are coming to take various bits of furniture, electrics and bags later this week so hopefully by the weekend I will be able to see the garage floor. 

All the toys etc in the cabin have now been packed away into various boxes, some to go into storage, some to colleagues and some to charity.  A massive undertaking made easier with the help of some good friends.  Friends are also helping by taking rubbish to the local tip but now that I have hired a skip things should be easier.

What insane person would try to move house and plan for 11 months at sea at the same time?  No need to answer that!!

Level 4 Training

Well, I have now completed the last part of my pre-race training and have a better idea of what it is going to be like on the race.  The English Channel is still tiny when compared to the Southern Ocean and North Pacific but I did get a taste of what it is like living at 45 degrees and being part of a watch system.

My UNICEF boat was out of the water when we set of so our team shared the boat skippered by Wendo, a very bouncy Australian; eight of them, eight of us plus the two skippers. 

The first day out was spent refreshing our sailing skills and the skippers practicing the 'V' formation that would be filmed by very expensive helicopter flights the following week.  It was interesting seeing how everyone tried to get into place and then hold it there for five to ten minutes as the Clipper training boat with all the big names on board skirted around shouting instructions.  We eventually achieved the desired effect before we ran out of water as we headed down the east side of the Isle of Wight.  Good luck to them all when it is done 'for real' on the next L4 training.

'V' formation with our boat at the head of the V and three on either side.

 

After spending a night at anchor we set of on the first of two races across The Channel.  A committee boat start where all seven boats jostled for position before crossing the line on the gun.  Not a bad start for us but the fleet was soon divided into those who sailed out into the Solent and those who hugged the shores of the Isle of Wight where the tide was weaker.  We were in the latter group but soon fell behind the other boats who took a calculated risk and sailed close inshore - obviously local knowledge!

Off across the Channel and over to France as the wind picked up and the sea became more confused.  Most of us were seasick to some extent though managed to take part in the four hour watch system that was instigated at race start.  I hadn't taken any tablets and it was only after 36 hours that I managed to remember to take a seasickness pill before lying down and going to sleep.  Staying in bed then became a bit of a challenge as I  hadn't got the angle on my bunk right so had to hang on or fall out.  When we did tack I was rolled tight into the corner and then it was a struggle to get out of bed to start the next watch.  What did make it all worthwhile were the stunning sun sets and sun rises.  There was also a point when I was helming that the boat was joined by a pod of porpoises who stayed with us for about ten minutes, diving in and out of the water, around and under the boat - magical!

Sun rise with 'Telemed' in the distance as we head back towards the Isle of Wight under spinnaker

 

There were also times when I sincerely wondered what I was doing on this boat while feeling so ill.  Have I made the right decision to sail around the world?  How can I get out of it knowing that I won't get my money back?  How do I tell everyone that my plans have changed and that I am going to go back to work and pack in the idea of a year away?  How am I going to manage feeling so awful, and how long is this feeling going to be around?  I had real doubts that I am doing the right thing.  I then managed to hold down some sea sickness tablets and life became more positive again.  Still hard work but I started to enjoy the sailing and was able to perform tasks without running to the rails on a regular basis. 

The first race was eventually abandoned as we wallowed with no wind off the south coast to the west of Portland.  The course was shortened and the three fastest boats managed to finish before the wind died to virtually nothing leaving the rest of us resorting to turning our engines on to get to the start of the next race.

Lining up for the 'Le Mans' start
under main sail only

A 'Le Mans' start was how we began the second race.  The idea is that there is a lead boat holding a set course with the other boats lined up on each side in a predetermined order.  We all motor along with just the main sail hoisted trying to keep our bows in a straight line.  At one minute before the start the engine is turned off and at the gun the crew run forward to hoist the two head sails as quickly as they can.  The course then has to be held for a further five minutes before the boats can then head of in the desired direction.  We made a very good start on this second race but unfortunately the staysail was inadvertently dropped as one of the crew mistook the halyard for a sheet and released it.  We all make mistakes and in her defence all the ropes look the same when one is under pressure and trying to do something quickly.

