tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30550240005548920102024-03-13T06:55:23.718-07:00collinsoceanracing: Clippers 09-10 RTW Yacht RacePete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.comBlogger24125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-90198997405879066422010-05-20T21:32:00.000-07:002010-05-21T06:19:06.856-07:00Paradise!!!So, i'm not really sure where to start this blog after the North Pacific, its left me a little speechless!<div><br /></div><div>Well we ended up having a really great, longer then expected stop over in San Francisco as we were waiting for Team Finland to catch up with us. They had been diverted via Japan at the start of Leg 5 to fix their watermaker problem, and had sailed solo across the pacific a few weeks behind the rest of the fleet. A respectable achievement if you read my previous blog!</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyway, when all nine boats assembled it was ready to head back out into the what was now regarded as the most fearsome of oceans, and the cloudy mood over Alcatraz Island set the mood perfectly. Sure enough, within 6 hours of leaving, when and shadow of the land was clearly well behind us, it was almost as though we'd never left. Waves threw the boat about violently and the wind reared its ugly head, but this time, it was a different mood on board. We knew whatever we would get thrown at us we could get through.</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S_aFxh2d2iI/AAAAAAAABGE/nrIUegHcU1U/s400/Leg+5+-+What+a+sight!.JPG" /></div><div><br /></div><div>The usual pattern of getting into life on the boat quickly didn't quite materialise this leg for me. I think I had just had such a great stopover in San Francisco that the boat almost felt a little foreign. The conditions fortunately turned out to be no where near as bad as Leg 5, in fact it just turned out to be some really great quick sailing conditions. I hit the boats highest speed of the whole 8 months so far when I got up to just shy of 24 knots. Its hard to describe exactly what thats like but the video below might give you a little hint. This is me hitting about 19 knots so imagine faster than this again sustained over a couple of days - just brilliant fun!</div><div><br /></div><div>We all knew secretly at the back of our minds though that it wouldn't last, a shame but some sunshine sailing was long overdue. Now a week in, we were heading down past Baja California with the chance of spotting some great wildlife, the sunshine soaring to the point of being unbearable and shorts and t-shirts out for the first time in literally months. It felt like a different trip and mood on-board soared. </div><div><br /></div><div>In terms of the race we were doing well, holding a steady position at the top of the fleet, the usual 'sched fever' revealing whether we had lost or gained miles on the other boats. Each day that past it would become more and more tactical. A windhole could see you slip from a podium place to near the back of the fleet and vice versa. We became permanently accustomed to the 'low side' of the boat (aids in gaining boat speed in super light conditions) and were told to tiptoe around deck when we moved around.</div><div><br /></div><div>Whilst it may sound ridiculous, the work in keeping the boat moving by the tiniest fraction paid off big time!!! Having continued for several days in the glorious sunshine the weather was getting so light it was going to impact our arrival date at the Panama Canal. The race we found out would be shortened by several hundred miles, meaning that we would have to fight to really keep our place on the podium for the last 72 hours.</div><div><br /></div><div>At this point, we could see Finland off to our starboard side, and knew that Qingdao were not far away. The distance to finish given to us by Clippers was now innacurate though - that was to a specific point on the finish line, which was closer to Qingdao than it was to us. Obviously we could cross anywhere over the finish line and so hoisted the kite and made the most direct course we could. In the most dramatic finish of the race for us so far (literally we didn't know for hours afterwards whether we had managed to beat them or not), we eventually found out that after 2500 miles of ocean racing we had beaten Qingdao by a mere 12 minutes!!!!!!!!!!! Team finland were then only 8 minuted behind them!!</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S_aGt8BdxMI/AAAAAAAABGM/NScqCKKt6gA/s400/Leg+6+-+Pennants.jpg" /></div><div><br /></div><div>It was a really great race, another podium, and one which was especially valuable to us in securing our second position overall in the race. It was a semi-bitter pill to swallow losing out to Australia - the ribbing I got from my dad was of course no holds barred, but I was really pleased for them to get a great result (for those that don't know my dad is racing on board Spirit of Australia on Legs 6 & 7!!!).</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyway, from there we motored down to the Panama Canal, which I had been looking forward too since Hull! It was a truly memorable experience crossing through, especially considering the locks were built nearly 100 years ago - an immense feat of engineering! It was also quite emotional for those of us that had done Leg 5 - we were closing the doors on the Pacific ocean when that first lock closed behind us, and opening up the doors to the Atlantic - homeward bound!!!!!!!!!!!! The photos do it more justice than I could describe so I'll let you enjoy.</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S_aHszpCKJI/AAAAAAAABGU/ZEtJBntfKuQ/s400/Leg+6+-+Panama+Canal.JPG" /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S_aIABmn0hI/AAAAAAAABGc/Rt4qu7zbmog/s1600/Leg+6+-+Pinhole+Panama!.JPG"><img src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S_aIABmn0hI/AAAAAAAABGc/Rt4qu7zbmog/s400/Leg+6+-+Pinhole+Panama!.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5473711931127222802" style="float: left; margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 10px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px; " /></a><div>Leaving Panama though was something we were all pleased to do. I've never been anywhere to humid and hot in my life and so staying on the boat was exceptionally uncomfortable. It was due to be a solid 3/4 days beating into the wind on the way up to our home port of Jamaica, although most of us didn't care by this point as the water was as warm as a bath! There were few tactics to decide upon as the trade winds were very steady all the way up to the Caribbean Islands. It was literally a case of get as good a start as possible and keep pushing. It was unfortunate that into our home port we could only manage a 5th place considering the run of podium places we'd had in the last few races.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was a close finish with Singapore in the end as we managed to completely mess up a routine spinnaker gybe only about a mile from the finish with them gaining quickly. It was the quickest spinnaker drop and hoist any of us have done in the whole 8 months to make sure we didn't lose out on 5th.</div><div><br /></div><div>Th reception into Jamaica was fantastic as expected and we have been treated like royalty since arriving. I miss my girlfriend, friends and family incredibly but I have to say it - "Its a hard life this sailing round the world lark......."</div><div><br /></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-20926780126128002692010-04-10T17:59:00.000-07:002010-04-10T19:02:52.768-07:00Welcome to Hell...<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S8Efhh0Y8AI/AAAAAAAABFU/B45pHjiQ7dw/s1600/Leg+5+-+Welcome+to+Hell.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458678884224004098" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 256px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S8Efhh0Y8AI/AAAAAAAABFU/B45pHjiQ7dw/s400/Leg+5+-+Welcome+to+Hell.JPG" border="0" /></a>We have eventually arrived in San Francisco after a brutal leg of the race. I feel completed wasted. For this blog, rather than focus on the whole of Leg 5 I am going to recount events from a 72hr period when we were circa 3500 miles into our crossing and maybe this will give you an insight into why we’re all pretty pleased to be on dry land for a while.<br /><br />Welcome to hell…<br /><br />It had rained for nearly a week non-stop. Every watch we headed out into the lashing rain. My clothes, supposedly the best gore-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">tex</span> waterproofs were soaked through and the wind from the Arctic was freezing. The wind was however dropping off rapidly and the mood was becoming more and more sombre as our boat speed dropped as did chances of an early arrival. At midnight I went off watch, cold wet and tired and wrote a few emails expressing my dislike for the Pacific, particularly bemoaning the lack of wind.<br /><br />20 minutes later I was enjoying one of the now very few comforts on board, my warm sleeping bag, where I would try desperately to get about 2 and half hours sleep before heading back out into the cold. Or so I thought.<br /><br />Matt came through to the crew area and I was woken up saying the opposite watch needed a hand on deck. I <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">didn</span>’t really understand what was happening at first as the weather did not sound horrific from below deck. The predicted gradual build up of wind though did not happen. We went from about 6 knots of breeze to 50 knots in the space of about 15 minutes. It was soon gusting as high as 65 knots (peaking at 72). Bearing in mind that on the Beaufort scale a ‘Hurricane’ starts at 64 knots of wind, this was a very serious low pressure hitting us.<br /><br /><div><div></div><br /><div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S8EgPZNyxTI/AAAAAAAABFk/g2FC5OStcwE/s1600/Leg+5+-+Pacific+Low.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458679672188618034" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 288px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S8EgPZNyxTI/AAAAAAAABFk/g2FC5OStcwE/s400/Leg+5+-+Pacific+Low.jpg" border="0" /></a>Spray and rain were no-longer <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">discernible</span> and neither was the direction in which it was coming from. Bitterly cold foam and white spray began filling the air as we wrestled with the mainsail and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">headsails</span>. This became a near impossible task as the wind created a monstrous sea state. Huge huge waves and a very confused sea state rocked the boat dangerously. As a crew we had developed really good communication skills when we go through sail evolutions. It was completely useless though now as it was so loud that people could not be heard shouting at the top of their voices only 6 feet away. As the bitterly bitterly cold booming wind set in and we finally managed to get the sail plan down I eventually headed back to my bunk. As I left deck I saw we were still doing six knots even with no sails up! It would only be an hour or so before I kitted back up and headed back out for my on-watch…<br /><br />A few hours later, and in the light of day, I’d never seen anything like it. It was the most ferocious display of nature I’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">ve</span> ever seen (the wind was still peaking at 60 knots). There was just so much water everywhere, waves were sweeping people down the deck of the boat. It was not overly surprising when we got the awful news that the skipper of Hull and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Humber</span> had broken his leg after being swept onto one of the stanchion posts. Spirit of Australia were sent to their aid and accompanied them to a rendezvous with the Japanese coast guard.<br /><br />We had a couple of near knock-downs on board Jamaica, one or two when I was <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">helming</span> which was scary as it allowed you to really feel how powerful the waves were. We had almost a foot of water INSIDE the boat at one point due to a wave crashing through the companion way hatch.