Oceanracing - 2006 - Asia Records

Asian Record Circuit 2006 - Leg 1/2
www.teamellen.com - Übersicht Leg1/2

Friday, 31 March 2006 at 08:36
SUNSHINE AND CALM ONBOARD AS B&Q STARTS LEG 2....

After the hostile conditions in the build up to the finish of Leg 1
off Jeju Island, South Korea, Ellen and the crew are taking advantage of the lighter conditions in the Yellow sea.

Latest Email from Ellen:
“Well it's been an extraordinary 24 hours, beginning with pretty nasty conditions, which just seemed like endless upwind hammering. It's been a very tough leg from Yokohama to Cheju, conditions were either too much wind, or too little, both of which lead to tired sailors!!

But we're ok, and I think that relief was the word on our lips as we sailed through the finsh/start line at Cheju. The evening leading up to that was amazing - upwind, freezing cold, and black as night could be with no moon. Suddenly just after sunset the coastal fishing fleet became visible – I counted 19 squid boats in total, with all their lights ablaze - it looked more like the north sea gas fields than the Yellow sea off South Korea! It was amazing, but very rough. The sea had been building since the 50 knots upwind we had experienced the previous day, we took a real hammering onboard, and I think that the whole crew were ready for some steadier conditions where we didn't freeze on deck and get our faces full of water every few seconds. Everyone's eyes were ringed with white, caused from build up of salt, which dried up when we came off watch.

Concentrated salt into the eyes is never fun and you found your eyes hurting like mad if you try to rub them. It's pretty tough on your eyes, as goggles or glasses get covered in water instantly so you remove them to see, and your eyes get blasted with 35 knots of wind with spray in it. It's worse at night, because you don't see what’s coming. At least in the day you can close your eyes or duck! Cheju island was kind of surreal, fairly lit, fishing boats around, though not too many. It was odd and strange to think that is was an island off South Korea. It looked as if it could have been the Isle of Wight!

It was a bit disappointing to have been so slow in getting there, not being able to choose the weather conditions does not help, but we still felt very happy to get there. It has been a long haul! Over the period of one night the wind died down from 30 to 5knots, so lots of sail changes which at least warmed us up, and a change in direction which kept us dead upwind till the line at Cheju.

The good news was that our hammering was soon forgotten as this morning sun began to rise. It was to die for, and absolutely stunning. We had the islands to the east of Korea lit by the red early sun, a flat calm sea, and just enough wind to scoot us along at between 8 and 14 knots. Mobi was relaxing I could sense it as we slid along seemingly effortlessly, and with such a contrast to our fighting twelve hours previously. It was one of the calmest moments of the trip, and one of those moments I shall remember forever as I sat briefly in the aft deck as the sun slipped out from behind the horizon. Burning red, and promising us a fantastic day. The six hours on deck seemed to melt away and the fatigue that we felt was irrelevant compared to the moment we were experiencing. I love watching the day arrive, and being there to witness things that as part of land life we rarely see. Experiencing hardship at sea, whether freezing cold, or an aggressive storm makes the beautiful things seem infinitely more beautiful. We are so lucky to be out here, and the salt in our eyes is a small price to pay.”