Friday to Saturday 24hr run: 156NM, or avg speed 6.5kts The Triple Lindy gang has been very busy trying out any combination of sails and wind angles to keep moving. In the early hours Saturday we still couldn’t find any appreciable breeze until 0500, when winds gradually filled in a little from ENE. During the mid-morning hours we were making the best speed for the day, until winds died around 1300.
Newport Bermuda 2014 is underway! We departed Newport Shipyard at 1100 this am, checked in with Race Committee, and proceeded down Narragansett Bay to the starting area. The crowds of boats (led, of course, by Triple Lindy’s cheering section onboard Scott Perrin’s “Scott Free”) were all interested in how the fleet would handle the light and variable winds at starting line. Our crew of 10 has been excited to get moving down the course.
19 June: we have all crew aboard for 2014 Newport Bermuda Race and are busy doing tacking drills off Brenton Reef (s of Newport) and instrument calibration.
Out on the water now getting the new electronics to match reality. At the moment we are living in an alternative reality (apparently).
With Patrick’s arrival at the Goslings party last night, the team is finally assembled. A day on the water to run through the safety list was accomplished, including fitting the emergency rudder – an engineering feat in flat water, so not sure how that would work in reality. Lot’s of chores today, and the plan is for several hours on the water getting the rig tuned for the race and the electronics calibrated. The idea (mine anyway) is to get back to watch England thrash Uraguay in the world cup, but maybe both are wishful thinking.
Your foredeck reporter.