This second trip across the Channel was much more pleasant than the first with a near full moon and star studded sky lighting our way.  We sailed with the spinnaker up most of the time so the crossing was relatively quick, so quick that this time the course was lengthened so that we didn't finish too soon.  We eventually finished somewhere in the Solent but with not enough space for us to conduct a man over board (MOB) drill under spinnaker - what a shame!  The instruction was then that we would do it the following day.

Will (Chief Engineer of Leg 1)
serving up dinner

We were all tired after our double crossing so were pleased to be anchoring in Osborne Bay for the night.  Meals were cooked and an inter-boat game of 'Trivia' was conducted over the radio.  Our boat really got into it with complaints from the others that our questions were too serious. 

Jim splicing ropes

 Jim gave us a talk about piracy and multi boat searches as well as showing us all how to splice the ends of the ropes.  Something that will need to be done during our prep week in Gosport.  We also spent time learning about the procedure for using the on-board pumps to pump out the bilges if we are taking on water, and to use the fire hose in case of a fire on board.  During the last race one of the boats used the fire hose to cool the decks while in the Doldrums, so not just for fires.



 

The 'Ice cream boat' tied alongside

What made the evening was the arrival of the 'Ice Cream Boat' after we had finished eating.  Ice creams for sale were expensive but we all gathered on the rail to make our purchases like small children on a Sunday afternoon.  What a treat!

Being at anchor meant an anchor watch with us all taking it in turns to be awake for an hour checking the anchor, water depth and battery levels.  Strict instructions to wake the skipper if there was any concern but all went well and without a hitch. 

We woke on the penultimate morning to bright skies and strong winds, too strong to hoist the spinnaker.  So, no MOB drill with the spinnaker hoisted, but a regular drill with one of the crew donning the immersion suit to pick up Bob the dummy.  Bob was then unceremoniously tied to the stretcher and lowered down below decks where he was assessed and treated by 'Pop' the on-board medic.  We are all getting proficient at this drill and only hope that we never have to carry it out in the real world while on the race.  We were also able to witness Ben Ainslie sail his 'boat' up and down the Solent.  I am not sure if you can call it a boat as it skims across the water balancing on the foils.  An amazing sight and I hope he succeeds in his campaign to bring the Americas Cup to the UK for the first time in its history.

After another night at anchor we headed back to Gosport early on Wednesday morning to arrive at 0800 hrs.  A quick clean up of the boat, yes, the dreaded 'deep clean', saw us finished by 11.30 and off to 'The Boathouse' for an early team lunch.

Will, Chris, me, Murat, Mike, Thom, Jim, Simon, Mel
Team UNICEF at lunch

Another fantastic week, with its 'ups and downs' on a 70 ft Clipper yacht.  It is hard to imagine what it will be like at sea for up to four + weeks; no showers, living at 45 degrees, the heat, the cold, the wet, being seasick, feeling elated, feeling down, missing family and friends, being knocked about etc.  But what this past week has shown me is the team spirit and comradeship we have in Team UNICEF.  Everyone looks out for each other; we have a laugh and a cry, but at the end of the day we care about each and every crew member on board and so far we have all respected our differences.  I must be mindful of those whose English is not their first language and to make sure that they are included in all conversations.  Each of us will bring something different to the boat, be it the technical knowledge of a Chief Engineer, the medical skills of our Medic, the varied menus from the Chief Victualer or the kindness of someone who has noticed one of the crew is feeling down.  The journey is going to be awesome in so many ways and I can't wait to start that journey.

One of the things that I am loving are the cloud formations and colours of the different skies, especially as the sun sets or rises.  On this last trip the sun rises had the greatest impact so I will end by posting a sky that was to be seen as we headed towards the Isle of Wight on our final crossing of the English Channel.

Team UNICEF - crew team building weekend

The weekend of the 19th to 21st of June saw about 22 of my crew head of to Milton Abbas in Dorset for a team building weekend.  Jim had arranged for us to camp in the field of some friends of his and for us to take part in various team bonding activities.

