Friday, 26 June 2009

New York (1)

posted by Bart at 15:22

Here a short message to say that, after a week of partying, we have left Newport, bound for New York. We is in this case Jurrien, Minke and me. We are sailing on the Atlantic side of Long Island, so that we hope to make a spectacular approach into the Big Apple. It is going slowly, though, with a gentle SW wind of 8 to 12 knots to beat into.

The day before we left I bought some fishing gear; a line and two lures, and sure enough, last night we dined on fresh tuna! Never before did I catch anything, although I did try some fishing in the past.

New, early morning local time, we can see it raining over Long Island while further out at sea the sky is cloudless. I think we are going to sail a little bit further off shore...

Bart

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Thursday, 18 June 2009

Finish

posted by Bart at 23:27

Here are the last pictures taken during the race. I will post all pictures on the 'photo' section of this web site soon.


The red light is Castle Rock Lighthouse, marking the finish line. On the lower pic you see me storming towards it at about two knots, and 1,7 knots of tide against... The top picture is the race comittee boat that welcomed me.
I would like to thank you all for your interest, which was really overwhelming. I will continue to post messages on this site in the course of the summer, especially when I am on the way back.

Thanks!
Bart

Finish!!!

posted by Bart at 07:43

Last night was the toughest night of the whole race! At 9 in the evening (local time) I called the race committee that I was at that moment about 9 miles from the finish. And I told them that, ten minutes before, I was going at 6.5 knots but at the time of my call was only doing about 4, so wasn't sure when I would be there.

Shortly after my call the wind died completely. For hours on end, with the lights of Newport in the distance, I fiddled with all the sails I had, trying to get nearer. JanKees Lampe was determined to see me in and he was on the stand by in the yachtclub, waiting for my call. For hour after hour I fought, sometimes doing, we w1 knot, sometimes less. At two in the morning I called JanKees to tell him that I was still a long way off, and completely becalmed. By that time had had spend so much time in the yachtclub bar that I don't think he was in a fit state to see me in... he and Marten Holden, race officer, went to bed in La Promesse.

At that time I was floating around with not a breath of wind and I thought of just taking the sails down (the slamming against the mast is most nerve wrecking) and take a nap. But, coming outside, I noticed that we still had some steerage way so I just couldn't give up. Shortly afterwards the spinaker, which had been hanging down the mast like some wet laundry, seemed to be pressed against the mast. Sure enough, a slight zephyr of wind came from the opposite direction. So down the spi and up the jib, and the last 5 miles were a dead beat into Naraganset bay, where the finish was. Very, very slowly I made my day up the head of the bay. While I was going in, the tide stared to turn out and it was only with the utmost effort that I managed to cross the line! I came in at 0.3 knots. Roberto Westerman, anotehr competitor in Spinning Wheel, an open 40, came in under similar circumstances and the tide was too strong; he anchored for 5 hours just off the finish line! By creeping very close (somw 25 meters) from the rocks I managed to avoid the worst current and made it.

I made it!!! I crossed the line at 08.34.45UTC this morning, 17-06-2009.

At the finish line the committee boat not only had Marten and JanKees (with a large bottle of champagne), but also Barry Hurly and Hannah White. Hannah also did the ostar in 2005 and, like me, had to give up. So we both had some unfinished business and I am really pleased to see that she did exceedingly well!

I was given a tow to the Newport Yachtclub and moored up against Vijaya. On hearing me, Huib Swets and his girlfriend Anna came out and we enjoyed a champagne breakfast at something like 5 in the morning local time. When town life started, we went out to have a proper breakfast in one of the cafe's here in town. It felt great, sitting there.

The rest of the day were spend cleaning up a bit, drying sails, having a shower and a nap. I was woken up by JanKees to call me to come for dinner and so we just had dinner of a large steak and salad. Delicious!

Tomorrow I will try to do some more cleaning and washing and be generally more accustomed to a shore life again.


Bart

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Wednesday, 17 June 2009

Finished!! (posted by Jurrien)

posted by Bart at 22:38

Bart has finished, finally, after a very slow last 20 miles...
He is currently celebrating so he clearly has his priorities elsewhere :-)

As I know from close experience how addictive this whole blog-thing has become after more than three weeks I will do a short update.

This morning he phoned me, very happy, from the finishline where he was met by JanKees Lampe, Hannah White and Barry Hurley and ofcourse the race-office team, represented by Martin and Jean Holden. I heard there was champagne, a lot of big hugs and very broad smiles. A pity I couldn't be there as well...
I will meet him next saturday and I can tell you, I am looking forward to that!!!
It was a close call to come in third on corrected time as there was virtually no wind and the tide started running out allready...

