Photos: L ©2008 Oskar Kihlborg/Ericsson Racing Team R ©2008 Ericsson Racing Team

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Tue, 22 Jul 2008 18:49:03 UTC

Aksel Magdahl, Nordic Crew

Sent – 1515h Tuesday 22nd July

We have had fantastic downwind sailing in the Bay of Biscay since last night – flat water and clear skies in light to moderate breeze through the night, then rapidly increasing breeze and sea state as we get closer to Cape Finisterre off NW Spain later today.

Right now I see the numbers on the speedometer next to me flying between 25 and 30 knots. The guys on deck will do more than 100 nautical miles in a 4-hour watch! Unfortunately these ideal conditions rarely last for long, so even though our 24-hr run will be good, we will be short of the record. In fact, I am expecting us to get becalmed in six hours, fighting our way through the vacuum behind a little low, to get started on the downwind sailing again.

As a navigator, it is nice to be offshore in stable conditions again, as the winds are much more predictable here and one can plan better ahead. One pretty much knows what sail changes are coming up over the next few hours, and can get them in at the watch changes when we have more guys on deck. So no more grumpiness from the guys for calling three sail changes during one watch, or short tacking through rain showers with variable winds and moving the stack (all the equipment, spare parts, food and sails) from side to side many times.

However, tonight we are into a potential stacking fest again as we work our way through the backside of the low pressure. Jens, the big Dane, is the "stacking boss" onboard and everyone is afraid of him. Now he is walking around telling everyone that I promised him that last night was the last time we restacked the boat for this trip. But he misunderstood – I said that it was the last time I participated in the stacking for this trip, and asked him if he was happy with that, which he was.

Skipper Anders is back on deck in fine shape, he just has to wear a helmet all the time to protect the stitching and bandage on his head. Everyone is wearing helmets now so he feels pretty normal.

As I am writing this report, we keep sailing faster and faster. The g-force when we ram into the wave in front of us is incredible. I am going to get a nap, but I see the guys struggling to stay in their bunks, they slide forwards in every wave.

Best from the Bay of Biscay

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