<br /><br />Amid all the happenings, news then came through that California’s <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">EPIRB</span> had gone off – an emergency location device. They were not responding to any radio or satellite calls so we were told by the race committee that we would have to go to their last reported position to investigate. We eventually caught up with them to find a pretty grim situation. 2000 miles form the nearest land they had been rolled a full 130 degrees. The mast was broken into 3 pieces. There was a serious medical emergency. They had no communications equipment and no navigation equipment and the weather was not letting up.<br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S8Eg1ULsZzI/AAAAAAAABFs/7KCiOc5pVl4/s1600/Leg+5+-+The+aftermath.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458680323672663858" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 249px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S8Eg1ULsZzI/AAAAAAAABFs/7KCiOc5pVl4/s400/Leg+5+-+The+aftermath.jpg" border="0" /></a>The Coast Guard plane was then called from Midway (US owned island) to assist in the situation. Eventually through liaising with us they located California and managed to drop a handheld VHF radio to them, which would allow them to speak with the boat and coordinate the medical evacuation and provide any other assistance they could. The patient on board California finally stopped bleeding from his head wound after 15hrs but a medical evacuation was still required.<br /><br />Also in the area fortunately was a huge merchant vessel, the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Nord</span> Nightingale. They had been called to assist as well (many hours ago in fact) and so were now approaching fast. When they arrived at the scene it was late afternoon and it was decided that they had to get the patient off quickly, as the transfer would be impossible in the dark. The rough sea state though made for a very risky boat-to-boat transfer and it was only due to the skill and patience of the crew from both California and the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Nord</span>-Nightingale that he was successfully transferred to the tanker just before darkness really descended.<br /><br />It was hard to believe that whilst all this was happening we also heard news that Singapore had been knocked down severely. They had had 3 people washed overboard although all were attached to lifelines and so were safely brought back on board. They did however suffer structural damage to the boat - the steering wheel was buckled and the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">helming</span> frame ripped off. The companion way roof was also ripped off which meant they were taking on a lot water each time they were hit by a wave. They were also called to come to our position but they would have repairs to do of their own first before they arrived on the scene.<br /><br />24 hours later the wind finally began to calm as did the sea state and so we were able to do a fuel transfer to California. We could only afford to transfer them about two days fuel since we had had a diesel leak of our own <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">on board</span> Jamaica. The other boats which were catching up with us (Singapore was now only a matter of hours away) would also be doing fuel transfers which would allow California to motor most of the way to America.<br /><br />By this stage of the race, Edinburgh had a badly damaged spreader (meaning that their mast was also dangerously close to collapsing as well). Team Finland had also been diverted back to Japan because of a water maker problem and so the whole fleet just seemed to be taking a hammering from the Pacific.<br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S8EhVkyOv_I/AAAAAAAABF0/WD5QQnmykHY/s1600/Leg+5+-+Having+fun+yet...JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5458680877885079538" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 256px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S8EhVkyOv_I/AAAAAAAABF0/WD5QQnmykHY/s400/Leg+5+-+Having+fun+yet...JPG" border="0" /></a>For me personally, I had had no sleep for nearly 3 days. I had been sea sick, badly at times. I was completely exhausted.</div><div> </div><div></div><div>It would now only be a brief respite though as the next low pressure was on its way. This time the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">NOAA</span> (National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration) had <strong>officially</strong> classified it as a Hurricane.<br /><br />Pack your bags guys, we’re heading back to Hell.</div><div></div></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-31337806059006948642010-04-04T21:09:00.000-07:002010-04-04T21:15:24.278-07:00Heading Upwind!!After a fantastic stop over in Australia, we were yet again accompanied by strong winds leaving Geraldton heading North. This race was due to be the most tactical race so far up to Singapore. We would face numerous islands, reefs, fishing fleets, oil rigs galore, threats of piracy, squalls and numerous random objects (usually fishing pots of some description) that we’re not lit up that scattered the surface of the sea.<br /><br /><br /><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S7ljdK1fsVI/AAAAAAAABFM/DuscKt8QNJI/s1600/Leg+4+-+Smashed+again....jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5456501776312152402" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 222px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/S7ljdK1fsVI/AAAAAAAABFM/DuscKt8QNJI/s400/Leg+4+-+Smashed+again....jpg" border="0" /></a>The weather was warm to start with but soon soared to unbearable temperature down below deck, easily hotter than crossing the equator in leg 1. We were slipping into our usual routine quicker and quicker each time we started races now and it wasn’t long until we had 1000 miles under our belts. As we made our approach to the Sunda straight we unfortunately missed out on some gate points after making a solo move far out west after the rest of the fleet headed east. The tables were soon turned when we managed to go from tenth to first so the move definitely paid off, only for us to sail into our own wind hole. Our fortunes were certainly mixed.<br /><br />Soon after entering the straight we had managed to consolidate a third place with Cape Breton and Australia ahead of us but not by much. Cork were following in fourth with the rest of the fleet following in hot pursuit By this stage the weather was beginning to be particularly squally, and they were far more severe than during Leg 1. The rain was lashing and relentless, the winds gale force and it was a case of doing what you could to reduce the sail plan in as quick a time as possible. We had a knock down of our own (when the mast is nearly in the water) when we didn’t manage to do this in time. I was helming at the time and it certainly eclipsed our Leg 3 broach as the most out-of-control moment.<br /><br /><br />Within an hour the impact of the conditions was made evident on the fleet. A Pan-pan message then came in from one of the Clipper fleet although it was not clear at the time who it was from. We soon found out that Cork behind us hat hit a reef and were abandoning to life rafts. We were all totally shocked and with not much information minds began to race. We were nearly called back by the race committee to go and assist but this would only have put more boats in jeopardy and the boats behind Cork would be there sooner, so ourselves, Cape Breton and Australia carried on racing. There was soon a press release through saying that everyone was safe but unfortunately they were having to abandon the boat on the reef. It was incredibly sad news that there would only be 9 clipper boats left in the world. When Finland and California left the rescue scene no doubt local fishermen will have looted the boat for absolutely everything. The outcome of an investigation into the situation has yet to be released but as soon as it is I’ll blog about it as its no doubt one of the major incidents in the history of Clipper.<br /><br /><br />Racing continued although it was not clear because we were beginning to beat to windward who was on the winning and losing tack. As we made our final approaches it became clear we would have to settle for third. Unfortunately we lost out by a discouraging margin in the end to the other two, with Cape Breton finishing about a mile ahead of Australia with us around 30 miles behind. All in all it was a very incident full race but my favourite so far. Everyone is just glad that everyone on Cork is safe.<br /><br />After a lengthy stop over in Batam/Singapore where fortunately I managed to fit in a great flying visit back to Melbourne we then set out on the ‘infamous’ upwind part of the whole race. To begin with the weather out of Singapore was superb and the fleet made excellent progress towards China, with Jamaica leading the way for most of the start. The first week passed in a blur before the action came to a head as we approached the gate. We had been in the top two for the whole first week but a wind whole and a slight detour east meant we were now in 7th with about 200 miles to go. It looked like we were going to miss out altogether. Obviously Pete our skipper had other ideas though as we soared back up through the fleet just in time to take the full 3 gate points! These were our first gate points of the race and we were overjoyed – it would mean closing the gap in the overall race to Finland and extending our lead over Hull and Humber and Cape Breton.<br /><br /><br /><br />From here though the race changed dramatically. Off the coast of Taiwan a strong 30 knot plus wind starts to blow with a very strong current flowing in the opposite way. This makes for a truly horrible sea state where the boat would crash off the back of waves. Below decks it sounded like a grenade was going off as the hull slammed back down. The weather only got colder and colder as we headed further north and as bow man it was beginning to get very very wet and cold on the foredeck. We woke up to most watches with ice and frost on the deck, and so sail changes in these conditions were horrific and seemed to take about 5 times longer than usual as everyone was so cold.<br /><br /><br />It was not just onboard Jamaica that we were suffering though, the whole fleet were feeling the effects. Indeed we seemed to be coping with them better then most as we were lying in second place with only Australia a short way in front.<br /><br /><br />It was then that we were hit with another huge piece of ‘race news’. Team Finland had been dismasted! It was a disaster for them and the fleet, but again importantly everyone was safe. They were making passage for Taiwan to assess the damage and would motor from there to the finish in China. It only served to add further incident to the notorious Leg 4!<br /><br /><br />We didn’t quite make it in to China for my birthday which was a shame – I actually spent that in my bunk feeling terrible, so not the best day. We did arrive shortly after though into Qingdao, host of the 2008 Olympics. The marina was incredible and the reception we received was overwhelming. Broadcast live on national television we were mobbed by hundreds of journalists and a huge crowd of people. Having spent so long in such harsh conditions it was all a bit surreal but no doubt an experience I will remember for a long time to come.<br /><br /><br />Soon after the ceremony was over I just felt like collapsing. I didn’t realise how exhausted I was. It was time for a well earned rest, to enjoy the best that China has to offer and to catch up with my very patient girlfriend.Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-29503308125665465152009-12-24T02:29:00.000-08:002009-12-27T04:57:55.855-08:00The calm and gentle 40's!!!So, Leg 3 of the race is done and I can't believe its going so quickly! We've now sailed all the way from Hull in the UK over to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Geraldton</span> in Australia, covering circa 14,500 miles in the process! This leg of the race though didn't quite live up to the expectation!!