Bart will no doubt further update you after he showered, slept, shared experiences and stories with the other competitors. They must have a lot to talk about!

I copied below part from the Ostar site:

BART SORTS UNFINISHED BUSINESS

With a flat sea, clear sky and just a hint from the east that dawn may be approaching, De Franschman crept over the finish line at 0434 EDT this morning. Bart Boosman had fulfilled his dream. He was in Newport RI. Bart had crossed the Atlantic and finished the OSTAR 2009.
A broad grin spread over the Dutchman's face; his unfinished business was sorted.

In 2005 Bart's hopes for the OSTAR were dashed. After years of planning and preparation, disaster struck on the seventh day of racing. His shroud was broken, his mast unsafe, a gale was approaching; he had to abandon the race. A heartbreaking moment and all the more so; in those early hours of the morning, when the disaster struck, Bart was leading his class.

OSTAR 2009 has not been without its moments for Bart. The loss of his fore hatch cover was perhaps the greatest threat this time but the ever resourceful engineer fought back. Bart ripped up his floor boards to make an effective repair which saw him through to Newport (see picture)

Tuesday, 16 June 2009

No Man's Land

posted by Bart at 23:02

After I crossed the Nantucket Shoals it became a glorious day! Cloudless sky, fresh wind and a completely flat sea, in the lee of the islands. And the boat roaring on at hull speed, a steady 7.5 knots. No Man's Land, the last obstacle before Brenton Reef (the entrance to Newport, and the finish line), is only 3 miles away. But now, early evening local time, the inevitable happens: the wind dies out again... And so goes my speed. But, even if we get completely becalmed tonight, Jurrien calculated that, to win from Dick on handicap, I have to finish within 20 hours and 8 minutes from him. That is before noon tomorrow. Now, with a mere 30 miles to go, that should be possible!

KEEP GOING!!!


Bart

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Giving it all

posted by Bart at 18:55

Jager has finished, well done!

But now it remains to me to finish in time to still beat him on handicap. In an ultimate effort to safe some distance I sailed right over the infamous Nantucket shoals. Having studied the charts, tidal information and the weather, I decided to enter the shoals at 4107N. There was only very little swell (otherwise I wouldn't have dared...), but the wind increased to some 12 to 14 knots, making me finally go fast again!

It's quite a nerve wrecking exercise! These shoals are covered by rather impressive tide rips, whirlpools and breaking waves in odd directions (like on a mountain river). Going into that water, under full main and code 0, at 7,5 to 8 knots, and watching the water depth going as you enter the breaking water. 20m, 20, 20, 20, 18, 15, 10, 8, 6, 4, 3,5, 3,5, (oeff!), 4, 8, 12, 16, 22, 22, ... And that was it, only maybe 30 seconds, but leaving me with wet hands and sweat on my forehead! But it safes at least an hour, more if the wind drops. There were three of those banks, a few miles apart, and all were exciting!

Now I am sailing quite close past Nantucket Island, and bound for an island called Noman's Land at 35 miles to go. The wind has increased to about 18 knots and I can just carry the code 0, going flat out! After that, it's straight to the finish!!! Another 60 miles to go, Newport, here we come! (and wind, please stay...)

Bart

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Finish

posted by Bart at 12:16

Now the race is going to be over quite soon. Katie finished this morning (well done!), Huib, Marco and Uwe will finish in the next few hours. Dick Koopmans still has some 40 miles to go. Once he is finished, my clock starts counting. My handicap is lighter than his, so to beat him on handicap I have to be in within something like 18 hours behind him. If only there is wind, we should be able to manage!

Newport, here we come!

Bart

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Monday, 15 June 2009

Another day down the drain...

posted by Bart at 22:11

Although technically speaking not becalmed, as there has been enough wind to keep the spinaker up and move the boat along at 3 or 4 miles, it certainly felt like it. I am supposed to be racing, and it is so annoying to go so slowly for such a long time.

Anyway, as we speak the wind is on the increase again, now around 10 knots. This makes me go along at 6 knots, and actually makes the boat heel a bit and feel lively, which is quite a relief! Let's only hope this wind lasts...

Bart

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current

posted by Bart at 15:07

The good news is that, while I was doing this radio work, all of a sudden a large, orange, float came past at a distance of some 10 meters. Surprising, but good to see that I still have a substantial current from behind!

Bart

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Oh.... Not again...

posted by Bart at 14:44

In the course of this morning the wind decreased... yet again... to under 10 knots. At the moment it's only 6 knots. It's clear that, at least for now, I am not able to keep up my 6 knot average.

