Latest news from Nick Moloney to Dr Krumnacker
Segel.de
Nick Moloney is a member of Ellen MacArthur's Offshore Challenges Sailing Team http://www.nickmoloney.com
* AT 0840 GMT ORANGE were approximately 500 miles from CAPE HORN ..... The left turn into the ATLANTIC should happen on Saturday 13th
* ICE WATCH ... " For 1/2 an hour you harness yourself to the mast , attempting to identify growlers from breaking waves"
* CAPE HORN is the last major landmark before the dash to BREST .. Where the PACIFIC & ATLANTIC OCEANS meet and notorious for it's treacherous conditions.
POSITION REPORT (Day 42 at sea)
COMPARISON table / JULES VERNE TROPHY
Monday 12th April 2002 0840 GMT
POSITION ORANGE
Position : 57°47'S / 84°36' W
Speed 24h : 16.73
Distance since departure : 18371.03 miles
Distance 24h : 401.48 miles
COMPARISON TO SPORT ELEC IN 1997
Position : 59°35 'S / 131°18' W
Speed 24h : 20.52
Distance since departure : 15140 miles
Distance 24h : 492.60 miles
LATEST LOGBOOK FROM NICK
11/04/2002 (news is coming slowly a sporadically from NICK hopefully it will become more regular as they round Cape Horn)
Well we decided that speed was what we needed to make the safest passage
round Cape Horn. We stopped our dive South due to Ice bergs and just put the
peddal to the floor. It now appears to have been a good move and may avoid
strong headwinds over the next 15hours. Currently TWD N, not sure of
strength cos wind gear is dodgy. 2 reefs in indexsail, staysail , BS between
23 and 33 kts depending on gusts.
Last night was radical to say the least. Absolutely freezing cold. rotating
1/2hour helming, 1/2 hour warming up, 1/2 hour ICE watch, 1/2 hour warming
up X2 and thats the watch.
ICE watch was INSANE. for 1/2 an hour you harnessed yourself to the mast ,
standing on the rotater on the front of the mast, holding onto 2 sheet
deflectors you attempt to identify growlers from breaking waves. All the
time the helmsman is just trying to push out the biggest speeds he can. I
rember thinking this is like some ride you would fing at an extreme theme
park. sometimes sustaining 36kts BS the boat was just busting the seas
appart. I rember thinking 'how the hell are we supposed to see anything with
all this water flying about the place. Poised to blow the storm jib helyard
as COVERED UP AS POSSIBLE my face was painfully cold. My feet were numbing.
I began a stupid dance to the tune New York, New York (not sur why I chose
this song?) to attempt to keep warm. As the waves broke their crests cast a
lighter glow on the dark sea. Your heart would skip a few beats then,
before you could act or do a thing the mass was already beneath the tramp or
bursting over our hulls. Twice I thought I saw large pieces of ice but it
was always too late to even yell a warning. You just hang on that little bit
harder and brace for a high speed collision. If this all sounds a little
crazy then you are right...that experience was really memorable.
Stanby was a rolling watch at the radar. We were all happy to see dawn this
morning.
Under 1300 to Cape Horn and it looks like we should indextain reasonable
speed. The next 12 hours could be difficult with the breeze forward but its
should shift back behind us as we get closer.
The boys are are climbing into their bunkes yelling aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh
froid (cold) aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh trompe (soaking wet) in a few minuts
they will be warmish and asleep.
time for me to do the dash to the other hull for a bit of the same.
bon nuit
nick
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