<br /><br /><div><div><div><div></div><div>When I <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">originally</span> signed up for the Clippers race it was only to this leg, across the infamous Southern Ocean. The reason I signed up is because of all the oceans the race crosses this one had the potential to be very very quick downwind sailing with some big seas and big waves! However, despite diving well into the Roaring Forties, going down as low as nearly 44 degrees South, the strongest winds we saw were sailing on the final day directly into <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Geraldton</span>!!!</div><br /><div>So, 4,400 miles away and nearly 4 weeks before in Cape Town we had the most interesting start and hardest 24hrs of sailing we've done so far. With the count down to the start in full swing the wind was easily hitting 30 knots, calling for reefs in the main and the smaller <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">headsails</span>. Whilst all this activity was going on we had to think about getting our start-line approach right. Whilst on the foredeck I heard what I thought was the cannon firing from Cape Town yacht club to signify the 10 minute start gun. It was only when I looked up I realised that Cork had collided full on into the side of Hull and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Humber</span> right on the way up to the start line!!!! Fortunately no one was hurt but both boats were seriously damaged and headed straight back into Cape Town. Cork cracked the front of the hull open, right down the bow, but Hull and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Humbers</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">damage</span> was far worse, requiring some serious work to repair a huge hole in the side of their hull. It was worrying to think this could be anyone of us as we're all so close sometimes at the start line. Our thoughts soon turned to racing though and the remaining 8 of us were off to Australia...<br /></div><br /><br /><div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SzdVIPvgvdI/AAAAAAAAA8I/lPUhDbcGLIg/s1600-h/PB220747.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419894276716805586" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SzdVIPvgvdI/AAAAAAAAA8I/lPUhDbcGLIg/s400/PB220747.JPG" border="0" /></a></div><br /><div>Only an hour later we were caught entirely in the wind shadow of table mountain and were doing exactly zero knots with the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">windseeker</span> sail up. In only another hours time we were back to 30 knots of wind as we came out from behind the mountain. In the dead of night it was a shock to all of us and the hardest watch <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">i've</span> done. Changing sails in a pair of shorts getting hammered by waves over the bow was fun - in retrospect!!!<br /></div><br /><br /><div>So it was not long before we were all back into the swing of things on the boat - we're all getting used to it quicker and quicker after each stop over which is good. Again there wasn't much option with this leg for tactical options, so most of the boats were closely placed for the first week, only after that did we begin to spread out a little. We were consistently in the top half of the pack which was good but most of the crew, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">myself</span> included were a little disappointed that being well away from the coast of Africa now and making a significant dive south, that we weren't experiencing some tougher conditions. Personally I was of the opinion that you never wish for horrific weather but if ever we were going to get some we were all ready and in the right frame of mind to deal with it.</div><br /><div>An added bonus on this leg was having the camera man on board from North One TV studios. We had cameras set up all over the boat and were regularly giving interviews about our experiences so far which was really good, and exciting as well to think that the end programme will be going out to over 60 countries around the world.<br /></div><br /><div>And so it was that the supposed 'roaring' forties lulled us right into a false sense of security. We had been sailing consistently under spinnaker for almost 24 hours, just north of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Kergulen</span> islands when I was coming out on watch for my six hour day shift. Pete our skipper <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">fortunately</span> was <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">helming</span> at the time the wind went from around 10 to nearly 35 knots. The spinnaker was way too much and we would have to act super quickly to get out of this situation safely. Before we'd even moved though the boat broached, lying sideways in the water with most of the boom in the water and the end of the mast only a few feet off the surface. The wind was howling, the sails were flogging themselves to the point of ripping, especially the spinnaker and everyone was hanging on to whatever they could wondering if Jamaica would flip back up. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Fortunately</span> she levelled out but only for a minute before Pete shouted 'All hands on deck' as we broached for a second and third time. </div><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SzdZVj_IPdI/AAAAAAAAA8o/2eD8hsx48yU/s1600-h/PB270795.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419898903535828434" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SzdZVj_IPdI/AAAAAAAAA8o/2eD8hsx48yU/s400/PB270795.JPG" border="0" /></a><br /><div></div><div></div><div>Its scary when the boat broaches - <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">i've</span> read about this so many times in all kinds of books and magazines but when its actually happening it makes you realise how powerful the boats are in too much wind! In the midst of a near deafening sound from the sails and everyone trying to shout above the noise the spinnaker pole was released forwards. A huge 20 foot metal pole snapped like a match stick against the inner <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">forestay</span>. The halyards for the spinnaker were then cut in an attempt to get the sail down as quickly as possibly, but it was too late. The sail was ripped nearly clean in two with the space of about 5 minutes as we tried desperately to get it back on board - not an easy task when the majority of it is now 50 feet behind the boat, in the water and the boat is heeled right over and still travelling at 10 knots!!!</div><br /><div>Anyway, eventually we got the sail back on board, lowered our shattered spinnaker pole and cleared away all the snapped and cut lines. It was our most 'out of control' moment so far on the race and not one any of us would wish to repeat, especially considering we will most likely lose a hard earned point in the overall race for the damage.</div><br /><div>Following a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">de</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">brief</span> from Pete and a bit of a re-group we focused on trying to regain some positions as we were not approaching the last 1500 miles and lying in 7<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">th</span> place. The wind was fairly consistent and for the first time in almost a week it was in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">perfect</span> direction that we could steer a course almost directly to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">Geraldton</span>. Whilst we were all excited about sailing quickly towards Australia (most of us <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">onboard</span> were very keen to get there by now!) it was not lost on us that all of the other boats were experiencing similar weather, and so our position wasn't changing. Our only hope lay in a huge high pressure system that was building up between us and the coast of Australia. With around 750 miles to go the boats in front of us, slowly but surely, one by one, ground to an absolutely halt. This would allow all 8 of us a second bite at the cherry and would bunch us right up for an exciting finish into <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">Geraldton</span>.</div><br /><div>Not surprisingly several of the boats played their stealth cards. Whilst in 4<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">th</span> place on a good run, we were very confident that we were coming close to overtaking Cape Breton Island, only to find that on getting the next position report in, they had entered their 24hr period of stealth. Having come back from 7<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_24">th</span> place we were desperate to get a podium place and so the mood on board was so anxious at this time. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_25">Unfortunately</span> Team Finland and Spirit of Australia were too far ahead at this time for us to seriously challenge them, but we would do all that we could to get the remaining podium spot. </div><br /><div>And so as we entered our last day of sailing Cape Breton popped out of Stealth only 2 miles behind us!!! It was great to be in third but we would have to sail well and sail hard to keep our lead. In the end, as we arrived into <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_26">Geraldton</span>, with nearly 40 knots of wind, and after 4400 miles of sailing, the top 8 boats were <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_27">separated</span> by only 6 hours. Fortunately we hald on to our third place which we had worked so hard for!!! It was a truly nail biting finish and it was a shame that Cork and Hull and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_28">Humber</span> could not have been part of it. I suppose though it is a benefit for us in the overall standings, although Hull and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_29">Humber</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_30">at least</span> are likely to be given a points redress and so may move up the field.</div><br /><br /><div></div><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SzdXmd7j7KI/AAAAAAAAA8Y/Eu_83jyJpiY/s1600-h/PC150863.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5419896994944773282" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SzdXmd7j7KI/AAAAAAAAA8Y/Eu_83jyJpiY/s400/PC150863.JPG" border="0" /></a>And so, after and eventful, but somewhat <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_31">unfulfilling</span> Southern Ocean leg on the whole, we're all relaxing now, enjoying time in Australia for Christmas and New Year. Its nice to be away from the boats for a while, especially as I am seeing family and my girlfriend this stop over for the first time since the race start.<br /><br /><br /><div>A full set of photos will be uploaded before I leave <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_32">Geraldton</span>, including those from leg 2!!!</div><br /><div>Happy Christmas and New year to all!!!</div></div></div></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-33769775006039750742009-11-18T11:22:00.001-08:002009-11-20T02:01:31.397-08:00The Atlantic finally rears its ugly head...<div>CAN'T UPLOAD ALL OF MY PHOTOS OR VIDEOS AT THE MOMENT UNFORTUNATELY. THEY WILL BE ADDED RETROSPECTIVELY SO PLEASE CHECK BACK SOON AS THERE ARE SOME GREAT SHOTS FROM THE SOUTH ATLANTIC. For the moment, here is the leg 2 report...enjoy..</div><div><br /></div><div>So having had a great stopover in Rio, a somewhat luxurious one it might be said after conditions on the boat, we found ourselves reconvening again to do final boat prep and get ourselves ready for what would undoubtedly be a harder race, with faster downwind sailing and bigger seas. We were joined by our new crew members, Mark Davies, Marc Scrimshire and Michelle Henderson replacing Greg Bond, Tom Reddaway and Ed Carley. Sad to be saying goodbye to those guys after a great first leg but it was important for all that we make sure the new crew were as welcome as possible so it was great to have a beers together on the last night before leaving.</div><div><br /></div><div><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SwZhJdDk7hI/AAAAAAAAA74/ZegZMl9BWa0/s400/PB090568.JPG" style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406115217751207442" /></div><div>Soon enough though the time had come to slip lines and say farewell to Brazil. We motored out underneath the fabulous Christ Redeemer and Sugarloaf mountains for a short course race round the cans before pointing Jamaica towards Cape Town, trimming sails and sailing as quickly as we could. We had a great start, out-foxing some boats that took a course further inland and got stuck in light airs from shadow of the coastline.