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Marco's hole

posted by Bart at 12:33

Yesterday I was stuck, almost becalmed, in exactly the same place as Marco lost a whole day ruining his chances for a class win (although it ain't over till the fat lady sings...). These calms drive you mad, and there is so little you can do about it once you're in. Maybe we should leave a note on the chart to other sailors to warn them?

Anyhow, late last night, some wind came up. It's amazing how something as ordinary as a little wind can change one's mood! I started calculating (always on the optimistic side...), I only had to average 6 knots to finish before midnight tuesday... I found a New England radio station which had rock/folk songs a bit in the style of The Pogues, and it was fun. I ended this crazy mood by playing ever more rough songs ending with 'A whole lotta Rosy' and the like, and leaving me without a voice.

So there we were, going again. But not for long... At 0200 the wind had died again to some 7 or 8 knots. All night we did quite well, considering the wind, which gradually came back to some 12 or 13 knots, and left us doing 7 odd knots.

Early this morning I was alarmed by my Watchman, that some other vessel was in the neighborhood. Indeed, I could hear it's fog signals! Luckily the AIS caught her signal, and a large vessel passed behind in the fog at a distance of a mile. A the same time, another vessel passed on the other side, but at a somewhat larger distance. It is a strange and scary experience, to hear those fog horns but not seeing anything. And it is surprising how accurate you can estimate where the vessel is.

Now I am sailing over Georges Bank, which is a bank to the West of Massachusetts and the East flank of it incidentally also marks the border between Canada and the United States of America. I'm in the USA now! The water on Georges Bank used to be full of Cod, and full of fishing vessels. But they finished the cod, and although I can hear fishermen on the VHF, so far I haven't seen many.

JanKees Lampe, from La Promesse, told me that a consequence of the extermination of the cod in this whole area is that there is an abundance of lobster, as cod mainly feed on young lobsters. The price for lobster has subsequently plummeted and JanKees has promised the local community to help solve the problem by having me eat so many that the balance would be restored! I can't wait!

Bart

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Sunday, 14 June 2009

Oefff

posted by Bart at 23:03

And still no wind to speak of...
All day, the wind has been less then 5 knots, mostly dead behind. From dead ahead would have been worse, but otherwise these continuing calms almost make you long for a 30 knot beat! In a gale, you are at least going anywhere! All day we had no more than rippled patches in an oily sea, with a lazy swell to occasionally slam the sails against the mast.

I've had enough of this! If there only was some wind, I could finish this race within two days. But in this, I've got no idea!

Testing conditions, mentally.

My last resort tonight was another culinary extravagancy...

Bart

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calms

posted by Bart at 18:16

These calms and sunny weather have one big advantage: they persuaded me in giving myself a thorough wash, head to toe. I now feel much cleaner and more civilized. And Jurrien, I hope you're not too disappointed... I looked so well after myself the past three weeks, that I didn't loose much weight...

Bart

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And here we go, again...

posted by Bart at 14:37

Again, becalmed...

After a night in which I slept like a log (because I forgot to set the Screaming Meanie to wake me up) and the boat sailed rather slowly 25 degrees off course, the result is not too bad. I expected the others to have flown past me, leaving me in the calms. Fortunately, the 0800Z position reports showed that the others were becalmed, too. I, for once, was still sailing at 4 knots at that time. Not any more; the wind has died to 2 or 3 knots, from dead behind. Half an hour ago it suddenly became misty. So, anticipating a wind from the south, I jibed. Having done so, the mist disappeared... And all the while, the grib files promise the best of weather!!

Last night I was followed by a group of about 15 whales. They were (difficult to estimate) between 4 and 7 meters long, pitch black, with a blunt nose, and otherwise behaving like dolphins. Only a bit more sedately, with the occasional tale above the water but no jumps etc. This morning I had a whole group of dolphins around the boat. At least 25 of them, and, as we were going so slowly, they were very close to the boat. So close that, with me hanging over the side at the bow (I had just replaced the code 0 for the spinaker, so was on the foredeck anyway), I could occasionally touch one. This group was quite lively, played with each other and some jumped clear out of the water.

And in the mean time, while writing this, the sails keep on slamming against the mast... Wind, wind, wind...

Bart

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400 miles to go...

posted by Bart at 00:36

Another 400 miles to go. Last night was terrible: light variable winds on the nose, a bumpy sea, rain and thick fog. Everything wet. This fog is a result of warm air coming from the southwest over the gulf stream, not so far away from here. But since the water is colder here, mist develops. Fortunately, around noon this morning the wind veered to northwest and then to north. Now with the wind not over the gulf stream any more, the mist cleared quickly. The rain stayed on for a wile, not nice. But this new wind enabled me to first put on the code 0, and later, when the wind veered further, the spinaker. And here we go now, at full speed planing up to 10 knots, trying to keep up with Jager (Dick Koopmans). He has gained some 10 miles overnight, but not much since we're under spinaker again. Huib Swets has also passed me, as was to be expected. But on handicap I am still ahead of both. Best of all, it looks like we keep this fine wind for at least another day!

