My thoughts this morning that we hadn’t to get too excited that Visit Malta Puma had closed the gap significantly on Cheeki Rafiki has fallen on deaf ears, as they actually have!! Puma is now just 12.5 miles behind them and gaining every hour – absolutely fantastic. Philippe’s tactic of staying inshore and sailing the shortest route rather than going offshore and trying to get more breeze has certainly worked, well done that boy!!  We know they have been trimming hard and working out the optimum angles so they know when they should tack or stand on. Tactics across the Irish Sea certainly will play a huge part in the final standings, as it can still be all won, or lost, out there.

Playing Around Logic has decided to head further south than Encore and British Soldier and at the moment although they have not gained any mileage by doing this, they may tactically have gained a huge advantage, it is all down to what the weather does now. Has Peter managed to find some data that makes him think he will be better off where he is, or has he decided to try and do something different and take a risk? Well, we shall find out tomorrow….keep everything crossed!

British Soldier has gained some 6 miles on Encore today which is not good news, as we need Encore to stay ahead of them, but we also know that Playing Around Logic are still in the hunt and will not give up yet, and have British Soldier as a target they want to get.  We also know Encore have been sailing fantastically well, so we are counting on them to continue. For Puma to win the RORC Annual points championships overall in class, British Soldier can only beat them if they finish at least 3 places above them on this race. If Playing Around can get ahead of them on handicap again, then Puma is fine, if not, then Puma have to overhaul Cheeki…..it is sooo exciting I can hardly now watch the tracker every hour, as it is changing so much. I actually think it is more stressful watching from the computer than it is actually out there sailing!

Keep the message coming in!!

Dinner tonight on the yachts is Sweet and Sour chicken on Playing Around and Lamb Hotpot and mash on Puma……yum yum!

Firstly, I must start this piece by way of an apology. In a previous blog a little typo crept in whilst being bounced up and down on the waves, and "..the boys of British Soldier" accidentally got shortened to something less complementary. As we know you are reading this, guys (& girls?), no offence intended - sorry. We are aware that many of you have served time in Afghanistan recently.

We've made a dive south here in the Celtic Sea, looking for the favourable S shift. Have we gone far enough or too far? time will tell.

Meanwhile, these bumpy upwind conditions are far from pleasant, living at 45degrees. We expect now to be on Stbd tack for at least 18hrs and the heads (nautical term for toilet) only works on Port tack much to the consternation of the ladies aboard. Last night felt cold again, though we know this is largely due to the apparant wind being so high as we sail upwind.

  Last night the wind rose to 25kts and as we left the Irish coast the waves started to build. Nothing spectacular, but coming over the coachroof giving everyone a good drenching, Those nice fresh socks (last

pair) went on yesterday afternoon are now sopping wet. Well, bliss for a couple of hours. One or 2 crew members had visions of Sula Sugheir returning, but fortunately it turned out to be nothing of the sort.

Every time we switch on the engine to charge batteries and make water, schools of dolphins come over. Whilst we are maybe 60miles from the nearest land, the sea is full of life and warm. Last night we got an amazing halo around the moon (can any of you tell us what it was?) and a full night's sky of stars. Simply a stunning place to be.

As the wind rises and falls a little in strength, we put in/shake out reefs, change between #2 and #4 headsails. At night the crew work tirelessly with the Atlantic high pressure hose on full power in their faces, pulling up/down sails, flaking them neatly (i've been told it was neat when it went in the bag) before flaking out themselves in the lee-cloths on top of one another for a few hours kip.

And the cabin staff? Chateau Briandt with a fine Claret was on the menu, sadly they couldn't find it in the provisions (where did it go?) so we settled for boil in the bag. An excellent compromise. Some just had shortbread and cold snacks...fresh from the bottom of the washing machine.

We're now down to the real long term food, as UHT milk has dried up

(literally) so cereal won't taste quite as great now.

Thanks for all the advice, esp on food and nutrition. We'll bear it in mind before we set off next time. The alarm stopped on the engine, but is back now, so definately salty water in the electrics somewhere. At least not a major problem.

Love from all on PA x

Blog From Lisa on Visit Malta Puma

Finally my turn.  It is quite a challenge to get access to this computer. Not because I am dying for typing – after all that is what we end up doing most of the time.  Being out of the need of any kind of electrical application was one of the reasons why I left the land in the first place.

Nine days – or is it ten, or twelve ? Does it really matter, I have hardly any idea. For now life is divided up in shifts, which put the days in a constant rhythm of trimming, sail changes, cooking, etc. All quite different from the normal way of life.