</div><div><br /></div><div>With only California and Edinburgh ahead of us we were confident it was a leg where we could really excel again and hopefully go one or two places better than last leg. Although the leg was not set to offer as many options tactically to the fleet there was soon a split of boats with </div><div>ourselves, Edinburgh and California making a more Northerly course, another 5 heading further South, with Cape Breton Island between the two groups. It was an early decision that was </div><div>to pay off as within 48 hours, despite being in the same wind system as Edinburgh and California, we were taking consistent miles out of them and leaving the southerly group even further behind. It was the first time in the whole race where we have been in first place for a consistent period and we were well places to pick up a full 3 points at the North-South gate 700 miles away.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was a constant source of discussion on board as to how far south we should sail to be well placed between the South Atlantic High and low pressure systems that circle above Antarctica. Alas, one period of 24 hours, where we got that balance slightly wrong was to be our undoing; becalmed, 4 of the boats further south overtook us and we were left settled into the middle of the fleet as we got further and further offshore. It was a real wake up call as we had gone from a great start to a position now where we would potentially not pick up any gate points!!</div><div><br /></div><div>Sure enough our route did begin to take us further and further south east and as expected, conditions soon deteriorated and we began a period of very strong winds, peaking at nearly 50 knots. Unfortunately this was not a happy time on board Jamaica as a stomach bug was going round the crew, and before long it was my turn to be ill - not pleasant when the heads are crashing round heeled over at 30 degrees! Whoever said this ocean racing was glamorous!</div><div><br /></div><div>So I was disappointed to miss 72 hours of the last leg with a combination of sea sickness and a stomach bug. It was during this period that Hull & Humber, Singapore and Cork crossed over the scoring gate ahead of us, and so morale on board was not the best!</div><div><br /></div><div>As mentioned there were to be few, if any, tactical decisions this leg, so gaining places would come down to a combination of good sail trim and accurate helming and we were more determined than ever for a strong finish into Cape Town after the disappointment of the gate. So with new found determination I slipped back into my watch system and role as one of the key helms and it was absolutely amazing to be sailing Jamaica along at speeds of over 20 knots! The only way I can describe it is like water exploding all over the boat. Needless to say </div><div>everyones foul weather gear was getting a true test of what the ocean can conjure up.</div><div><br /></div><div>No sooner had a really got back into my watch system than I was back down below doing motherwatch duties!!! Not something I looked forward to in Force 8 winds and the boat crashing all over the place. Within 5 mins there was coffee, tea, hot chocolate and cuppa soup all over the floor as we bashed right through a wave and the trend was set for the next 24 hours! With pans, plates, the kettle, endless pieces of cutlery, food</div><div>, sauces, drinks, absolutely anything thats not fixed down flying all over the place it was a great relief to have a good nights sleep. Mark and I headed off to our bunks just trying not to think about having to repeat the whole performance again for breakfast.</div><div><br /></div><div>The one benefit I had of being on Motherwatch is that when I did have a break I could catch up on the navigation side of the race and find out where we had got to in the last day or two. It was great to know that just as I was serving my last cup of tea, aqua-vaccing my last bilge and heading out on deck that we were about to break the 1000 mile barrier. </div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><img src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SwZhYDBNoHI/AAAAAAAAA8A/ezNP5ONJcVE/s400/PB090586.JPG" style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5406115468460007538" /></div><div>We had 1 more day of lighter winds before the next Low pressure system caught up with us and we were off again surfing up around the 20 knot mark. Its amazing how quickly the miles get eaten up at these sort of speeds and before long we were only 3 days from Cape Town, having nearly crossed the Atlantic for a second time!!! Each of us were daring to dream just a little of the creature comforts that awaited us. It had been a rough leg, with one of the other boats having a man overboard to serve as a constant reminder and we were all looking forward to a break. </div><div><br /></div><div>But there was still sailing to do and we were driven into a final push as we closed on Hull and Humber and overtook into 4th place approaching South Africa. Similar to the first leg it was weird to be able to see another Clipper boat having sailed thousands of miles from the last stop, and when we could see Hull and Humber behind us we should have done more to cover them and get ourselves into a match racing mode for the finish. Ultimately not flying our lightweight spinnaker during the final night meant we crossed the finish line only 55 minutes behind them, in a solid 5th place.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was great to arrive on dry land after what was a very different leg to the first. There was a different dynamic on board as I was with a different watch and so it was interesting to be sailing with new crew on board. There was rough weather, fast down wind sailing, breakages and illness so it really feels like we've earned our stopover in Cape Town. Over the next 72 hours the remaining Clippers arrived, California doing so in a phenominal 67 knots of wind under emergency steering. We were to learn that despite not finishing on the podium that we were one of the only boats to arrive with virtually no damage. Several of the other boats had destroyed sails, lost wind instruments, lost steering capability and crash gybed several times. The Jamaican strategy of looking after the boat to make sure it gets us all the way round the world had paid off.</div><div><br /></div><div>Leg 3 over to Australia is set to be more of the same, if not an even more extreme version as we head down to the roaring forties, and I can't wait!</div><div><br /></div><div>Hopefully there'll be some more photos and videos to follow.</div><div><br /></div><div>Pete</div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-52692934737409609742009-11-18T11:15:00.001-08:002009-11-19T12:07:28.135-08:00Leg 1 and Rio photos....I was hoping to have uploaded photos from the first leg and of the stopover in Rio but everytime I try to upload them the internet here crashes!! I didn't get round to uploading these when I was actually in Rio as it was a little dangerous to head out with a nice new camera. So rather than risk a mugging I thought i'd add them up now whilst i'm at my next stopover in Cape Town and that plan seems to have been thwarted as well!<div><br /></div><div>Will be trying to find a solution before I leave on leg 3 otherwise it might have to wait till Australia!</div><div><br /></div><div>Pete</div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-22894598522990821222009-10-21T07:48:00.003-07:002009-10-21T12:42:48.468-07:00Leg 1, Race 2 - It ain't over till the fat lady sings...<div><br /><br /><div><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/St8gvGZ6NEI/AAAAAAAAA54/rkRo7snvRi0/s1600-h/P9130020.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395066872158368834" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 158px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/St8gvGZ6NEI/AAAAAAAAA54/rkRo7snvRi0/s400/P9130020.JPG" border="0" /></a>Sleep deprived doesn’t come close. I’m utterly knackered, beaten and bruised. Physically my body is aching and I have a host of small injuries too great in number to count. My hands are slowly but surely just falling to pieces before my very eyes and I now have pressure sores to add to the list from sitting on the high side of the boat. Mentally the last 4 weeks has been so far removed from almost anything I’ve done before; we have spent time barely moving for hours and hours on end as well as time in excess of 1000 miles from the nearest help if anything major were to happen onboard. But this is ocean racing after all, and its everything I imagined and more. Call me a glutton for punishment but I want more of this. For now though the story starts as we leave La Rochelle early on the morning of 22nd September.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />It was an early 7 o’clock start full of mixed emotions. We had had a good, if somewhat busy, stopover in La Rochelle but most of us were now keen to get going. After such a good run down to France and having heard stories galore about the ferocity of the Bay of Biscay, we had all been coming to terms in our own minds with what we were about to undertake. The folklore winds failed to materialise however and we found ourselves crossing the start line for race 2 with all ten boats in the fleet doing less than half a knot of boat speed at best. In fact it was such light winds that some boats pointed back towards the town of La Rochelle in an effort to find some more wind. We were lucky enough to be joined for the start by the boat Joshua, sailed by Bernard Montessier in the very first solo non-stop circumnavigation race featuring non other than Sir Robin Knox Johnson and Donald Crowhurst. It was a shame that we could not have had a more exciting start for such an esteemed follower.</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>Still, onboard Jamaica Lightning bolt we had a good start and found ourselves in second place for the first half a day of the race. Within 48 hours however it was a different story and a tactical error meant that we began to fall back down the fleet as we left Biscay – we were one of the last boats to start flying a spinnaker, a decision in hindsight which we lament as it would have meant a lot less catching up heading towards the Canary islands.</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div>After a slow few days we began to settle in to our watch systems again and the winds gradually began to build. It wasn’t long before we were well and truly into the North East trade winds with the Canaries in our sights but by this point we were lying in 10th place. It would be lying if I said the role of bringing up the back of the fleet did not have an effect on morale. We were however buoyed by the undeterred spirit of our skipper who still had faith that we were competitive – it was after all a 5000 mile race and there was a long long way to go.</div><br /><br /><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/St9izSh-VeI/AAAAAAAAA6A/cCYBkyAUTW4/s1600-h/PA010133.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395139511900329442" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 248px" alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/St9izSh-VeI/AAAAAAAAA6A/cCYBkyAUTW4/s400/PA010133.JPG" border="0" /></a>So the Canaries was the first of a number of tactical decisions to be made that would ultimately lead, not that we know at this stage, to us building a significant lead over the trailing group of boats. Due to us still being far down the pack at this point, we made the decision not to go for the scoring gate on the South West side of the islands, instead hugging the west coast of Africa, avoiding as well any wind shadow from the islands. Careful consideration of the weather routing information meant we avoided falling into a big wind whole and suffered only an 18hr period of being becalmed. By shifting sails around below deck, sitting on the leeward side of our Jamaican Lightning Bolt and using water from the high side tanks we were able to induce just enough heel in the boat to keep us moving slowly but surely past the islands. Needless to say it was a welcome relief when the trade winds began to reappear and I was further boosted by a short lived phone signal allowing me to call Lisa.