Bart

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Saturday, 13 June 2009

02/42446110

posted by Bart at 14:25

Can somebody please switch on the ventilator???

The wind is in the process of veering from SW to NE, but it goes so terribly slowly...

Bart

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Friday, 12 June 2009

Nova Scotia

posted by Bart at 16:49

My current longitude is 58 degrees 30 minutes. This means that I am now on the chart of Nova Scotia, and have officially passed Newfoundland. Another step made! We will firstly pass Sable Island at a distance of about 60 miles, where after is another piece of open water. At the end of that is a large bank, Georges Bank, which is very shallow. Just behind that are the Nantucket Shoals, and then Newport! All on the same chart!

I will have to be very careful with all these shoals, considering my reputation with sandbanks. But they also provide an opportunity to safe distance to the finish. Georges bank can be passed both to the North and to the South. Nantucket is very shallow and you can easily run aground without even having land in sight. But finding an optimal route between them might save dozens of miles. So worth of careful study! (Now that I have come so close, I don't want to blow it by running aground a few miles before the finish!)

Bart

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Beam reach

posted by Bart at 14:57

During the last 24 hour I have made good to the finish a distance of 164 miles. Now, considering that I have not been sailing in a straight line to the finish, I have actually made, over the ground, a distance of 168 miles, not bad! And, best of all, the distance between me and both other Dutch competitors has remained the same, although Jager is 15% larger than De Franschman, and Vijaya even 25%. De Franschman likes beam reaches, as we had the last 24 hours!

Now we are preparing for a night's fighting against a southwester. I am determined not to lose much ground on Jager, but Dick clearly also.

Very interesting to see is the fight between British Beagle and Tamarind; Marco has to finish about 15 hours ahead of Mervyn to beat him on handicap, and he is sailing his sox off! But don't underestimate Mervyn, he's tough and shrewd... They're neck to neck for the last few days.

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Thursday, 11 June 2009

Laundry

posted by Bart at 23:38

Take the laundry inside before the rain sets in...

Well, just put a reef in the main. We are now not planing as wildly as before, but still going at over 7 knots. Not bad!

Bart

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Hanging out the laundry; part 2

posted by Bart at 23:05

Now it's getting evening here, and the wind is building a little. I took down the code 0 (without much problems, fortunately, as getting this wildly flogging sail down in too much wind can be troublesome) and replaced it by the light high aspect. Wise? I don't know, but we are still flying along and, while typing this, I think it's high time to put in a reef in the main. So, I guess I'll go back outside as there's nobody else to do this.

Bart

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Hanging out the laundry (quoting JanKees Lampe)

posted by Bart at 19:55

Today is a glorious day! After this dreadful start and me feeling knackered, the clouds have almost gone and it is decidedly warmer than a few days days ago! Ever since last night I was flying the spinaker, until the wind increased so much that I had to take it down. This presented no problems, but after that I felt like becalmed again I couldn't stand that! So I went to set the code 0, but while doing so the boat suddenly started to plane under main sail alone, in 20 knots of wind. Bad idea. So, instead of the Code 0 hoisted the light High Aspect jib, and we were under way again, well under control, but only making about 6 knots. I didn't want to waste this perfect weather, so gave the code 0 another try. And now, we are flying again at 7 or 8 knots, still nicely in control and making a lot of ground. It pays to work your way down the sail wardrobe, rather then settle with something small...

Bart

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02/43535430

posted by Bart at 14:19

Oefff. Just had a terrible night. No wind at all for some 6 hours! Sails slamming against the mast and no speed whatsoever. And all that while, according to the position reports, Dick Koopmans at about 120 miles to the south, was romping along at good speed. Now he's got a 40 mile lead...
Feeling very tired, have been trimming the spinaker most of the night. Perhaps a big brunch will help, and some sleep? Forecast for today/tomorrow is very good, so we should be able to get a few steps closer to Newport.

Bart

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Wednesday, 10 June 2009

52.38W

posted by Bart at 19:48

We have just reached the longitude of 52 degrees 38 minutes West, the longitude of Cape Spear, the Easternmost point of Newfoundland. Although the land is about 150 miles to the north of my position, it really feels now as if I have reached the American continent.

The wind has just veered a little to north by east, and is expected to veer all round to southeast overnight. Anticipating this, I have just put up the beautiful Wartsila Code 0, and we are romping along at about 7 knots. When preparing this sail change, I noticed a whole bunch of dolphins playing at the bows. There were at least 20 of them, and they shot from port to starboard and back, surfing down the waves. I was obviously not going fast enough for them. I hope the photographs taken show them well, it's always difficult to take pics of dolphins.