We were tempted by a picture of a field, with a slope of less than 45 degrees, and a luxurious 'Heads'.

A sloping campsite

Luxurious 'heads'

When the 'bathroom' facilities are compared to those on the boat there is no comparison.  The cistern stayed level and wasn't bouncing around as I tried to sit down.  There was fresh water coming out of the taps and there was a proper door, rather than a flimsy piece of fabric that zipped up on both sides.  I wasn't in danger of being thrown through the door, BUT, there were no shower facilities in the middle of a field in the middle of Dorset.  Something the Clipper 70 can boast about.

I arrived at about 4 pm on Friday afternoon and was able to pitch my tent before lots of the others arrived.  We then ambled down to the pub for dinner before zipping ourselves in for the night.  My tent was pitched with my feet pointing down hill but little did I know that I would continually find myself scrunched up by the door as I gradually slid down the hill while I slept.



I had borrowed Becca's tent, the orange one, but Jim just slept under a blue tarpaulin attached to the fence.  'Stig of the Dump'.   I'm not sure how he slept but he did complain about a rock in the middle of his back.

The 'Festival' tent

One of the team kindly brought along a festival tent that acted as our base, and was somewhere to go when it rained, which it did on and off, during the day on Saturday. 

The campsite after a rain shower.  Photo courtesy of Chloe (RTW)

Breakfast!

Food was good and consisted of BBQd bacon and eggs for breakfast followed by a BBQ on Saturday evening.  Janice, our Chief Victualler, had given me a list of what to buy for the weekend and I spent a couple of hours, or that's what it seemed, buying everything from Sainsbury's on Thursday afternoon.  I couldn't believe how much food I needed to purchase to feed 22 people for a couple of days.  It made me realise what an onerous task victualing for 20 for a period of 4-5 weeks is going to be.  The shopping list has to be precise because other people will be helping with the buying of food.  There is no point in saying '5 packs of bacon' because how big is a pack.  The number of rashers has to be identified, and in this case I had to buy 96.  Enough for 2 pieces of bacon per person, assuming 24 people, for two breakfasts.  How much brie do 24 people eat in their sandwiches for lunch?  And how much does it weigh.  I was asked to buy 6 packs of brie - but there are different sizes of packs.  An incredibly complex task if it is to be done right and this crew weekend was a very good start with lots of lessons learnt.

Dinner preparation

The boys took it in turns to cook the food and did a very good job with not too many burnt sausages or burgers.  There were copious amounts of wine, including bottles from Stormhoek (one of the boat sponsors), and a minipin of TEA (Traditional English Ale) from The Hog's Back Brewery just down the road from me in Aldershot.

The bulk of the 'business' was carried out on Saturday with various communication enhancing tasks and a visit from UNICEF.  Henry has put together a short clip, so have a look:  https://youtu.be/tjLkGB3eppo

Fun and games with tennis balls

Preparing to move a jerry can of water into
the middle of a circle

As well as it's serious moments the weekend was full of fun and laughter as we started to get to know each other.  Some of the people present will never sail together and those on Leg 8, which doesn't start until June 2016, won't necessarily be seeing the rest of us for another year.







The official weekend finished on Sunday with an interesting and informative talk from Nick who was the Watch Leader on Henri Lloyd for the last race in '13 - '14.  Lots of good advice from someone on the winning boat including tips and suggestions on how to make the boat go faster.  None of which, of course, are to be repeated!

We also chose our crew song -  'The Impression That I Get' by The Mighty Mighty Bosstones.  Not one that I know but I'm sure I'll get to know it over the next year or so.

After packing up the team started to go their separate ways - some straight home and others to the pub for lunch.  It was a good weekend with the added bonus of having the time to talk to people and to start getting to know each other.

