News from the fleet:
Translated 9
Everything OK on board
Alexforbes ArchAngel
Good morning MJ. The books we have here need one to have a dictionary while reading lot of bambastic words.
Argonaut
We are considering conducting a feasibility study on reefable spinnakers. The following questions arise:
i. Would we need to drop from masthead halyard to fractional halyard or would we just fly it half-hoisted. Of course we could just clip on both halyards and at the appropriate moment switch out ii. Is this going to be most useful for reducing sail area in heavy winds or reducing flapabililty in light bouncy conditions iii. Is North down to experiment..
iv. what is the courier cost to just off Ilha da Trindade v. Does this count as outside assistance?
vi. Would we need to rig another set of sheets to handle the reefing?
vii. Would these then be called sheets or reefing lines viii. Would the pole length need to change ix. If so would a telescopic pole be best or an entirely different pole x. How many reefing eyes would be required
xi. Why is Conor looking at the skipper and navigator as if they’ve lost their minds.
xii. Why is Emily is pulling out the medicinal rum for the skipper and navigator xiii. Why is Conor now trying to rig this up in his mind??
Nyamazela
Yeah… we’ve got wind again.
Adventurerio 4
Last afternoon the wind started and it seemed that we had left the calms behind. Night sailing was delightful with 11-14 knots of wind, calm sea and clear starlight sky. Until 02:15… when someone up there tripped on the fan chord and suddenly the wind died down here. From 02 to 05am the whole crew on deck struggled: lower the spi to protect it from damage, open genoa, try to keep the boat pointed somewhere meaningful (no steerage way), then light rain followed by heavy rain, open spi, wind turns 90 degrees, then 180 to the opposite side, lower spi, up spi again! Then we discovered a new puncture to the spi. This morning it was repaired. Finally the NE wind started to fill and we changed spinnakers, after more than 5 days of our big spi up. Today we will make 11 days with one of the spinnakers up day and night! The fishing buoys of yesterday weren’t holding a surface net, so we passed through it at the same time we were crossing a ship 2 miles away.
Now we have 350nm to the finish, and they look to be full of surprises and emotions. An oil field and all Brazilian coastal trade to cross, a developing low to negotiate, fluky winds at the finish… We hope to arrive by Sunday morning. Tomorrow we will update it.
Atalanta
took the belgium headsail off the forestay this morning. getting ready to rumble…...
Cool Ideas Nemesis
All good with all on board. Sailing along merrily with the S2 up in light switch conditions. Flay seas and warm water and air temps. With Rio just around the corner (963nm to go)it’s nearly all over. Waiting for the breeze to fill in tonight and then it should be easy sailing on to the finish.
Ray of Light
For the whole trip we seem to have been using huge amounts of water. There has also been a small salt water leak under the bunk where the watermaker pumps are. Initially we resolved not to fiddle as the water maker was working and it is a long trip. Water output was getting less and less and the watrmaker becoming increasingly sensitive to air ingress. Yesterday, Tannie Koffie aka Heidi, saw hose and pipe fittings and her inner gardener took over. Before we could say Tannie Koffie, Heidi had Sean’s fishing scissors aka her pruners and was stripping hose from what was believed to be the offending leaking fitting. The 20mm male fitting was removed, inspected, coated in new plumbers tape and replaced. When we tested the watermaker we had more bubbles than before, more leaking and no fresh water. An element of panic crept in. We started looking elsewhere in the boat to see if we could pirate a male fitting, under the bathroom sinks, the deckwash pump, under the kitchen sink etc. Eventually we resolved to remove the fitting put more plumbers tape and silicone and replace. Again unsuccessful, even more leaking. Uncle Theo van der Hoek,who sailed on and did maintenance on Ray of Light installed an elaborate set of pipes and valves for pickling the watermaker for long term storage. Right before our eyes were all the spares we could want, just like the irrigation shop. Thanks Theo! We set about removing the leaky fitting for a third time. As I pulled the hose the white plastic fitting above it parted. It was a plastic non return valve and had a cracked housing. Bingo, real problem found! It also looks like it had been cracked for a long time as there was algae growing on the crack.We decided to sleep on the problem. As the watermaker shares a sea cock with the deckwash pump, I installed non return valves at the t piece going to either pump. The solution appeared simple, remove the non return valve at the t piece and replace the broken plastic valve with it. Fortunately all the sizing was the same. With the aid of a kettle full of boiling water all hoses were relatively easily removed and the fittings replaced. Once we purged the system of air, the best outcome possible, making water at 3-4 times the rate we were. The machine is rated at a litre a minute, we are now getting a little more than that, fantastic. Much relief on board. Thanks for fiddling Tannie Koffie.So why Tannie Koffie? Heidi has a crazy passion for coffee. The boat is packed with coffee. And a large French press (literally, Sophie brought this one from France). Francois shares her passion and love of strong coffee, as does Malcolm who likes it black and strong. Heidi has a cocktail of meds to keep her fibromyalgia and neuralgia under control. As such she is excused from night watch as she needs 8-10 hours to function.
