16/10/2005

As she had now spent well over a year away from home, I felt it was more than time to bring Yanita back home. As I saw it, keeping her abroad for the winter was not an option. Ostend is quite exposed in the prevailing W-NW winds. I am quite keen on winter sailing - cold it may be, but also quite beautiful and far less crowded.

We do not have many happy memories of Channel crossings in October. Add to that the fact that it would just be Evita and me... I was not looking forward to the trip one bit. The weather forecast didn't look all that bad. A SW 4-5 - reaching all the way. It had been blowing 6-8 the preceding days, so I was worried that there would still be a lot of swell.

We got a cheap day-return Eurotunnel ticket, and Brigitte dropped us off at the boat. Evita & I had a meal in town before she turned in early. I had a couple of Farwell beers at the RNSYC bar. Soon it was time for me to turn in too - I had planned to catch the early morning tide around 05H00. Going by our previous track record this also meant that we would reach Shotley - our new home port - in daylight. Another bonus!

It was still pitch dark when we woke the next morning. Thank God - forecast fog had not materialised. Wind was a feeble 3Bft, but at least it came from the right direction. Swell was less than 0.5m. As the sun rose in the East we were already 12NM out of Ostend. Things were going well.

In short, it was a glorious day. You can't buy this stuff. Father and daughter settled into their well established routine. Dad at the helm, daughter fixing breakfast and reading. Even the ever temperamental autopilot wanted to chip in and steered for a few hours.

Around lunchtime the wind dropped markedly. We were still doing a respectable 4.5kts OTG, but I decided to press the engine into service all the same. Sure, we could have sailed on, but it would have meant arriving after dark. It had already been a long day and there was school/work the next day.

About 7NM off Harwich the wind picked up again. Another hour of glorious sailing. As hoped for, we were off Shotley at 16H00. Brigitte and Yanni were already waiting for us.

Final approach - lock - berth. Cleaning up was all that remained. How can two people make such a mess in only 12 hours?

Tired and proud father and daughter retired to the bar, whilst mum did her "thing". I gather we slept most of the way back.

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10/10/2005

I have turned 40.

Still looking cool (or trying to) after all these years.

If life's supposed to start at 40, no more hanging about. Let the good times role.

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30/09/2005, Ostend

It's been over three months since I last updated our blog - must put things to right! No slacking just because it's winter.

As lift out charges in the UK border on the ridiculous, there are some jobs I want doing in Ostend before we head back to our winter home in Shotley.
1. Fresh anti-foul: the AwlGrip I had applied two years ago was finally losing the battle against "marine life". Opted for AwlGrip again - if it last again for another two years I'm well happy.
2. I noticed some rust on the keel when we last dried out, and the patch seemed to be bigger than the previous time I noticed it. I must admit to being a bit paranoid when it comes to safety, but I sail with my nearest and dearest, so I can not afford not to be. Scrub the keel bare and plenty of epoxy.

Job finished, and I must say I'm very pleased with the result. Smooth bottom for our baby.

Brigitte's had a bit of a moan: "She's up for sale, why are you spending all that money?" She's right - in a way. But then again, it may well take some time before we find a new owner for Yanita - in the mean time I want to keep her in top condition. It's not like we're giving up on her - I still want to be sailing her this winter.

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11/09/2005

To rally or not to rally? That is the question.

It's been two months now since we set out on our ill-fated attempt to complete the Biscay Triangle. What have we learned, and what did the rally do for us?

First of all: it provided a focal point. After years of sailing and refitting, where did we stand? It has always been our intention to set of long term when I retire in a couple of years. This was to provide Yanita with a first taste of true Blue Water. Would she be up to the job?
Secondly: how about us? On a steep learning curve for several years of family sailing - how would we cope? Would the Rally provide the safety net that Brigitte longed for?

1. The weather conditions when we sailed from Brighton were less than ideal (putting it mildly). The online weather sites and the Navtex all painted a less than rosy picture. Yet "Rally Control" seemed to paint a completely different one - cherry picking the bits they liked from different broadcasts. None of the other skippers seemed to find anything wrong with that. Mind you, most sailed boats that would have taken Cape Horn in their stride, and had at least 4 competent, adult crewmembers. Still, whilst it was made clear that it would be up to the skipper whether to sail or not, a lot of moral pressure was applied. And I must admit, you get a certain adrenaline rush when the whole thing kicks off. A couple of hours into the Rally the weather takes a turn for the worse F6/7 with gusts up to F8. Add the ocean swell to that and we weren't sailing but enduring. Some injuries, seasickness - aborting was the only sensible option.

Yanita is the perfect coastal cruiser, but once outside her familiar stomping ground that is the North Sea and the Channel she is less comfortable. I don't doubt that she could handle offshore work - but in ideal conditions. Conditions were NOT ideal.

2. How did we do? Not as expected - but then this family has a way of surprising me. Whilst I did most of the helming and sail shifting in our 22hr marathon run, the family came through when they had to. When I had been hit by the boom and retired down below they coped. It's not an experience any of us is in a hurry to repeat, but none of us were out of our depths. It was not comfortable, but no-one doubted that we would get to port safely, everyone knew what had to be done. The first leg sort of kicked the stuffing out of me - 20hrs out of 24 helming in these conditions was hard, but I did it. It's as close to my limits as I ever want to get. So, we can cope, but to keep the family "on board" it's best to avoid such instances in future. In a heavier, ocean-going boat we might have continued, but we found out how far we can safely take Yanita.

