Latest news from Nick Moloney to Dr Krumnacker
Segel.de
G'day Australia!
Nick Moloney is a member of Ellen MacArthur's Offshore Challenges Sailing Team http://www.nickmoloney.com
* MOLONEY the lone Aussie, on a boat full of Frenchmen, reaches the
longitude of Cape LEEUWIN, Western Australia...although some way to the
south of his homeland...
* AFTER A DIFFICULT PASSAGE THROUGH THE INDIAN OCEAN, Orange is just a few
hours ahead of the pace set by Sir Peter Blake on ENZA in their record
breaking run last decade...
* WATER TEMPERATURE DROPS BELOW 5 DEGRESS...ICEBERG watch begins.
* "Had a 'monty 2 nights ago when the wind lifted 40 degrees and we were
suddenly reaching hard into a seaway....it was a warzone."...life continues
as 'normal' onboard
POSITION REPORT
COMPARISON table / JULES VERNE TROPHY
Monday 1st April 2002 at 0804 GMT
POSITION ORANGE
Position : 50°25' S / 121°10' E
Speed 24h : 18.81
Distance since departure : 12843.28 miles
Distance 24h : 451.46 miles
COMPARISON TO SPORT ELEC IN 1997
Position : 52°02'S / 106°37' E
Speed 24h : 17
Distance since departure : 10501 miles
Distance 24h : 408.80 miles
LATEST LOGBOOK FROM NICK
22:33GMT 31/03
G'day Australia!
Remember our night is now your day...
During the early part of last evening we crossed the longitude of Cape
Leeuwin WA. We are now officially under OZ. Its great to see it on the
chart.
Its now sunrise here and we have had an amazing night sailing. Clearish skys
long drawn out waves. 30kts tws [True Wind Speed], 25kts bs [BoatSpeed].
This was the greatest display of Aurora Australis I have ever seen. I have
seen the phenomena many times but never so clear or brilliant. We are quite
deep south, in the 50's and south of the Antarctic Convergence Zone. Water
temperature is below 5 degrees so we are expecting ICE at some stage. It was
always the plan to stay away from ice for as long as possible but we will
see what the next few days has install for us. Is a bit concerning on such a
boat but I on the otherhand I dont want the lads that have not seen these
amazing frozen islands to go home without a clear image in their memory.
Wind instruments have gone again....its a bit tough in the dark relying
on the luff of the storm spinnaker, when the apparent wind shifts so fast so
its great to have a good sea way to lock into for direction.
Had a 'monty 2 nights ago when the wind lifted 40 degrees and we were
suddenly reaching hard into a seaway....it was a warzone. Explosions of
water everywhere and everyone being thrown around on the tramp [trampoline -
the netting that fills the gaps between the two hulls]. You know
when you are sieving flour or dirt and the big pieces bounch around on the
mesh, thats sort of what it gets like.. It happened so quickly that not many
had their harness on. It was pretty 'full on for a period until we took
another reef and jibed...wild times.
Repair to crack in back beam is finished so we will continue to monitor. Not
surprising to see the damage, the water hits that like a sledge hammer and
we have taken a few waves over the past 9 days.
Its very cold as you can imagine but it feels like we have been making
better progress over the past 24 hours. Will enjoy watching Australia and NZ
pass by, then we can focus on Cape Horn. I think most onboard are enjoying
the South so far which is a little strange. I seem to be setting a trend in
my yellow suit [Nick's oilskins were torn, so he is now on Survival Suit] as
more appear every watch.
Being so close to home obviously makes you think alot about friends and
family. My mum will now be living on the floor in the study, getting up in
the middle of the night to log on to the net and check our progress. Whilst
one hand moves the curser on the screen the other will be shuffling Rosary
Beads. Mum, you are a CHAMPION. I have been receiving many mails onboard
from the web site and am amazed how many people are living this adventure
with us. Thanks all for taking the time to fire off a bit of inspiration it
really is fantastic.
I have a warm sleeping bag waiting for me. aaaaahhhhhhh 3 hours of bliss.
Last off watch we celebrated Sebs [Seb Josse] birthday with balloons and all
throughout the night there were continual bangs as people stood onn a stay
one in the dark. Makes everyone jump a little on a boat with tonnes of load
on everything.
A+ Nick
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