Every morning she emerges around 0800 and starts the coffee drill. The crew love it, coffee and rusks in the ocean is always special. She then takes over on the helm. Often putting in 2-3 hours, giving the night owls some rest. Then she gets stuck into lunch prep and puts in a couple more hours on the helm in the afternoon. Followed by dinner prep. If she gets a moment in between she vacuums and cleans. A little tapestry here and there. And always time for a round or two of boxing with Sean. Seems to be a mother/ teenage son thing. By the time Heidi has her after dinner whiskey she has had a full productive day. There is no doubt she is key to the health, performance and smooth running of the boat. Dankie Tannie Koffie! In addition to their sailing responsibilities, Jen and Tam are doing a great job helping Heidi. Thanks ladies. We are now on starboard, barreling along. Sean is a little grumpy as it looks like we are going to pass agonizingly close to the sea mounts he has had his eye on. However practically catching fish at this speed is not likely, the lures get tossed and tumble as they skip along the surface. Onward toward Cabo Frio and the next set of calms to deal with. Now time for a fresh water shower!
THESE RESULTS ARE PREDICTED OR PROVISIONAL – 20/01/2023 14:00:00B
Line Honours:
| Pos | Name | Last update | DTF (NM) | Distance Sailed (NM) | VMG Recent (Knots) | Estimated finish time (SAST) | Elapsed time | Estimated finish time (SAST) corrected | Elapsed time corrected | Latest Position |
| 1 | Norhi | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 158,5 | 3641,5 | 9,1 | 21 Jan 07:25:18 | 18d 17h 25m 18s | 21 Jan 07:25:18 | 18d 17h 25m 18s | 022° 54.594S, 040° 12.426W |
| 2 | Aventureiro 4 | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 350,5 | 3244,8 | 6,0 | 23 Jan 00:13:28 | 20d 10h 13m 28s | 23 Jan 00:13:28 | 20d 10h 13m 28s | 022° 31.524S, 036° 45.564W |
| 3 | Atalanta | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 603,1 | 3031,6 | 5,1 | 25 Jan 13:08:39 | 22d 23h 8m 39s | 25 Jan 13:08:39 | 22d 23h 8m 39s | 020° 49.152S, 032° 29.454W |
| 4 | Ray of Light | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 656,6 | 3164,3 | 6,3 | 24 Jan 21:31:34 | 22d 7h 31m 34s | 24 Jan 21:31:34 | 22d 7h 31m 34s | 020° 59.994S, 031° 27.798W |
| 5 | Audaz II | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 683,3 | 2990,5 | 6,4 | 25 Jan 00:52:23 | 22d 10h 52m 23s | 25 Jan 00:52:23 | 22d 10h 52m 23s | 020° 45.083S, 031° 02.220W |
| 6 | Translated 9 | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 771,8 | 2855,0 | 6,7 | 25 Jan 09:46:44 | 22d 19h 46m 44s | 25 Jan 09:46:44 | 22d 19h 46m 44s | 020° 54.576S, 029° 22.842W |
| 7 | Nemesis | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 948,8 | 2819,2 | 6,6 | 26 Jan 14:19:52 | 24d 0h 19m 52s | 26 Jan 14:19:52 | 24d 0h 19m 52s | 020° 54.366S, 026° 09.810W |
| 8 | Alexforbes ArchAngel | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 1011,2 | 2634,1 | 5,7 | 27 Jan 22:35:10 | 25d 8h 35m 10s | 27 Jan 22:35:10 | 25d 8h 35m 10s | 021° 14.088S, 024° 58.224W |