The next thing for me is my Level 4 training which starts this Thursday, 2nd July.  I will be sailing with Jim for the first time and my watch will be made up entirely of Team UNICEF.  Unfortunately not on the UNICEF boat but we'll be going out with Max, one of the other skippers in this race but also one of the trainers on my Level 1.  Can't wait.

Seattle and New York - USA ports announced

Thursday 25th June and Clipper have announced that we will be visiting Seattle and New York.

Seattle, Washington State

'Today we are very pleased to announce that the race will stop in Seattle, USA, in April 2016 for the first time in our ten edition history.

Following the epic race across the mighty Pacific Ocean, Leg 6 crew will be welcomed into the city’s Bell Harbor Marina in mid-April 2016, and Leg 7 crew members will kick start their American Coast to Coast adventure there later that month.

Seattle is in Washington State, positioned on Puget Sound in the Pacific Northwest, and is known as the Emerald City as it is surrounded by natural beauty which encompasses the ocean, mountains, evergreen forests and thousands of acres of parkland. Fans of the TV series such as Frasier and The Killing to name a few will recognise its futuristic Space Needle, a legacy of the 1962 World Fair and the city’s most recognisable landmark.

The Leg 6 stopover will last approximately ten days before Leg 7 departs, which we can also confirm will once again finish in New York.'



Orca Whale in Puget Sound

I am hoping that there will be time to explore the area surrounding Seattle including whale watching in Puget Sound.  I have always wanted to visit this part of North America and hope that we will have time off the boat to do some sight seeing.










Some wonderful sea life waiting to be discovered!!






Then sailing into New York....     

I am hoping that Becca and Tom might come and visit me in New York for a few days.  Not too far to travel and Becca will probably have finished her degree by then.

UNICEF - Sponsor announced

We found out last week that our team sponsor is UNICEF !!




Our boat in Gosport Marina

This 15-16 race is the tenth to be held and Clipper have donated the boat to UNICEF, the official race charity, and our team, 'Team Jim', have the honour of sailing round the world in her.

The boat is going to be officially named on August 24th at St Katharine's docks. 

If you would like to help me to raise money for UNICEF then please go to the following link:
https://www.justgiving.com/Kate-Whyatt1 




Some of 'Team UNICEF' at the crew team building weekend

Roles on Board

Three of the Clipper 70s battling it out

So, what does it take to race one of these yachts 40,000 + miles around the world?  Lots and lots of organisation and a good team.


As well as crew who will sail the boat, pull the sheets, change the sails, and pack the spinnaker we need a number of other people who are willing to put in that little bit extra on top of everything else.

The 'Nav' Station

Chief Engineer (CE): This person is responsible, under the skipper's supervision, for maintaining all on board mechanical, electrical and plumbing systems in a fully working condition including routine servicing.  It will involve making sure the engine and generator are in fully functioning mode, as well as the entire electrical system on the boat - lights, navigation station (nav station), steaming lights, communications equipment etc.  All the plumbing has to function properly and this includes the water maker, heads and showers, fresh water system including the water heater, grey and black water systems and the bilge and fire pump systems.  Different colour water!  What's that all about?  Grey water is from the showers and sinks, including the galley, and the black water is from the heads.  And probably one of the worst jobs on the boat will be to unblock the 'heads' if, and let's hope they don't, they get blocked.  Could be a very messy and smelly job!

The CE has to organise all the routine maintenance and cleaning of these systems at the stop over ports as well as making sure there are sufficient tools and spare parts on the boat prior to sailing.  An enormous task which is carried out with the help of one or more Assistant Engineers.

Medic:  A suitably qualified person is nominated as the 'Ships Doctor' and in our case we have a retired GP, Peter, who is sailing around the world.  Together with Jim, our skipper, and a shore based team, Peter will make sure that any medical issues are correctly dealt with including the management and organisation of the medical supplies.   Jim remains responsible overall for all medical issues, but Peter will run the day to day medical aspects and make sure the kit is maintained as well as ensuring there is a suitable medical history for all the crew.  I sincerely hope that all Peter has to do is hand out sea-sickness tablets!

