Mountain Climbing on the Inside

I am sitting in the saloon on a bench without a pillow (we take them off because the crew come in from the rain and wet and spoil them with sea water stains and they also keep slipping to the floor in wild wind conditions), and  I'm writing on the little crew laptop that we store under the saloon bench. The boat is at about a 20 to 30 degree angle, which is an incredible challenge to move about. On deck is actually more comfortable and safer. What makes it worse is that we are pounding into the wind at about 9 to 10 knots (course over ground) to the finish line. The waves make the boat rock about in very unpredictable bounces with the wind speed at about 30 knots. Every knock goes to the core of your being and every one is at a different angle and in a different direction.

We have more or less 120 to 140 sea miles to go and it is actually quite nail biting. We are in the lead but are followed very closely by the current second place - Jamaica. It is becoming quite tactical now - when they tack, we need to cover them to stay in the lead. We are keeping a close eye on their every move. But so many factors can still influence the end result and so much can still happen. Our main focus, and the true win for us, will be if we can get over the finish line first. After all our hard work, that will be our victory. We've had so many set backs, and have persevered despite those, so we are feeling very proud with where we are at. Keep your fingers crossed please.

I am now going to try get my wet weather gear off - a claustrophobic exercise to get the jacket over my head - while keeping my balance and trying to not get thrown from port to starboard, or slide back down hill when I start the climb to my bunk. We have a rope strung to help one move about. I am developing good mountain climbing skills ;-). I just watched a guy slide on his backside all the way to hang his jacket in the wet locker. Another rather comical sight is to see the poor cooks in the galley wash the dishes after serving a challenging lunch session with pots, plates and food flying all over the place. They have to duck to avoid spreads falling from the top shelves. And then, they tack! And you have to adjust your bed to lean to the other side and everything that found a secure place on the previous tack now moves about trying to find a new resting place... until the next tack!!!

Using the heads (toilets) in these conditions is worth another blog... Stay

posted!

Let me go attempt getting into my bunk (by climbing half way up the opposite wall) and try to get some rest while rocking about and listening to the water swoosh past the hull. Luckily I am so tired after all the sail changes and reefs we've done this morning that falling asleep won't be too difficult!