<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />And so our daily mileage slowly began to creep back up to over 200 miles a day which kept us extremely competitive, and on several occasions the quickest boat in the fleet. 10th, 9th, 8th and then 7th. Slowly but surely we were creeping up the fleet.<br /></div><br /><div><br />From here it was an 800 mile drag race to the Cape Verde islands where good sail trim, correct sail plan and meticulous helming would keep us very much in contention and start our serious assault on a podium position. By this stage the boat was hitting good speeds again and feeling well powered up, so all of our weight distribution was shifted again to the high side to keep the boat flatter. By the time we reached Cape Verde we were only 17° North of the equator (having started at 53°!!) and so work below deck, whether it was spinnaker packing, sail repair, or motherwatch duties was so hot it inevitably left us exhausted and sweating profusely with the disparaging thought that it was only set to get hotter and hotter.</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />And so slowly the first leg began to roll on and on and before we knew it we had been at sea for 2 weeks. We were getting used to the midnight and 4 o’clock wake up calls and sleeping during the day became easy as the conditions continued to provide us with idyllic sailing. We had spotted our fair share of dolphin and a whale or two by this stage and it was a welcome feeling knowing that we are not alone out here – it is the first time for many of us that we have spent so long offshore not in sight of land. Our most frequent visitors however were flying fish that have an amazing ability to glide gracefully along the ocean’s surface during the day keeping well away from predators, but are dumbly attracted the lights of our boat at night. The deck is inevitably covered with them in the morning having followed a hilarious night or two where people were hit by them landing. It was only a matter of time and sure enough I was hit flush between the eyes (literally it could not have caught me squarer if I had had a bullseye painted on my face) to everyone’s amusement, and I spent the next hour or so trying to wash the scales and stench off my face. Little did I know this was not to be my last encounter and the following night a particularly determined kipper flew perfectly through the forward hatch as I was sleeping and slapped full on into the side of my bunk. Waking up not knowing what had happened, the smell soon cut through me like smelling salts and following a few curses I launched the offender back to the night time ocean.</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />It was not long however until we had our first bit of drama! We were flying our medium weight spinnaker during the off-watch and snap – the snapshackle at the end of the guy rope had snapped on our pole and it was a race to get the spinnaker dropped before it ripped and became a much bigger problem for us! Fortunately the on-watch were very on the ball and many of us from down below grabbed life jackets to help out as well. We checked the medium weight for rips, packed it up and had the heavy weight up in no time, minimising the time sailing without a full downwind sail plan.</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />So, when all had returned to normal, it was now time to start concentrating on our strategy for the Doldrums. They were sitting roughly around 9° North of the equator and our GRIB weather files that we were getting through were changing every day, making route planning through this notorious part of the leg extremely difficult. Squall watch and radar checks became a regular feature of life on board as getting caught with the spinnaker up as a 60 knot squall approached would only result in a bad broach, the mast in the water and god knows what damage to equipment. So after a few days/nights being slightly tense at what the outcome might be, it with a wry smile on my face that I can say my first crossing through the doldrums was not nearly as bad as it could have been – indeed we had virtually no period of time where there wasn’t atleast some breeze blowing us further and further South. We were part of the top 5 group that had a quick crossing through. We were ecstatic to see in fact that one of our Scheduled Position Reports (or skeds as they are known on board) showed us in second place for a while in a race within the race with Cape Breton Island and Spirit of Australia. Our ‘every 6-hour’ reports became more and more important to us all each time they came in, to the point now where virtually everyone on board races to crowd round the navigation station to see where we are positioned and our gain or loss to the other boats around us. Its become an obsession that will no doubt stick all the way round the world, especially when the racing is as close as it has been this leg.</div><br /><br /><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/St9kCCJ-v6I/AAAAAAAAA6I/ObPHuXbjGOw/s1600-h/P9140035.JPG"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5395140864714391458" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 178px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/St9kCCJ-v6I/AAAAAAAAA6I/ObPHuXbjGOw/s400/P9140035.JPG" border="0" /></a>Our next major milestone was the equator, where we had a boat party and made all our toasts to Neptune. It was the first time in a few weeks that we’d had any alcohol so the dram of whisky we had had some interesting effects on most crew!<br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />By this stage the fleet had divided into two clear groups, with H&H, Singapore, Qingdao, Edinburgh and California falling further and further back every hour as the doldrums were a lot less forgiving. It was at this stage that the leadgin group got to over 500 miles ahead of the nearest trailing boat.</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />By this stage of the crossing. It was so hot that sleep had become virtually impossible – indeed it took so much effort just to get into my bunk on the high side when the boat was crashing along through the waves that it was sometimes best to stick to dosing in the saloon area and conserving energy. Having now had a proper nights sleep in Rio, I’ve only just realised how tired I’ve become!</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />Over the next few days we passed over the point where we were closer to South America than Africa and our winds had progressively switched round to the South East as predicted. It was the first time in over two weeks that we had seen the yankee and staysail headsails, having been lucky enough to fly one of our 3 spinnakers almost non-stop up to this point. So our focus changed again from down wind sailing and trimming to working on shaping our headsails upwind to get maximum speed down towards Rio. Our race position was however not helped by the strop snapping again on the end of the guy rope just before we dropped the spinnaker. Fortunately after a little while wrestling the sail it was dropped without any major dramas.<br />It was not long before we found ourselves match racing with Cape Breton Island and Spirit of Australia for the two remaining podium positions. After so many thousand miles of sailing it was unusual to say the least for them to both be in visible range on a number of occasions. It was tense and not uncommon for people on the off watch to get up in the middle of the night during their precious hours of sleeping to check our sched results!</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />As we continued on our approach to Rio, not only was the weather just not playing into our favour, but the strop on the end of the guy failed for a third time. We thought that this would be the end of our podium challenge since we were now nearly 30 miles behind Cape Breton with only 150 to go. Despite our anti-wrap net we wrapped our spinnaker badly round the inner forestay and there was a real struggle to unwrap it. Several hours later there was no real damage to the spinnaker but we had lost major miles to our competitors. It was a real shame to think that having come so far and spent so much time in the top three that we would now finish outside the podium places..</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />Within 120 miles of Rio there was a huge barrier of no wind between the leading fleet and the finish line. Race organisers decided at this point to shorten the course however it was still not enough to stop us all becoming becalmed at some point. We were therefore left to rue our loss for a little while longer as we bobbed at a very slow rate of knots towards Rio. It seems the race would finish just as it had begun 4 weeks earler in La Rochelle. It was however due to a combination of hard work and also genuinely not giving up until the <em>fat lady has sung</em> that we took over 40 miles out of Cape Breton Island over the last 24 hours. We were all so elated to have finished leg 1 of the race in 3rd place!!!</div><br /><br /><br /><br /><div><br />What a spectacular sight Rio is after so long away from land and I am sure its going to be a great stopover. For now though there is plenty of maintenance work to be done on the boat and then sleep. Hopefully, the first of a few long deep sleeps to feel fully recovered before leg 2. There’ll be more from Rio in a few days.<br /><br />A beaten but not broken Pete, congratulations to Team Finland and Spirit of Australia.</div></div></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-1605538587652968702009-09-19T05:09:00.000-07:002009-09-19T07:06:29.844-07:00Farewells, fast sailing and a strong run to beautiful La Rochelle<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SrTMCWQcV8I/AAAAAAAAA5Q/NV1Rp2E6BHI/s1600-h/P9130003.JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SrTMCWQcV8I/AAAAAAAAA5Q/NV1Rp2E6BHI/s400/P9130003.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383151795320936386" /></a>So, after literally years in the making, 11 o'clock on Sunday 13th 2009 arrived. It was a moment I was looking forward to so so much, however saying goodbye to friends, family and my amazingly patient girlfriend Lisa was a the one thing about the whole experience I was not looking forward to. It may be a long time till I see some of them again, but we'll keep in touch and hopefully meet up somewhere along the way.<div><br /></div><div>Hull was a spectacular send off, there must have been well over 100,000 people there over the course of the weekend, peaking on race start day, Sunday. The crews from each team had their moment of glory on stage to their boat songs, before we made our way to the boats and slipped mooring lines. We were quickly into the routine and activity on the boat began almost straight away.</div><div><br /></div><div><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SrTaoDNv7PI/AAAAAAAAA5Y/iDLXThngOO0/s400/P9130018.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383167836207181042" /></div><div>Prior to the race start we made some final waves to the crowds on shore and posed for some sponsor photos, before a final crew brief from Pete our skipper. The time seemed to be passing in a blur before I knew it the ten minute start gun sounded. Four minutes. One minute. Ten, Nine, Eight..... Bang the start cannon for the Clippers 09-10 race fired and we were off. Leg 1 to Rio via a stop in La Rochelle where I'm writing this blog from.<br /><br />It was a close and fiercely competitive start as you can see from the photo here, with most boats very close until we were well out the Humber. On board Jamaica Lightning Bolt we had a pretty good start, hovering around 4th or 5th, all the time trying our best to trim sails to track down those ahead.