 Media Director:  We will need someone to oversee and organise all the media output for our boat though all the crew will share the media workload.  This will involve writing blogs, taking photos and videos and making sure that the media requirements for the boat are completed in a timely manner and to a high standard.  We will have two people, Henry and David, attending the training, with Henry (RTW) overseeing all the on board activities and David (Leg 7), with all his media experience, being our on shore guru.





Mending sails down below

Sail Repairer:  This is a vital role as it is the condition of the sails that will play a big part in determining how well we do on the race.  Two of our RTWs, Henry and Peter, will be doing the training for this.  Peter can already sew up people so is happy to learn to sew sails - I wonder if there are any similarities.

Sail repair will be carried out down below and with badly torn sails can take as long as 24 hours of continuous work.  Clipper kindly give us a heavy duty sewing machine so not all is done by hand.  As well as Peter and Henry there are other 'leggers' who have offered to help in this quarter.  Not sure if it is something I fancy doing as the boat rocks from side to side.

Treasurer and Quarter Master:  This person is responsible for managing the crew fund and buying all the extra bits of kit and equipment that we feel is necessary.  Nothing bought must improve the performance of the boat but we are allowed things that help make life more manageable and comfortable.  For example our first purchase has been two fridge/freezers that will make our meals a little more interesting for the first few weeks.  Chloe (RTW) has the enormous task of trying to get extra funds from people and also coordinating all the various lists of what people think is necessary.

Chief Victualler (Queen Mother):   The most important crew position on the yacht which carries an enormous amount of responsibility.  The role of the CV is to ensure that all the correct supplies are purchased and loaded on board before the start of each race.  Janice (RTW) is responsible for organising the menus for all on board, buying sufficient food supplies for each leg, managing the menu, managing the storage of all ships stores, tracking the usage of stores and stock taking, replenishing stores when required.  Janice will do this with a team of assistants as well as managing the food spending account on behalf of Jim.

Food is one of the most important aspects of this type of sailing as the last thing anyone wants is to come off watch to find a cold plate of unappetising food presented to them.  It will be difficult when the weather is rough to serve up a gourmet meal but I think simplicity and flavour have to be two of the more important elements.  We also have to take into account food allergies and intolerances - so extremely complex.  I believe that we will each need around 4000-5000 calories per day if we are to function in an optimum way so I expect we will be eating lots of pasta, rice and potatoes!

Bob the MOB dummy tied on at the stern

Safety Officer:  Howard will be making sure that all the safety equipment is on board before each race and that it is checked and maintained in an appropriate way.  He will also have to ensure that we are all kept up to date with our training eg. fire drill practice, MOB recovery etc. and that all new crew joining the boat are fully briefed on the operation of safety equipment and are familiar with drills.

Bob, our MOB dummy is tied onto the pushpit (at the other end of the boat to the pulpit) and travels around the world with us.   This means that every time a new set of crew joins the boat we can practice picking someone out of the sea.



The top of the mast needs checking
on a regular basis

Bosun:  This person is responsible for the all the maintenance, care and repair of all sailing related deck equipment including sails, rigging, winches, halyards, sheets, blocks, dinghy............ etc.  The list goes on and on.  He/she is responsible for organising the repairs and maintenance pre start, during each leg and at each stopover port, and for making sure that there are sufficient spares and tools carried on board and topped up when necessary.  Henry is doing the short training for this but will be supported by many other crew members who will also be repairing and checking sails, servicing winches and carrying out other sailing related tasks.



A winch being serviced
Just make sure there are no bits left in the pot
once everything has been put back together!

 

Someone will have to go up the
mast on a regular basis to check
there is no undue wear and tear

 

Stopover Manager:  This person will be working with our Skipper, Jim, and the Team Coordinator to manage the day to day activities that are necessary during each of the stopovers.

 

The stopovers are divided into three discrete parts to ensure that we get the most out of our time while docked.