Dick Koopmans seems to have found his gears back and is gradually moving ahead of me. Well, it felt nice to have been ahead of him at this stage of the race. I hope I can beat him on handicap, but that will be a hard one... But I will try!

Bart

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Grand Banks

posted by Bart at 14:16

It seemed that the Grand Bank rather see me leaving than coming; Yesterday morning it took hours to cover the last few miles to reach the Banks, but once over it, the swell died out and a stiff northerly wind came up. I've been sailing absolutely flat out since, and now am almost on the western edge of the banks, where the water depth goes up again from some dozen meters to over 4 kilometer.

It's still cold here, about 6 degrees, but no fog thanks to the northerly wind. Inside the cabin it's warm and dry (at last!), thanks to my brilliant Aladdin paraffin lamp, which has been burning since we came out of the gale the day before yesterday (feels like 3 weeks ago). It makes such a difference, when it's so comfortable inside!

Now I am very pleased to see that JanKees Lampe, on La Promesse, is about to finish tomorrow. He'll have the record! And I was also pleased to see, this morning, that both other Dutch competitors are behind me when measured in 'distance to finish'. Both are supposed to be much faster, and it really motivates me to give it all. I doubt, however, how long this situation will last as I expect both, but especially Dick Koopmans, to accelerate over the next few days. I still have 890 miles to go, still a long way!

Bart

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Tuesday, 9 June 2009

Land ahoy!

posted by Bart at 23:21

Today, the 15th day of the race, land is suddenly very close by. In fact, it was just 36 meters away, down below that is! We are now on the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. The water is very cold, 5 degrees, but thanks to a northwesterly wind, visibility is quite good. I am also in what is supposed to be the last section in which to expect ice. According to the latest ice chart, this area (which is 60 by 35 miles large), should have 9 ice bergs or growlers in it. Because the weather is relatively good, I kept a good lookout for this ice and probably would even have made a detour to it just to make some photographs. No ice seen... After a period of calms (again...), the wind veered to the northwest, enabling a direct course to the next waypoint, Sable Island. This is, however, still some 400 miles away.

Today I also felt like cooking, so I just finished my supper which consisted of penne, with a sauce of sundried tomatos and Sicilian anjovis (a gift from Minke), in a little passata. This finished with very old cheese (made at De Franschman, Bergen, Holland) and freshly ground black pepper. It left little to be desired for, although a good bottle of wine... But I'll save the drinking for Newport.

Bart

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Monday, 8 June 2009

A day of contrasts

posted by Bart at 23:20

It would be hard to imagine a day at sea with greater contrasts. Only 14 hours ago I was planing down huge waves with my stom jib only; now we are close hauled in only 5 knots of breeze. Early morning saw fierce rain, all afternoon has been absolutely cloudless. What was most fearsome of last nights gale was not so much the wind, it was the waves. They came from all over the place, all breaking. There was a high swell from a southwesterly direction, maybe some 4 meters high, then there was swell from a southeasterly direction (from 'my' wind, before the front came through). And then there was 40 to 50 knots of wind from the north, rapidly creating it's own wave pattern. The resultant mix was truly impressive. There was no moon, it was pitch dark. And all the crests lighted as if they were being put in a spotlight from underneath. Most beautiful, and at the same time, fearsome, was a big wave from the southwest breaking. The crest would be blown right back over the top of the wave. And if you were unlucky enough to sail right on top of a wave from the southwest, and it broke, the whole crest would be blown over the boat from behind. Truly spectacular, but it also makes you feel very, very humble. And, as time went by, ever more proud of my little boat, who handled it so well.

All along during the day the wind moderated, as did the waves. And now we are sailing with the light weather sails up, trying not to get becalmed in this cell of high pressure.

We shall see what happens next...

Bart

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Alife and kicking

posted by Bart at 12:42

We seem to have survived this first ostar gale! Shortly after midnight, the wind veered to north, and within 20 minutes reached 40 knots. Then the wind slowly increased to a screaming level, with a top at 52 knots, and a few hours where it didn't come below 45. This was accompanied by a very confused sea, every crest of which broke and tossed De Franschman about, sometimes completely submerging her. As usual during trying conditions, the boat behaved exemplary! All I had to do hold on tight inside the cabin (hermetically closed) and fear for icebergs. There was no way I could have seen anything more then a boat length away. The sea was white all round, and so high that the crests of surrounding waves blocked all view. The barometer went from 77.6 to 75.3 and back to 76.8 (cm Hg), all in a few hours!