</div><div><br /></div><div><span class="Apple-style-span" style="color:#000000;">Before long we were into our watch system and we would begin the process of gel-ing into our individual teams. I was assigned the position of bowman for our first leg, and I hope this continues for a long time to come. Its the high adrenaline position on the boat, but a crucial one at the same time. We didn't get the spinnaker out on this first race but I worked with the rest or our watch to get poled out headsails setup and keep the yankee and staysail well trimmed. Throughout the day and night your role is to check the sail trim every 20 minutes or whenever there is a wind shift or tactical change. Many massive waves came right over my head even in this first leg where the weather was relatively calm. Its going to be a hardcore job for the next few months but one i'm really relishing.</span><div><br /></div><div><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SrTKqKeb5BI/AAAAAAAAA5I/K7R1lFbY-lA/s400/P9130020.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5383150280329913362" /></div><div>During our first night we peaked, a little to soon as it turns out, as we reached 3rd place pushing hard to track down Spirit of Australia in second. </div><div><br /></div><div>There was soon a tactical decision then to be made. The wind conditions were pretty well set up for a spinnaker run, but being our very first race we decided to take the more conservative approach of a poled out headsail. It has since paid dividends as we have found out here in La Rochelle that Finland, the winning boat, has snapped their spinnaker pole and there are a few others that are not in as good a shape as Jamaica. </div><div><br /></div><div>We had a run then of about 12 hours where we were the quickest of any boat in the fleet by quite a way and things were looking really good for a strong result in the first race. A later tactical error of taking a more offshore route round a wind farm in the North Sea undid a little of our hard work unfortunately as we slipped back to 5th.</div><div><br /></div><div>We then had a sustained period of really close racing with Cape Bretton Island (you can see some of these photos on my google account at the end) which was great fun considering we were so close after several hundred miles of sailing. 5th then 6th then 5th then 6th. Positions were changing at every position update and it was some of the most exciting sailing i've done. </div><div><br /></div><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dwkqr6JrEKfkFpiuDprrIIA-SMlIbSFyGWGdkapCFtlBlGpAiZ8aQRINxlXmp1gIISrClw_S2rNeAyxOrAQlA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe> </div><div><br /></div><div>Eventually we found ourselves rounding Ushant and making our approach to La Rochelle. It was close all the way but we finally finished just behind a quick Cape Bretton Island in a respectable 6th place. We arrived at La Rochelle at about 7 o'clock on Wednesday night, a few hours too late unfortunately to get through the lock into the part of the harbour where the Clippers boats would be moored. So after a night on anchor with a few other Clippers we made out way into the harbour at the next high tide at 3 the next morning.</div><div><br /></div><div>I've since spent the last 2 days working on the boat and had a great surprise when my father turned up on the pontoon. The plan nearly didn't work out when it looked like I would be snowed under with work to do, but I was really pleased when I managed to free myself up to spend a night out catching up before I next see him in San Francisco.</div><div><br /></div><div>I now have a few free days in beautiful La Rochelle before we head off into the wild Atlantic. I'm so excited about doing what I hope will be the first of many major ocean crossings. Anyway, must head off now, things to organise before we have our next briefings, prize givings and send off. Will blog again from the next port but in the mean time you can check out the rest of my photos here: <a href="http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/collinsoceanracing/Race1HullToLaRochelle#">http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/collinsoceanracing/Race1HullToLaRochelle#</a></div><div><br /></div><div>Don't forget as well that you can get the race positions here: <a href="http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com">www.clipperroundtheworld.com</a> </div><div><br /></div><div>Until next time,</div><div><br /></div><div>Pete</div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-41952522414109933052009-09-10T05:57:00.000-07:002009-09-11T00:04:35.844-07:00Fever pitch...So the final morning has come around!!!! As I sit here, highly unorganised and with a little still to pack into my bag, I am an hour away from leaving home and heading to join the boats in Hull.<br /><br />A weird weird feeling, but a really exciting one at the same time.<br /><br />Jamaica's official naming ceremony is at 2 o'clock this afternoon so am hoping to make it over to that in time. I'll be blogging from each of the stop overs, so the first one will be up here when I arrive in La Rochelle in about a weeks time. I'l stick some photos up of the whole start debarcle then.<br /><br />Well I better go adn finish packing, have some breakfast and hit the road, not going to happen on its own!<br /><br />Sorry this has been a short and rather lame attempt at a big send off blog, some what lacking in expressing how exciting it all is. Thanks to all for the various send offs from work/london/home, much appreciated.<br /><br />Keep in touch and keep your fingers crossed - we have alot to live up to now we've been named after the fastest man on earth...<br /><br />Pete<br /><br />Don't forget you can sponsor my barnardos fund raising efforts if you fancy - its a great cause and would be really appreciated. Just follow the links on the left hand side...Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-81003752354359680232009-09-02T03:44:00.000-07:002009-09-02T03:48:41.000-07:00So close I can smell it...So the clock is about to tick down into single figures in terms of days to race start and the emotional <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">roller coaster</span> is coming to a climax.<br /><br />I’m about to set off on a ten month Round the World Yacht Race, and so <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">naturally</span> 99.9% of my mindset is being super excited about the coming months, to the point where I can’t really fathom the correct words to explain it. I’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">ve</span> already said goodbye to a few people that I know I may never see again, depressing as that may sound I suppose its just reality when you go away for a long time. That’s the bit that makes up the other 0.1% unfortunately.<br /><br />That’s not to belittle friendships that I have made by any means, (I will or course genuinely miss people, I am human!!!) but the race has been so long in coming for me, long before I knew some of my friends in London <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">in fact</span>. I first heard about the Clippers race when I was 18 maybe 19, so nearly 7 or 8 years its been lurking in the back of my mind. I’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">ve</span> been incredibly lucky to do some great adventures in the interim (climbing trips to the Alps, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Dolomites</span>, Andes, cycling trips, overland travels aplenty etc.), but the 2920 days since I heard about the race is now about to become just a single digit – 9!!!! (I can tell even as I’m writing this article my excitement is rocketing)<br /><br />As I write this the 10 68ft stripped out Clippers racing yachts have departed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Gosport</span> on the South Coast of the UK, where all of our training has happened and many a good beer shared in the Clarence pub. Edinburgh Inspiring Capital, Jamaica Lightning Bolt, Uniquely Singapore, Cork, Team Finland (the latest and final entry into the race), Qingdao, Cape <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Bretton</span> Ireland, Hull & <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Humber</span>, Spirit of Australia and California won’t be returning for just shy of a full year having complete a full circumnavigation in the mean time…<br /><br />As for me, I’m finishing work this Friday which brings its own set of mixed emotions. Turner and Townsend have been incredibly supportive and I’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">ve</span> met some great people here. From London I then head home to see family on the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Wirral</span> and on from there to the North East, each move signifying a step closer to the 2 o’clock start gun on Sunday 13<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">th</span>.<br /><br />I’ll be blogging from each port about what we’re up to and of course writing about the events of each leg and posting photos back. On board, I’ll have a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">GComms</span> account via the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Satellite</span> to send very short emails to a select group of family and friends.<br /><br />I’ll make sure I blog again before I leave to say a final farewell. Thanks for following<br /><br />PetePete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-60205809751049076322009-08-24T06:04:00.000-07:002009-08-27T07:56:41.945-07:00Jamaica Clipper!!!And so, finally after a fairly lengthy wait (no doubt thanks to the credit crunch), we <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">onboard</span> CV2 have been officially confirmed as Jamaica Clipper. The boat, endorsed by <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Usain</span> Bolt will be called <em>Jamaica Lightning Bolt.</em><em></em><br /><br /><p><em></em></p><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SpKR2ERXBzI/AAAAAAAAAyg/uP0FR4hLPDQ/s1600-h/Jamaica.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5373517663451940658" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 172px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SpKR2ERXBzI/AAAAAAAAAyg/uP0FR4hLPDQ/s400/Jamaica.jpg" border="0" /></a>How we are going to fair in keeping Jamaica's name in the headlines as the fastest nation on the planet I don't know, but I can assure you we will be giving it our best shot. Pete our skipper seems to be getting pretty keen on the idea of going all out for the race.<br /><br />It also means that we will get a home port on the race which is great. This will mean that unlike one or two of the other boats, we'll have our stop in Port Antonio at the end of Leg 6, where hopefully we should get a good reception and welcome from the Jamaicans.<br /><br />Not sure what the design for our boat will be yet as the one in the picture above is the 07-08 design. Still remains to be seen but I'm really genuinely pleased to have been given Jamaica as a sponsor - will be great fun!<br /><br />The race is really creeping up now, to say <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">i'm</span> excited is the under statement of the year - 20 days to go! I'm sincerely hoping we get to meet old <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Usain</span> in Jamaica. I reckon after 8 months away at sea by this point, there might be one or two of us that could give him a run for his money in a sprint to the bar...<br /><br />A very happy Pete, Jamaica Clipper!<em> </em>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-14576265377907323382009-08-17T07:18:00.001-07:002009-08-18T05:09:38.466-07:00Barnardos Fund Raising...<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/Solm129EpCI/AAAAAAAAAxw/eeumoO6v1zc/s1600-h/Barnardos+Logo.gif"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370937106086798370" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 237px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 141px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/Solm129EpCI/AAAAAAAAAxw/eeumoO6v1zc/s400/Barnardos+Logo.gif" border="0" /></a> So its time to get my fundraising efforts off the ground for my charity that <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">I'm</span> racing for. I've decided to go with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Barnardos</span> for this adventure, one of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">UK's</span> leading <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Children's</span> charities.<br /><br />They do some really fantastic work and have over 400 projects in the UK now, helping with situations ranging from<br />drug misuse to disability, youth crime to mental health, sexual abuse to domestic violence, poverty to homelessness..