So, would we Rally again? NO - and that's unanimous. You're no longer your own master. You're - IMHO - treated as cattle. So many ships have to be herded over so many hurdles, and that's it. THEY have a tight schedule, and they will damn well make sure that YOU stick to it. The mayor has been booked, photo op at such hour, get going! There not your "friends", they run a company.

Once we decided to abandon completely, we had a very pleasant holiday. I don't regret it one bit. We learned a lot: about our boat, about ourselves and about the world of rallying. Made some mistakes too, but they are only a waste of money if we don't learn from them.

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16/08/2005, Ostend

Brigitte said goodbye for the week. Not everyone has the luxury of 4 weeks away from the office. I had been toying with the idea of continuing further up the East Coast before returning to Ostend; but I sensed that the childeren had had enough.

The weather wasn't all that brilliant - quite lumpy out. Gusts of up to 25 kts. Still the forecast seemed more promissing - I was going to risk. Surely we had had enough bad luck as it was. And the cruising kitty was empty.

The first hour we sailed with one reef and a couple of turns on the genoa. Over six knots over the ground - I could live with that. When the wind dropped a bit we shook the reef out and unfurled the genoa completely. We weren't making great time, but it didn't really matter. Yanni got his fishing rod out and Evita was engrossed in one of these girlie mags she loves to read. Same old, same old.

Mid channel the wind dropped completely. The iron main was pressed into service and Evita and I took turns helming. We were going to get there before sunset.

We managed another hour of sailing before we entered Ostend. Fitting end to our summer cruise. Evita and Yanni picked up our buoy first time round. Once back in our home berth the children were absolutely brilliant. They tied up, cleaned up and fixed me dinner. What a crew!

We spent a few pleasant days in Ostend - the beach, go-karting and the club bar. Just before the trip back Yanni gave me a hug. 'Thanks dad. That was the best holiday ever!' Lump in my throat and tear in my eye.

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15/08/2005, Ramsgate

Today the weather forecasts were all in agreement, a nice 3-4 W. It was an 80NM trip to Ramsgate, but with the right tide, I could see us doing it in less than 10 hours. The first two hours we motored - no wind at all. Then it picked up. Off Eastbourne we hoisted the kite, and very soon we were flying - 9.5kts over the ground. All the planes taking part in the airshow seemed to be heading straight for us. Life doesn't get much better than this!

When we set off I was worried about being caught off Dover after sunset - the way we were going we would make Ramsgate before sunset.

Off Dungeness things took a turn for the worse. The wind was still W, but increased markedly. High teens, with gusts up to 27kts. Waves started building too and Yanita doesn't 'surf' well. Let's get the kite down. Before I had time to call the crew up what I feared for happened. Yanita surfed down a wave sideways, wind caught the kite, I shouted for everyone to come up NOW! We were heeling over 65 degrees, Brigitte took the helm and I made my way forward to get the kite down. By now we heeled over so much the kite was scooting up water - we were going nowhere but down. I could hear Brigitte crying for help at the helm. I felt strangely calm - training kicked in - I had to cut the kite. Out with the knife - cut sheets and halyard - say goodbye to the kite. Yanita responded straight away. We were going to live to fight another day.

A bit of luck - the wind dropped for a couple of minutes. I could see the kite floating away from us. I was not prepared to write off £2,000 worth of sail just yet. I shouted instructions to Brigitte so she could bring us near to the kite. Evita brought a boathook forward. She managed to hook the eternal loop. Two minutes of heave-ho later and we had the kite back on board.

Dover was its usual busy self. But it didn't fill me with the same feeling of apprehension as it did on the way down. If you listen to port control you have a fairly good idea of what's going on. Just the Goodwins to go and we were into Ramsgate. One thing I had forgotten though: Ramsgate Regatta. No room at the inn - or so it seemed. We found a berth alongside a lone 43ft-er. We were just about to make fast when their skipper informed us that they were leaving at 6 the next morning. Beggars can't be choosers. Shower, a hot meal and an early night. Next morning the alarm woke me at 05H45. By 06h00 no movement onboard our neighbour. Had they overslept? Gave them a friendly reminder. Five minutes later two sleepy heads appeared. They hadn't overslept - they were planning to leave at 10H00 and forgot to tell us. They won't forget again. Back to bed. Later that morning we found a free berth alongside. Brigitte had to be back in the office the next day, so we decided to stay in Ramsgate at least one more day. I would take Yanita over to Ostend with the children when the weather had settled a bit more. Some shopping and a big clean up. We needed new gas and at the local chandlery I picked up replacement spinnaker sheets and halyard going cheap. £100 down the road you wouldn't know anything had happened the day before.

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12/08/2005, Brighton

Despite the very short break in Portsmouth, we all felt very relaxed. The engine was fixed and was purring very happily down below. Hardly any wind to speak of. As the Solent disappeared behind us peace and quiet set in. The VHF went strangely silent - what, no radio checks?

Once we rounded Selsey Bill the wind picked up - a very modest 2-3, but at least it was from the right direction. As the tide was still with us our SOG was still a very decent 5.5kts. We're on a holiday - who's in a hurry? We made Brighton just before the tide turned. Off to the Marina Office to get a berth for two days.

Brighton looked attractive on our way down. Illuminated pier and all that. Give the kids a break. The next day we did just that. Pier, beach, electric train, the usual touristy things. They seemed to be having the time of their life. Good! This is what it's all about.

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