And now the wind will drop until almost nothing, as a result of a small ridge of high pressure. So we must not waste time and go make more sail, as the wind at the moment is 'only' a force 7.

Bart

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Sunday, 7 June 2009

Hang on!

posted by Bart at 19:33

Since early this morning the wind has been building. At around 1600UTC it was blowing sustained over 40 knots, with driving rain and poor visibility. At the time we were planing wildly down the ever increasing waves, at speeds more in double digits than below that. The autopilot, that steers superbly (!!!!), was getting a handful of these wild rides and so I thought it better to switch over to storm sail. I took the main sail down completely, and tied it securely to the boom. Then I hoisted the storm jib, which I had prepared early this morning. So that was just a matter of undoing 1 seizing and pull up the halyard. Well, having done this, and gotten washed in the process, the ride has been remarkably more smooth, with only every now and then a large breaker over the boat. And now, it seems as we are approaching the center of the low. The barometer, that has fallen like a stone since early morning, has remained constant over the last hour, and the wind is back to below 30 knots. It now feels like being becalmed (again!!). And indeed, Huib Swets has been becalmed for 4 hours today, being in the very centre of the depression. According to the grib files, the depression should pass close to my south, sometime late tonight. After that, a very strong northerly wind will come up.

I was informed that JBelino has seen a large iceberg, but he didn't give a position. Let's try not to find it! (Here's another benefit of not going so fast: it give's you some time to react in case of ice. And I'd rather hit something at 5 knots that at 12!) Looks like we're going to have a long, tough night!

But right now, the wind has dropped even more to below 20 knots, and a fog has taken all visibility away. The waves are still quite high, and breaking in all directions. Shall I put up more sail? Or wait till tonight for this strong northerly?

Bart

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02/45194321

posted by Bart at 14:41

Rather rough out here: gale force winds and driving rain. No sun. So far so good.
I am on the lookout for ice, seen nothing yet.

Bart

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Gale

posted by Bart at 12:30

The going is rough, at the moment. A real nasty gale is about to pass at close rage. Fortunately, it looks if I manage to pass 'over the top' of the depression. At the moment, I am having Southeasterly winds of about 30 knots, and I am roaring along under triple reefed main sail only. The storm jib is stand-by, ready to hoist, in case it needs to. This Southeasterly wind is expected to increase some more, hopefully not far above 40 knots, and then, as the front passes, to violently veer to the North. This will probably be late tonight. With this northerly wind, I will try to get to the south, at least to below the 45N, in order to avoid most of the ice still present on the Grand Banks.

Newport is still a long way off, so I try not to take any risks.

Bart

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Saturday, 6 June 2009

Here we go again

posted by Bart at 21:34

Here we go, again. Becalmed.
However we had a beautiful day's sailing. We even had a fotoshoot with Banjaard, who came real close. Conditions couldn't have been better: we were broad-reaching in 20/22 knots of wind, well reefed down, and in a shower of spray. Cloudless skies and deep blue ocean completed the scene. After the shoot we continued to be close together, a little too close, for comfort. And now, there is a third boat in sight! I wonder who it is... Elmarlene? She's done really well.

This calm spell is a transient zone between the northerlies after yesterday's little depression, and the southeasterlies from the next. This next depression is a nasty one, with winds up to 35 knots. However, we might just, just, sail around the top of it, by staying at 45 degrees North. At least it's worth a try! I rather sail downwind then upwind! Even when there is a slight risk of ice later, once we get near the Grand Banks. I will surely study the ice charts!

Let's hope that this southeasterly comes soon, I get nerveous of this hanging about and going nowhere!

Bart

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Ship ahoy!!

posted by Bart at 13:12

Last night I gave in a little too soon an was lazy at setting sail when that was appropriate. When the wind finally came last night, it seemed to keep coming and building until it was blowing a near gale! I had not expected that, and after flying some time behind my light weather jib I thought it best to take that sail down. When I finished that, it was blowing consistently over 30 knots, so I also took in two reefs in the main. The wind, that started out as Southeasterly, backed all round to north, so I gybed and continued my Southwesterly course and had a nap. Indeed, with this sail the boat was so nicely balanced and comfortable, that I slept (in batches) most of the night and morning, even though I had noticed that it had stopped raining and was actually quite sunny. And I was still doing 5 to 6 knots in the right direction. But when the wind finally went down a little, there was no excuse any more not to go outside and make sail.

Having removed the light weather jib from the foredeck, I set the heavy HA jib, and felt quite pleased with myself. And had a look around it this beautiful weather. And then I saw a sailing boat, at only 2 miles away! It was a boat a bit larger then mine, going in the same direction. It must be Banjaard, who apparently had not suffered from the calms that hold me down yesterday! We had a chat, (it was Banjaard!) and he explained that he had problems with his iridium which made it difficult for him to make his reports.