• The first part - involves the dreaded 'deep clean', routine maintenance and the repair of any broken items.
• The second part - we should be able to have this time off providing there are no serious issues or 'Corporate Days'.  Corporate Days involve entertaining and taking for a sail those sponsors that are in port.
• The third part - all meet back on the boat, meet the new 'leggers', clean and tidy the boat, sort out any outstanding issues, victual, crew training and leg planning.

The different parts are not necessarily equal in time and if more work has to be done on the boat then we will have to do that rather than take time off.  As Jim says, "If the boat isn't ready for the start then we will pay for it in the next leg".

 

Other jobs:  On top of those jobs listed above we also need someone to be involved with the IT/Communications on the boat, a Social Secretary who is prepared to organise all the crew social events, crew parties and crew clothing etc, and someone who can be our Shore Support while the rest of us are racing around the world.

 

What am I doing you might well ask?

 

Team Coordinator:  This is me.  Responsible for the majority of administration related to running a race yacht and, in Jim's words, "Organising the Skipper!"

 

As I am finding out it is a big role but I am enjoying every minute of it, and why I put my name forward is a mystery, but I did.  So far all the major roles on board have been allocated and training dates set and attendance agreed.  I am now sorting out who will be available for the two Boat 'Prep' weeks and for the delivery from Gosport to St Kat's in mid August, as well as helping Jim to sort out the agenda for the crew weekend and Janice with the victualing for our camping trip.  I can see an enormous Sainsbury's shop looming on the horizon before pitching my tent in a field near Blandford Forum in the depths of Dorset. 

The campsite
A sloping field but not as sloping as the
30 degrees we need to get used to!

I am constantly answering emails, have now become quite adept at facebook - though did send a confidential document to the wrong facebook group (oops) - and have just signed up for What'sApp with the help of Rebecca.

Ruffled feathers need to be smoothed and we have already had a bit of 'Storming' in our group dynamics.  I am hoping to write something about group dynamics in our next newsletter so that we can all understand what is normal in groups, especially those that are constantly changing as ours will be for each Leg.  There a total of 56 crew members, plus Jim, so many different relationships to manage - hopefully this is where my counselling training will kick in! 

Enough for now!

The next big 'excitement' is the announcement of our boat sponsor on the 18th and then the crew weekend over the 20th to 21st June - there are about 24 of us going so should be great fun.


This is what it's all about
Teamwork



 

 

 





Level 3 Sailing

So what was the sailing like on Level 3?

The training started with a very long day in the classroom going over Offshore Safety - what to do and what not to do out on the 'ocean deep' - when to launch a liferaft, which ones and how to use flares, winch safety, emergency beacons... etc. etc.    Not very inspiring but something that has to be done.  All these trainers keep telling us that the training Clipper gives us is excellent and that we are some of the best prepared crew around - so it is all worth listening too.

I arrived at the boat that evening to find that I already knew a couple of others from my Level 1 training and that there were 3 of us all in 'Team Jim' together.  Both skipper and mate were called Paul so that could either be very convenient and one just shouted 'Paul', or totally inconvenient if there was a reason to distinguish them from each other.

This boat was a Clipper 70 - only a couple of feet longer than the 68 but a different shape altogether.  The sheets (ropes) all seemed much thicker and heavier and the deck was laid out in a very different way.  Preferable, I think, as there seemed to be less clutter around and the 'snake pit', where all the ropes lead into, was closer and better connected to the cockpit.  Easier to get to and easier to communicate with.  One of the difficulties for crews new to sailing is that there are so many new words to learn.  A rope can be called many different things, all dependent on their purpose, so can change names from one hour to the next.  Very confusing!!

Sheet - pulls sails in and out
Halyard - pulls sails up and down
Line - used for something else eg. mooring line to tie the boat to the pontoon
Lazy sheets and working sheets - depending on whether there is any load on them.  The lazy one is doing nothing.


