Skilled sailing journalist Stuart Streuli reports from the race course, where the living is easy, but the winds and the VMG aren't quite what was predicted. And there's an important birthday.
For the crew of Peter Noonan's Swan 56 Defiance, in the Cruiser Division. the 50th Bermuda Race hasn't been what we expected. I suspect this is true across much of the fleet racing to the Onion Patch.
Before I get into the details, however, I have to wish my daughter Hanalei a very happy eighth birthday. I hate to miss those milestones, but it's equally as hard to pass up opportunities to do this great race. Hopefully she won't hold it against me. Her connection to the Bermuda Race goes back nearly to her birth. Eight years ago, after our two-day stay in Newport Hospital's Maternity Ward, we took our first-born daughter, cuddled in her brand new baby bucket, to watch the start of the 2008 Newport Bermuda Race. We didn't know what we didn't know about raising a child and figured that the lawn of Castle Hill was a good as place as any to start figuring it out. If you see a tall, blonde second-grader running around Fort Adams North Lawn today, please wish her a happy birthday. I miss you honey (and you mom and sister, too). Hopefully we'll get to do this race together some day.
Back to my current situation. The sea breeze at the start wasn't a surprise. But the fact that the breeze clocked to the west instead of backing to the east was. Instead of a building easterly that would've pushed into the Gulf Stream by now, we've been sailing in a light and spotty westerly since late last evening and are still 100 miles or so from the Stream.
We put the Code Zero up at midnight and when the breeze is over 7 knots and left of 280 degrees, we can make good time down the track. When it's not we have struggled to find an angle and speed that will make significant VMG toward the finish line.
Plenty of sleep. . . and some frustrations
Aside from the breeze, the weather couldn't be nicer and life onboard Defiance is about a pleasant as could be expected. This is my fourth Bermuda Race, but the first in the Cruising Division. With just one jib and one spinnaker onboard and powered winches to trim them, it's fairly easy sailing. Watches require just two or three people and there's been plenty of time to sleep.
I can't remember feeling this refreshed during any of my previous three races. When you add in my wife's home cooking, it has most of the comforts of home, minus the broadband internet and can't say I'm missing that right now.
Of course no amount of sleep is going to matter if we don't get some breeze soon. At some point the jokes and fruit will lose their freshness, my socks will start to stink and everyone will start to wonder about hotel and plane reservations. But for now, all is well. We'll check back in later.