I seems that I have lost a lot of ground the last two days, which really annoys me! But there is another 1000 miles to go and I hope I can gain some on him again. Having another boat in sight certainly is motivating!

Bart

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Friday, 5 June 2009

(no subject)

posted by Bart at 17:00

En als ik dan niet ziek wordt van de wilde zee, dan maar van een zak Engelse drop... Er moet toch iets te lijden zijn!

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02/46353853

posted by Bart at 17:00

Wind, wind, wind...

Up to yesterday my grib files promised me a full 12 hours of northwesterly wind of about 15 knots, and I had tried to position myself so as to make full advantage of this wind. What a deception, when this wind lasted only two or three hours, and then backing west/southwest and decreasing to almost nothing. So here I am, floating around in W/SW wind of around 5 knots, doing a mere 1 or two knots and not even in the right direction. And the worst of all is, that it really pays to sail actively rather then lying in your bunk reading a book! So I am sitting outside, in the sun, most of the time, feeling bored. And to make things even more exciting, the latest grib files show another two days of this very light weather, followed by a gale...

Who was it that said that sailing is an exercise in patience?

Bart

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Wind!

posted by Bart at 12:10

Last night we had yet another beautiful, cloudless night. Unfortunately there was also no wind. It looks like Marco and Mervyn are escaping me... I think yesterday was my worst day so far as I did only, as the crow flies, some 90 miles!

I really hope there will be some wind soon, as a depression with gale force winds is waiting for us sunday/monday. I had hoped to have passed the tip of the grand banks by then, so that I would have some space in open sea, without ice (!), to face this weather. But after last night I seem to be running out of time.

Bart

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Thursday, 4 June 2009

Wind again!

posted by Bart at 22:20

After a long, long day with very little wind, we have finally found a zone of fresh northwesterly winds. These are ideal conditions to bring us to the grand banks. Apparently there is still quite a lot of ice and at the moment I think I will sail all around it rather then go look for it. Life on board has been quite pleasant, and now that the boat is well heeled over again, all sort of things fall back into their place (or on the ground, for that matter). Surprising to see that only a few days of light winds relax the need to, at all times, have everything securely seafastened. One of the casualties is the tea pot, which now bears it's war marks. I also almost lost the towing generator. Two nights ago (when we were going at full speed), I suddenly heard a 'new', different noise. Luckily I remembered it, and rushed outside, to find the towing line of the generator entangled in one of the rudders, and well on it's way to cut itself free. I was just in time to get it, and make a new eye in the line after I cut off the damaged part. It's getting short now, I think I will need a new line in Newport.

All this slow going is bad for morale, and it's good to see that I am not the only one to suffer: Marco and Mervyn are also slowed down.

Bart

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02/47233702

posted by Bart at 16:36

This morning has been terrible, again. No wind to speak of and what there was, was dead on the nose. From early morning until half past 11 I only made good a dozen or so miles. Then, a light southerly wind came up and I tried to make the most of it by hoisting the Wartsila Code 0. Even with this sail, speed didn't rise above 3 knots but at least we were on the move again! All in all it was so tiring a morning that I just overslept myself and missed our daily hf chatt session. I hope the other guys are not too worried about my not reporting.

Bart

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half way?

posted by Bart at 11:22

Last night I crossed the meridian of 36 west. To most people that wouldn't mean much, for me, however, it
means that I am on the other side of the chart. From now on I am not longer getting ever further from England, but closing in on America.

Last night was terrible, with a very unstable wind of directions between west and southwest, and in strength varying between 8 and 22 knots. Not much progress made.

Bart

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Wednesday, 3 June 2009

02/47523452

posted by Bart at 19:15

Sorry for being late; short wave propagation from where I am now is such that communications work best in the early mornings and evenings. Besides, the station of choice (8kHz from Belgium), is out of order until further notice due to a lightning stroke.

For my position today it doesn't really matter if a send it now or in a few hours; we are becalmed. It started to peter out this morning, when I set the code 0 for a few hours. Around noon it was a flat calm, no wind at all, and sails flapping against the rigging. Ultimately, at around 1600 UTC, a very slight breeze came up from the west. I guess from now on we will have to do what ostar is supposed to be: an upwind race. Very gradually the swell dies out as well, and currently we are sailing close hauled with full main and the light HA jib, doing about 1 knot in a west-northwesterly direction. As for my position in the fleet, I can only hope that the others have the same kind of weather and are also not making any gro-chat, und. Mervyn, at the daily hf chat-session, confessed that he, too, had been becalmed all morning. And to make things worse, the weather forecast shows light winds from westerly directions for the next couple of days. We will see.