A view of the 'grinders' from the
companionway

There are also different roles for all the crew eg:

Sweater - sweats (pulls) the sails up by hand
Grinder - grinds the sails up using the 'coffee grinder' connected to the primary winch -
Mother - does all the cooking and cleaning for the day -

and so it goes on.  Totally another language and when I have sailed in the past I have heard people say - 'can you pull the thingy over there', and everything becomes a 'thingy'.  Not sure if that would be accepted on a Clipper boat though.

Sailing around the Isle of Wight
just to the south of The Needles

One of the main training elements on Level 3 was learning how to fly the asymmetric spinnaker.  These sails are enormous (330 m sq or 3,556 feet sq) and enable to boats to sail up to 30 mph going downwind in the Southern Ocean.  Unfortunately our week didn't go well in this respect.  The first time we wanted to fly it was during our circumnavigation of the Isle of Wight, but, when it came to hoisting the sail the winches got jammed so we couldn't use it.  The winch was stripped down as we bumbled along but by the time it was put back together again it was too late.






Starboard watch
Thom, Ant, Tom
Me, Mel, Dhruv

So more days were spent in the Solent - tacking and gybing.  We were split into two watches, starboard and port, and we each took it in turns to do various evolutions including changing sails, MOB (man over board) drills, hoisting and reefing etc.  Dhruv was very disappointed to discover, after he'd offered to do the MOB drill, that he wasn't going to be the casualty but the swimmer who was doing the rescue.  I think he must have fancied a 'dip' in the sea.  Instead he was dangled on the end of a rope and lowered unceremoniously down to the water to rescue 'Bob' the MOB dummy.





'Bob' the MOB dummy tied onto the stern
as we sail across the sea whipped up by the wind

With the winches fixed we headed out into the Solent and English Channel again to sail under the spinnaker.  The winds were much stronger than expected but were due to drop during the day.  We headed south east but rather than quietening down we were sailing in F7/8, a near gale - so yet again no spinnaker.  The boat crashed into the waves as we rocked from side to side, it heeled over so that the guard rail went into the water - and it was great fun.



Heeled over and heading upwind

I hadn't had a chance to helm earlier in the week, and to be honest I was waiting to drive with the spinnaker up.  My chance came, not with the spinnaker but in 30-35 knot winds and heeled right over.  I was at the helm for about 2 - 2 1/2 hours and loved every minute of it.  It was hard work, and standing could be quite a challenge when the boat was leaning right over but I think I must have had a smile on my face the whole time.  Over the past few months I have wondered if I was doing the right thing by taking off for a year to sail around the world.  At the end of this day I knew I had made the right decision.  The seas weren't as big as they are going to be in the Southern Ocean or across the North Pacific, but the feel of the wind in my face as I steered through the waves was magic.  I loved it!!



Sailing through the Solent
It's very difficult to know what's vertical/horizontal on
a boat that is always tipping from side to side.

We eventually did get the spinnaker hoisted and dropped, in the dark, on the last day but it was disappointing not to have had a chance to sail with it up for a decent amount of time.  It just means that when I go onto Level 4 in early July that there will be a gap in my knowledge, but I'm sure I will have many chances to fly it over the next year or so.  We didn't get a chance to pack the spinnaker away that evening but spent about 1 - 1 1/2 hours the following morning trying to sort it, tie it in bits of wool and re-pack it.  Not a job that I fancy doing downstairs as the boat rocks from side to side.


Just one more week of sailing training left now and then I am supposed to be able to sail off around the world.  Luckily there will be 20 other people on board so we can share the responsibility.

As I write this I still haven't exchanged contracts on the house.  Time is getting short as this time in three months I will have left the UK and will be on my way to Rio.  We will hopefully be moving in early July and I suppose that if not all boxes are unpacked before I leave then does it really matter.  It will give Tom and Rebecca something to do while I'm away and the worst that can happen is that I will have to empty boxes when I get back.

I am putting up all my photos in a flickr account and do follow this link if you would like to see them.  A bit repetitive at the moment but one day I hope to sort them out.

https://flic.kr/s/aHskcd9dWv




'Chilling out' in the snake pit, safely tied on!