<br /><br />I'm really proud to be representing them so please give your support if you can! I've set up a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">justgiving</span> page, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">which</span> you can get to <a href="http://www.justgiving.com/petecollinsclippers">by clicking here</a>.<br /><br />Any help you can give would be greatly appreciated.<br /><br />PetePete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-27891811267979434162009-08-12T02:46:00.000-07:002009-08-18T07:52:58.557-07:00Oil Skins - Check. Boots - Check. Shorts -Check. Socks....hmmmm how many pairs to take??!!!!<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SoQwPL2MWFI/AAAAAAAAAxo/rbMxwT_Q2bs/s1600-h/sailing+clothes.gif"></a>So prep for the race is really beginning to take off (its just over 30 days before I set off) and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">I'm</span> getting to the stage where I am faced with the usual conundrums of previous trips - what kit to take!<br /><br />I'm beginning to buy the last bits I think <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">I'll</span> need to take with me and questions of cotton vs. synthetic, heavy weight vs. light weight, 3 pairs or 4 pairs are going round and round my head on an almost daily basis!<br /><br />Training for a few weeks on the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Solent</span> gives you a fairly good idea but that is after all, only a week. Packing a bag for ten months has had me scratching my head a little, since the weather will change so significantly during the race. We'll encounter the full spectrum from freezing temperatures with snow and rough weather for weeks on end, right through to being so hot down in the galley on the way to Singapore that it becomes almost unbearable!<br /><br />Planning for the trip swings almost always in favour of making me super-excited, but very occassionaly to the mind-bogglingly complex, making me crave the simplicity of adventures where you sling a bag over your shoulder and set off from your front door. This time around though it would be folly in the extreme to head out to the world's oceans without the right kit and preparation.<br /><br />So while the kit debate is still in full swing, the good news is that atleast I have chosen what book <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">I'm</span> going to bring on the boat! Its called 'Kiss or Kill' by Mark <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Twight</span>, a climber from North America. Hopefully in times of plight it will give me the mental resolve i need - no matter how bad I think I have it the suffering this guy went through to achieve his goals is epic in comparison...<br /><br /><div><p>Until next time... </p></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-83844136460513978982009-07-27T06:34:00.000-07:002009-07-27T08:10:35.339-07:00Last training, done. Next sailing, RACE START.<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/Sm2v_jZI1rI/AAAAAAAAAw0/q4abqM0lMnc/s1600-h/Big+wave+sailing.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5363136237635425970" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 351px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 232px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/Sm2v_jZI1rI/AAAAAAAAAw0/q4abqM0lMnc/s400/Big+wave+sailing.jpg" border="0" /></a> So the last of my training is now complete!! We had a great week again out on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Solent</span> and in the English Channel. A real mix of weather again provided us with some good experience for the race.<br /><br />Its <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">actually</span> quite scary to think that the next time I sail will be the race start in just 7 weeks time!!! On the one hand I feel ready and prepared and feel like we are really beginning to gel as a crew and have a skipper that will get us safely and quickly round the world.<br /><br />On the other hand I try and think through the sequence of events needed to gybe the spinnaker in the middle of the night in the Southern Ocean doing over 20 knots and it all seems a bit overwhelming...<br /><br />The other unfortunate news I had from this week is that I was sea sick for a period of about 24hrs. You might find this a little surprising to read on the blog of someone who is sailing round the world, but its actually quite common and there were fellow sufferers on board. I stupidly stopped taking my anti-nausea tablets and before too long a rolling sea on a downwind leg got the better of me.<br /><br />Still I am not in the least bit worried, this is something I will get used to and it doesn't put me off <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">achieving</span> my goal of a circumnavigation.<br /><br />No word on the sponsor of the boat, could be anyone - Liverpool, Cardiff, Jamaica! Who knows. Whilst its nice that we still have the surprise to come it does mean now that we have run out of time to have our boat taken out the water for our hull design. This means that the great looks of Cape <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Bretton</span>, Uniquely Singapore, Hull and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Humber</span> etc. are likely to be in a different league to ours which is a shame...<br /><br />All of the crew I have now met are fantastic and I'm really pleased to be sailing round the world with them, it'll make the adventure even more special sharing it with this group.<br /><br />The week ended with a one on one debrief with my skipper which went well. He reckons <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">i'm</span> one of the stronger crew and so a leg or two as watch leader is hopefully still on the cards.<br /><br />Will keep you posted. There will be plenty more general thoughts and musings over the next few weeks in the run up to the race but please keep checking back, am keen to share the trip with as many of you as possible!<br /><br />PetePete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-58415959591621359472009-07-10T01:34:00.000-07:002009-07-10T11:51:59.918-07:00PART C Training...So I've returned, slightly battered and bruised, from a week of strong winds and rough sea conditions on my PART C training.<br /><br />This was the first time I sailed with Pete Stirling, our skipper for the race, and also my crew that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">i'll</span> be competing in the race with. My <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">overiding</span> memory <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">i'll</span> take from this week is that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">i've</span> ended up on a great boat. Our skipper is quietly confident, extremely experienced and is pushing for a podium finish in the race. The crew is mix of people from all walks of life, some Round-the-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">worlders</span> and some <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">leggers</span>, but all equally <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">enthusiastic</span> about the challenge ahead.<br /><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyPoUNdkjuk3wH9Nc7eZJNvkLRZ2WT0ombqNnV5nc_0UqPK1dWaMqaUnDzb1A2W8XHiVWMvcPY666ole7Z1DQ' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><br />The week started with the S<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">olent</span> lulling us into a false sense of security, with blue skies and moderate winds, easy miles and everyone <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">familiarising</span> themselves with the boats again. The mid-week picture began to look very different however, and by the fourth day, after 48 hours of non-stop racing gybing spinnakers in the dead of night and dodging on-coming shipping we were hit by over 40 knots of wind and waves up to 15ft.<br /><br />Needless to say we had a tough time of it, but it was probably ideal preparation for what is to come on some of the legs.<br /><br />Watch systems were split as usual, spending 4 hours on and 4 hours off during the night and 6 on and 6 off during the day. Watch leaders weren't assigned though this week and we are still yet to see how roles on board will be assigned for the actual race.<br /><br />We finished the week doing some man over board drills whilst at the same time practising what to do if the steering on the boat fails! Made for some interesting sailing and <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">unfortunately</span> for the fender that was thrown over the side in simulation, it would have been extremely lucky to have got him back alive. Still, practice makes perfect...<br /><br />3 pints and a shower later and I completely crashed! I didn't realise just how tired I was until we were moored up and a decent nights sleep was available. I know <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">i'll</span> get used to this on the race but excuses like 'not being a morning person' are <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">definitely</span> going to have to go out the window for sure!<br /><br />One of the other boats was also confirmed as being sponsored by Edinburgh and you can read about the sponsorship <a href="http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/index.php/race_news/?item=579">here</a>. No news yet <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">unfortunately</span> for us, we're still known as the CV2 crew, although a rumour on the grapevine this week suggested we might actually end up being sponsored by Jamaica! Will keep you posted...<br /><br />Next PART C training in 1 week and counting. Can't wait. Until then...Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-20864648562644366052009-06-26T08:07:00.001-07:002009-06-26T08:14:29.505-07:0078 days to go....If seems a lifetime ago that I started the countdown timer on my website. I remember it started at about 475 days.<br /><br />Well as you can see, nearly 400 days of having itchy feet have passed since that point. Sure I have kept myself busy with running a marathon, a climbing trip to Northern Peru, walking the entire length of the Thames and of course my training towards the race, but I just cannot WAIT to get going now!<br /><br />Currently reading a book by an ultra marathon runner called Dean Karnazes that is absolutely incredible. Some of his feats are beyond comprehension (running 350, yes thats right 350 miles NON-STOP) and it has really inspired me! I did my first run again in about 3 months this morning and I plan on keeping that up right up until race start now to get myself as fit as possible.<br /><br />No news on the boat sponsor yet unfortunately, hoping to bring you some news on that soon and still hoping it will be Liverpool.<br /><br />Off on my PART C training next wednesday night - really looking forward to sailing with my crew for the first time and heading out into the Atlantic...Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-80794302515709854952009-06-11T03:41:00.000-07:002009-06-12T04:31:53.572-07:00Some photos from the last race...<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SjDkccXWrDI/AAAAAAAAAi8/cFWgwjzAyjs/s1600-h/Good+Clippers+Pic+1.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5346023934990396466" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 300px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SjDkccXWrDI/AAAAAAAAAi8/cFWgwjzAyjs/s400/Good+Clippers+Pic+1.jpg" border="0" /></a> I was looking through the 07-08 race website the other day, and found some great photos from the last race which I thought i'd put up here.<br /><div><div><br /><div></div><div>There will be a specific person on each yacht that is responsible for media communications, video footage, still photography etc. This is a hugely important role as it communicates our story with all those back on land, particularly race sponsors and partners.<br /></div><br /><div>It is not a role which I myself am keen to pursue, as there are undoubtedly people that will be more skilled at this than me, however I do hope to be able to get some great photos and videos to be able to send back to Turner and Townsend, friends and family whilst I'm away.