Apart from the frustration of going nowhere, life on board is not too bad. A copious breakfast of fried eggs, beans and sausages is followed by lunch, and I am already thinking on what to cook for supper. Now that conditions allow, I might as well cook proper meals.

Bart

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Tuesday, 2 June 2009

Spi

posted by Bart at 21:11

Today started slow, with little wind and a short, fierce sea running, causing the sails to slam violently against the mast. But during the morning, the sea calmed down a bit and a north-northeasterly breeze enabled me to put up the spinaker and broad-reach most of the day under a clear blue sky, until about an hour ago, when the wind shifted to NNW. So now I am sailing under full sail, sheets eased off a little, in a grey mist. It's the first time we're in mist, and I had not expected it until about 40 west.

Grand Banks 750 miles to the West; here we come!

Bart

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02/48113107

posted by Bart at 15:52

Blue sky, moderate wind and flying the big spinaker... Life could be worse!

Bart

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Blogstar vs Franschman.nl

posted by Bart at 11:49

So far I have only posted updates on my own web site, www.franschman.nl, but from now on I will copy all to blogstar as well. For those of you who haven't, please look at www.franschman.nl for all my previous messages.

Well, things have settled down a bit, here on board. As some of you may not know yet, during the first night of the race, my whole fore deck hatch was torn off while I was working in the fore deck. A sheet or halyard must have been caught under the hatch and when a big sea came over, all I heard was a load bang and I found myself with a 4 sq feet hole in the foreward part of the boat. And a big sea breaking over it every ten seconds. So I immediately slowed the boat down as much as I could, to prevent too much water entering the boat, wrapped a sail over it, and at first light started to make an emergency hatch cover out of one of my floorboards. This took a couple of hours, also for sikaflex to cure, and ;in total I think I lost about half a day racing. Inside the boat everything was (and mostly still is...) wet. All my cloths, my vegetables, tools, etc. So at the first calm day, 3 or 4 days ago, I tried to dry out as much as possible. But once salt, things don't dry very well. I think this bloody hatch cost me about half a day racing.

Anyhow, after a week's sailing, we've all made considerable progress, thanks to a small but rather fierce depression to our south. I also broke the boat's best day's run, by a huge margin, to bring it to 200 miles in 24 hours. And also the best surf ever: just before dark 2 days ago, sailing on top of a large breaking wave, like a surfer, for what seemed to be indefinitely, at a speed of 14.6 knots. Autopilot steering, me inside watching in awe.

But now the strong wind has gone, and we are likely to get some days of light wind. We shall see.

And one last thought: yesterday we've been crossing the mid Atlantic ridge, and from now on we are sailing over the North American tectonic plate. Not that you can see any difference from here, but it does make feel that we are well underway to Newport.

Bart

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Monday, 1 June 2009

02/48562730

posted by Bart at 14:29

All well.
Bart

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To chicken or not to chicken

posted by Bart at 14:29

Although I am only too well aware of the necessity to make as many 'easy' miles with this following wind as possible, I shall also be careful not to break anything; Newport is still a long way of and I'm not even half way.

When I intended to end yesterday's mad dash across the Atlantic, by reefing the jib and removing the pole, things did not go as planned. Within minutes after I made mentioned sail changes, the win piped up to a full 30 to 35 knots, gusting to 39, and I was again planing down the waves like a madman. Just before dark I'd had enough. I was standing in the cabin, looking out of the windows and studying the sea, when a big breaking sea developed alongside. As the crest broke, with the boat on top, we flew with it. I think that the boat must have been out of the water almost from the mast, as the bow wave, if you can still call it that, started at the cabin windows where I was watching. The plane seemed to last indefinitely, and speed rose to 14.6 knots. Surprisingly, all seemed to be in perfect control. Autopilot steering a nice straight course without too much effort. And there I stood, nailed to the ground, admiring the boat's performance and at the same time fearing for the worst. Ultimately, the wave won and we slid down the back of it and reduces speed back to the 'normal' 9 or 10. That did it for me, and I went outside and took away the jib completely. From then on we were going at a 'mere' 6.5 to 7.5 knots, only occasionally surfing up to 10.

All night we sailed like this, rather comfortable and still making good progress, although loosing what I had regained on Tamarind and Banjaard. All night and early morning the weather has been terrible, with an average wind of 32 knots and fierce rain. But now, at 11.30 UTC, the sun makes a careful appearance and the wind seems to the steadily just under 30 knots. So I think I will put up a headsail soon. According to the latest grib files, we will have one more day of 30 knot NEerlies. After that we will get some light wind and, as it looks now, a long feared SWer. So make as many miles as you can, now!!

Bart

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