| 9 | Argonaut | 20 Jan 14:00:00 | 1030,2 | 2811,3 | 6,3 | 27 Jan 09:55:24 | 24d 19h 55m 24s | 27 Jan 09:55:24 | 24d 19h 55m 24s | 020° 05.838S, 024° 51.822W |
| 10 | Sterna | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 1071,1 | 2580,1 | 5,8 | 28 Jan 06:17:35 | 25d 16h 17m 35s | 28 Jan 06:17:35 | 25d 16h 17m 35s | 021° 51.060S, 023° 47.346W |
| 11 | Faros | 20 Jan 14:01:02 | 1326,3 | 2315,6 | 3,0 | 07 Feb 19:53:39 | 36d 5h 53m 39s | 07 Feb 19:53:39 | 36d 5h 53m 39s | 019° 52.812S, 019° 32.160W |
| 12 | Felix | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 1355,9 | 2319,0 | 5,9 | 30 Jan 05:26:55 | 27d 15h 26m 55s | 30 Jan 05:26:55 | 27d 15h 26m 55s | 021° 26.364S, 018° 41.682W |
| 13 | Nyamazela | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 1356,1 | 2302,8 | 4,6 | 01 Feb 23:45:35 | 30d 9h 45m 35s | 01 Feb 23:45:35 | 30d 9h 45m 35s | 020° 34.668S, 018° 50.688W |
| DHL Me2Me | 20 Jan 12:52:51 | 2149,1 | 2070,4 | 0,0 | 20 Jan 17:14:07 | RETIRED – Retired from the race, heading to St Helena. | 015° 55.432S, 005° 43.430W | |||
| Tarini | 20 Jan 14:00:35 | 2149,0 | 1792,3 | 0,0 | 20 Jan 17:14:07 | RETIRED – Skipper retired 08/01 | 015° 55.494S, 005° 43.500W | |||
| The Impossible Machine | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 2148,9 | 1889,0 | 0,0 | 20 Jan 17:14:07 | RETIRED – 09/01 – skipper retired vessel | 015° 55.548S, 005° 43.554W |
IRC
| Pos | Name | Rating | Last update | DTF (NM) | Distance Sailed (NM) | VMG Recent (Knots) | Estimated finish time (SAST) | Elapsed time | Estimated finish time (SAST) corrected | Elapsed time corrected | Latest Position |
| 1 | Atalanta | 1,007 | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 603,1 | 3031,6 | 5,1 | 25 Jan 13:08:39 | 22d 23h 8m 39s | 25 Jan 17:00:08 | 23d 3h 0m 8s | 020° 49.152S, 032° 29.454W |
| 2 | Ray of Light | 1,118 | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 656,6 | 3164,3 | 6,3 | 24 Jan 21:31:34 | 22d 7h 31m 34s | 27 Jan 12:43:05 | 24d 22h 43m 5s | 020° 59.994S, 031° 27.798W |
| 3 | Alexforbes ArchAngel | 0,997 | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 1011,2 | 2634,1 | 5,7 | 27 Jan 22:35:10 | 25d 8h 35m 10s | 27 Jan 20:45:37 | 25d 6h 45m 37s | 021° 14.088S, 024° 58.224W |
| 4 | Audaz II | 1,126 | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 683,3 | 2990,5 | 6,4 | 25 Jan 00:52:23 | 22d 10h 52m 23s | 27 Jan 20:46:16 | 25d 6h 46m 16s | 020° 45.083S, 031° 02.220W |
| 5 | Felix | 0,932 | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 1355,9 | 2319,0 | 5,9 | 30 Jan 05:26:55 | 27d 15h 26m 55s | 28 Jan 08:20:03 | 25d 18h 20m 3s | 021° 26.364S, 018° 41.682W |
| 6 | Translated 9 | 1,134 | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 771,8 | 2855,0 | 6,7 | 25 Jan 09:46:44 | 22d 19h 46m 44s | 28 Jan 11:10:53 | 25d 21h 10m 53s | 020° 54.576S, 029° 22.842W |
| 7 | Nemesis | 1,081 | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 948,8 | 2819,2 | 6,6 | 26 Jan 14:19:52 | 24d 0h 19m 52s | 28 Jan 13:00:50 | 25d 23h 0m 50s | 020° 54.366S, 026° 09.810W |