</div><br /><div></div><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SjDkBnpO3GI/AAAAAAAAAis/_C_ZnGeKCuA/s1600-h/Good+Clippers+Pic+2.jpg"></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SjDkBnpO3GI/AAAAAAAAAis/_C_ZnGeKCuA/s1600-h/Good+Clippers+Pic+2.jpg"></a><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SjDkBnpO3GI/AAAAAAAAAis/_C_ZnGeKCuA/s1600-h/Good+Clippers+Pic+2.jpg"></a><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SjDkMRbYdUI/AAAAAAAAAi0/MSojP1x0AXo/s1600-h/Good+Clippers+Pic+2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5346023657176593730" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 259px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SjDkMRbYdUI/AAAAAAAAAi0/MSojP1x0AXo/s400/Good+Clippers+Pic+2.jpg" border="0" /></a> It also holds another importance for me. I sincerely hope this is not the last major yacht race I do, so having a documented account, be it video, photography, text etc. will serve as a good reminder to continue pursuing ambitions in the world of ocean racing...<br /><br />Anyway, there are a whole host of images on the 07-08 site, which you can get to through clipperroundtheworld.com, so go check them out! We've also found out that our PART C courses (both of them) are likely to head as far out as possible into the Atlantic. Will be our first taste of ocean sailing together and obviously a great chance to sail with our new skipper and to start working together as a crew! Only two and half weeks to go - can't wait.... </div></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-69351105808860219922009-06-08T04:53:00.000-07:002009-06-08T04:56:43.535-07:00Hoping to be a Watchleader...I'm still hoping that for some, if not all the race I can be a Watchleader for CV2. Here's my list of responsibilities if I get selected;<br /><br />• Will provide leadership, motivation and encouragement to their watch crew whilst<br />ensuring the yacht is safely sailed at the optimum speed on the optimum course at<br />all times.<br />• Will ensure that the yacht complies with IRPCS, the racing rules and the sailing<br />instructions at all times.<br />• Will undertake navigation and log keeping duties whilst on watch.<br />• Will take part in the tactical, navigation and meteorological discussions and planning<br />at any time along with the skipper and other watch leader including prior to race<br />start.<br />• Will ensure the smooth running of their watch including dealing with any personal<br />issues, disputes and sea sickness etc.<br />• Will ensure all of their watch crew are on deck at least 5 minutes before their watch<br />is due to start.<br />• Will ensure the cockpit and deck is kept clean whilst on watch.<br />• Will undertake tasks identified by the skipper and comply with any temporary<br />standing orders.<br />• Will be responsible for organising their watch during stop over deep cleans.<br /><br />It will go a long way to getting my practical Yachtmaster Ocean at the end of the race so fingers crossed!Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-47429772692558072432009-06-01T09:30:00.000-07:002009-06-01T03:01:07.147-07:00The lo-down: Nav & Met and Crew Allocation!<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SiKw7Ew1KJI/AAAAAAAAAiM/vXgwCPHkRAo/s1600-h/T&T+shirt.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5342026636952152210" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 231px" alt="" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/SiKw7Ew1KJI/AAAAAAAAAiM/vXgwCPHkRAo/s400/T%26T+shirt.jpg" border="0" /></a> So lots has been happening in the world of Clippers since my last update. We had a great week doing Nav and Met, although we were slightly jealous of all the PART B courses heading out into the Solent every day!<br /><br />We covered the IRPCS (International Rules for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea), as well as Meteorology and Chart Work. To begin with the general consensus was that it’s extremely presumptuous of Clippers to call it a ‘Round the World’ yacht race – we would have been lucky to make it round the Isle of Wight! However by the end of the week it all began to fall into place and the prospect of getting round the globe seemed a little bit more achievable. Still, I am wondering how easy it will all be when the boat is heeled over in a Force 9 in the Southern Ocean?? I’ll let you know how I get on with the plotter and dividers when I’m out there….<br /><br />Still, I met some great people and passed the exams for my Yachtmaster onshore, so all in all a good week.<br /><br />The big news however is from Crew Allocation!! Didn’t end up on Hull and Humber, although apparently there were over 80 requests for this boat from people much more local to the area than myself. I have however ended up on a boat which has an overwhelming presence from the North West! Its looking likely it will be sponsored by Liverpool! Unfortunately there’s not much more of an update I can give you on that, except that until its confirmed in a few weeks time, I’m officially a member of the CV2 crew!! Anyway, more news on that as we find out…<br /><br />I also got to meet my skipper and crew for the first time. I’m really pleased that we’ve ended up with one of the most experienced skippers doing the race who has sailed the Atlantic no less that 18 times already!! There also seems to be some very good experience within the crew as well, so as well as having a lot of fun on the way, we should be able to be a seriously competitive boat! The demographic seems quite young and as with most of the boats we have a good balance of males and females and a few different nationalities thrown in as well!<br /><br />I’m now back in London, where I will be resuming working with sponsors. It has now been confirmed that the race will be stopping in Cape Town, and its 90% likely to be Perth. As soon we know this I can start organising my client events!<br /><br />There are loads more events coming up over the next few months as well – 2 PART C courses, additional specialist training courses, crew weekend away etc. so I’ll be kept busy.<br /><br />Until next time…<br /><br /><div></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-42345321470519149582009-05-31T09:47:00.000-07:002009-05-31T09:50:56.736-07:00A taste of things to come...<p><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zXuzy0k9mZQ&hl=" fs="1" width="425" height="344" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></p><p>This is a great video I got shown when I was away on my Nav and Met course. Its taken from the BT Global Challenge race, which is extremely similar to Clippers except their route took them round Cape Horn. Anyway, enjoy...</p><p>I'll put a full update of the course and Crew Allocation on soon....</p><p>Pete<br /><br /></p>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-77773216207523806582009-05-21T03:51:00.000-07:002009-05-21T04:10:32.340-07:00Navigation & Meteorology<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/ShU2my6BSeI/AAAAAAAAAhs/cfFrEj_9XaQ/s1600-h/Clipper+training.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5338232973445646818" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; WIDTH: 317px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 74px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/ShU2my6BSeI/AAAAAAAAAhs/cfFrEj_9XaQ/s400/Clipper+training.bmp" border="0" /></a> Only two days now until my Navigation & Meteorology course down in Gosport... <div><div></div><div><br />I've spent the week covering as many topics as I can from the Day Skipper Shore based courses, although I only need to know the International Rules for the Prevention of Collisions at Sea as a pre-requisite.<br /><br />If it all goes well then we should all end up getting our Yachtmaster shore based certificates which will be great. This, combined with a logged 36000 miles should go along way to completing all my qualifications when I return. Our course will then be finished next Friday, just in time for crew from all over the world to invade Portsmouth for Crew allocation. Looking forward to catching up with some of the people i've already met in my training...</div></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-51261056030594659782009-05-19T05:11:00.000-07:002009-05-21T03:34:13.360-07:00Skippers Announced for the race...<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/ShQsWqP_teI/AAAAAAAAAhM/5uynp5Ws-dI/s1600-h/skippers.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337940226151003618" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 400px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 144px" alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/ShQsWqP_teI/AAAAAAAAAhM/5uynp5Ws-dI/s400/skippers.bmp" border="0" /></a> Today the skippers for the Clippers 09-10 Round the World Yacht Race were announced. Really pleased to see that some of the skippers i've done my training with have made it onto the race.<br /><br />There seems to be an incredibly wide range of experience, from Mini Transat racers to those involved in America's Cup campaigns, and from all over the world too!<br /><br />Its a little under two weeks now before I find out which boat i'm on, and which of the 10 skippers i'll have. Getting really excited now, can't wait for Crew Allocation, to meet everyone i'll be sailing with and start planning our race...<br /><br />Whilst i've been enjoying learning about Navigation and Meteorology (I know it'll be incredibly important in determining who wins), i'm just really keen to start relating it all to a course across the great oceans and to see how our strategy plays out. I know we'll probably have a mix of people on board aswell - some will want to <em>really </em>race, where as others might not have this as their sole focus. Starting to balance all these elements from Crew Allocation onwards will be really great fun.<br /><br />Still really hoping to get selected as a watch leader as well. Watch this space...<br /><br />PetePete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-88538766504054642412009-05-18T04:16:00.001-07:002009-05-20T09:23:43.094-07:00Working with sponsors...<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/ShFEccVygOI/AAAAAAAAAgM/shpPYGjcujw/s1600-h/Image+BW_PC.bmp"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5337122288845357282" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; WIDTH: 320px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 214px" alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_Jsk5hNnLrfg/ShFEccVygOI/AAAAAAAAAgM/shpPYGjcujw/s320/Image+BW_PC.bmp" border="0" /></a>Apart from my Clipper training courses on the South Coast, I am also working with my Corporate Sponsors here in London.<br /><div></div><br /><div>For Leg 3 of the race, I am pleased to welcome Turner & Townsend, a multinational project management and cost management firm, as a corporate sponsor. I was recently able to take them along to visit one of the yachts, Hull and Humber, in St. Katherine's Dock in London. This is the Clipper 68 that I have requested to be on for the race, so it was great to see her with all the new branding finished!</div><br /><div></div><br /><div>I'll also be doing work with Turner & Townsend by writing articles for Trade publications and doing client events in both South Africa and Australia...</div><br /><div></div><br /><div></div>Pete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3055024000554892010.post-18881700250012028562009-05-17T11:16:00.000-07:002009-05-18T04:33:30.974-07:00My first blog...Welcome to the collinsoceanracing blog!<br /><br />I'm just in the process of setting this up at the moment, but it will mean that you'll have a much more interactive way of following my race. I plan on getting it properly up and running over the next week or so, integrating it into my main website, <a href="http://www.collinsoceanracing.com/">http://www.collinsoceanracing.com/</a>.<br /><br />Not long to go now till the race, 118 days in fact. I've got most of the admin stuff sorted now - visas, kit, injections etc.<br /><br />Just got my Nav & Met course and then my two PART C courses in July before the big race start...<br /><br />Well, until next time..<br /><br />PetePete Collinshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05372659862037434449noreply@blogger.com0