| 8 | Argonaut | 1,055 | 20 Jan 14:00:00 | 1030,2 | 2811,3 | 6,3 | 27 Jan 09:55:24 | 24d 19h 55m 24s | 28 Jan 18:41:57 | 26d 4h 41m 57s | 020° 05.838S, 024° 51.822W |
| 9 | Sterna | 1,071 | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 1071,1 | 2580,1 | 5,8 | 28 Jan 06:17:35 | 25d 16h 17m 35s | 30 Jan 02:03:00 | 27d 12h 3m 0s | 021° 51.060S, 023° 47.346W |
| 10 | Nyamazela | 0,948 | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 1356,1 | 2302,8 | 4,6 | 01 Feb 23:45:35 | 30d 9h 45m 35s | 31 Jan 09:48:44 | 28d 19h 48m 44s | 020° 34.668S, 018° 50.688W |
MOCRA
| Pos | Name | Rating | Last update | DTF (NM) | Distance Sailed (NM) | VMG Recent (Knots) | Estimated finish time (SAST) | Elapsed time | Estimated finish time (SAST) corrected | Elapsed time corrected | Latest Position |
| 1 | Norhi | 1,136 | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 158,5 | 3641,5 | 9,1 | 21 Jan 07:25:18 | 18d 17h 25m 18s | 23 Jan 20:32:35 | 21d 6h 32m 35s | 022° 54.594S, 040° 12.426W |
| 2 | Aventureiro 4 | 1,178 | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 350,5 | 3244,8 | 6,0 | 23 Jan 00:13:28 | 20d 10h 13m 28s | 26 Jan 15:29:04 | 24d 1h 29m 4s | 022° 31.524S, 036° 45.564W |
ORC
| Pos | Name | Rating | Last update | DTF (NM) | Distance Sailed (NM) | VMG Recent (Knots) | Estimated finish time (SAST) | Elapsed time | Estimated finish time (SAST) corrected | Elapsed time corrected | Latest Position |
| 1 | Atalanta | 1,107 | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 603,1 | 3031,6 | 5,1 | 25 Jan 13:08:39 | 22d 23h 8m 39s | 27 Jan 23:50:28 | 25d 9h 50m 28s | 020° 49.152S, 032° 29.454W |
| 2 | Alexforbes ArchAngel | 1,063 | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 1011,2 | 2634,1 | 5,7 | 27 Jan 22:35:10 | 25d 8h 35m 10s | 29 Jan 12:59:16 | 26d 22h 59m 16s | 021° 14.088S, 024° 58.224W |
| 3 | Ray of Light | 1,211 | 20 Jan 14:00:05 | 656,6 | 3164,3 | 6,3 | 24 Jan 21:31:34 | 22d 7h 31m 34s | 29 Jan 14:28:07 | 27d 0h 28m 7s | 020° 59.994S, 031° 27.798W |
| 4 | Felix | 1,012 | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 1355,9 | 2319,0 | 5,9 | 30 Jan 05:26:55 | 27d 15h 26m 55s | 30 Jan 13:36:33 | 27d 23h 36m 33s | 021° 26.364S, 018° 41.682W |
| 5 | Nemesis | 1,178 | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 948,8 | 2819,2 | 6,6 | 26 Jan 14:19:52 | 24d 0h 19m 52s | 30 Jan 20:55:05 | 28d 6h 55m 5s | 020° 54.366S, 026° 09.810W |
| 6 | Argonaut | 1,152 | 20 Jan 14:00:00 | 1030,2 | 2811,3 | 6,3 | 27 Jan 09:55:24 | 24d 19h 55m 24s | 31 Jan 04:30:13 | 28d 14h 30m 13s | 020° 05.838S, 024° 51.822W |
| 7 | Sterna | 1,172 | 20 Jan 14:00:04 | 1071,1 | 2580,1 | 5,8 | 28 Jan 06:17:35 | 25d 16h 17m 35s | 01 Feb 16:10:20 | 30d 2h 10m 20s | 021° 51.060S, 023° 47.346W |
| 8 | Nyamazela | 1,012 | 20 Jan 14:00:06 | 1356,1 | 2302,8 | 4,6 | 01 Feb 23:45:35 | 30d 9h 45m 35s | 02 Feb 08:17:52 | 30d 18h 17m 52s | 020° 34.668S, 018° 50.688W |
| 9 | Faros | 1,043 | 20 Jan 14:01:02 | 1326,3 | 2315,6 | 3,0 | 07 Feb 19:53:39 | 36d 5h 53m 39s | 09 Feb 08:57:06 | 37d 18h 57m 6s | 019° 52.812S, 019° 32.160W |