However, being asked to blog about life on board – I came up with this narrative - the race as a metaphor for life. Inspired by Mark Twain we would all agree “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you did not do, rather then the things you did, so throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbour, catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore, Dream, Discover. “Furthermore, elaborate on how challenges, whatever they might be and wherever they might occur should be overcome with power of determination. How the absence of opportunities are not to be an excuse for not making the best effort out of any given situation. Learn how to sail rather then blame the lack of the wind.  To have an open mind that enables you to see the beautiful things in life as they come along – a group of dolphins along the bow or a lonely seagull catching an eye on us from above. From his distance our problems on the boat of 38 feet must be seen as quite small in these huge waters. How interpersonal relationships should not be barriers for reaching the overall goal. And so I could go on and on and on….

Well I thought it what have been interesting to integrate these stories, challenges and opportunities from our sailing adventures to life happenings onshore. Enabling you to get a wider perspective of our motivation for concluding this race but also to learn from it. 

But rather other fascinating phenomenas popped up in my mind. I would properly come back to the subject – but rather than enforcing a story at this point I realized that I have come across the best opportunity ever to explore a fascinating subject – Machoism.  After all Skipper delivering his most accurate news, and Brian, who already shared his thoughts on some of the subject. So why not just add some extra flavours to those.

I can not come closer to empirical date than this, ocean racing with nine guys – an anthropology study in real time. What an opportunity!  My Professor would have been disappointed if I would have missed out a great opportunity of field studies by not taking the chance of this one. 

Macho has a loft of mystics into it. So at least for me to undress the subject quite a bit. It can not be more macho than this?  And is macho really needed to be a successful team? This may not be in favour in the macho-world, after all the mysterious atmosphere around the off shore racing maybe a well kept secret in the yachting world. (Sorry RORC).

I came to realise that macho comes in different forms. Without reviling too much of newly collected dated, I though a few observations maybe quite delightful to share at this point.

There is a constant pool of messages and love letters sent to the boat for all the longing girlfriends and wifes, back there somewhere secured in the harbour.  At some point I thought we where going to the moon and being gone forever.  One of the team members can not possible sleep without his favourite pillow, that he obviously took onboard – though we are obligated to carry as little weight as possible, I was not even aloud to bring my own soap!!  Or all those sing-along-songs that is requested from the crew, once Skipper has had his briefings.

Romantic letters and poetry being transmitted over oceans with not respect for the cost of sending it. Or the time effort for that matter either.  Teddy bears that being hugged by when the longings for the dear once getting too much. This all come served with the home baked bread straight from the oven. Hugs and frequently love affection if a part of the game – getting us closer as a team and obviously in the long run – to perform better. There are urgent calls for hugs when someone is down in the dump - as they phrase it.  Obviously I have made it very clear that I may serve fruit but the hugging they clearly have to handle themselves. And for sure they do – quite frequently.

All this mixed with a tough, straightforward attitude to life, where risks and uncertainties are not an issue. Rather posing an opportunity to the challenge of finding solutions.  And when we are under pressure from the outside world - they stick together and give a helping hand. 

If this is macho – I think I may quite like it.

On the final note, yes indeed we are all different characters with different interest and views of life. But we have one common interest that we deeply share – the love for the ocean and more specifically ocean racing. Additionally, we are all having the deepest appreciation for our Skipper that every day (and night) continue to push us forward to perform better as a team, coming up with all kind of solutions for finding ways to get around problems.  But foremost, the gratitude for introducing me and so many others to ocean racing. I would not have missed out on that. And either should you!. 

Thanks for all greetings and salutations!  We will be back soon.

Another exciting night as Visit Malta Puma has gained tremendous ground on Cheeki Rafiki, the next yacht ahead in Class 1. However, although the tracker states at the moment that Puma is only 14 miles behind them now, it is a little relative to the direction which each yacht is pointing. With Cheeki having gone further west over night, she has now dramatically come East and is on a non-making tack at the moment, meaning she is pointing away from the finish, so the tracker thinks she is not doing as well as she should be. But, it is obvious to see on the water that Puma’s tactic of staying inshore and sailing a more direct course has certainly paid dividends and she has finally extended that bungy link from Beluga and Winsome whom for most of yesterday could all see each other. News from Puma this morning is that conditions have started to get bumpy after they have rounded Tearaght Island, the most Westerly point of the race and are heading home across the Irish Sea now.  Distance to the finish is saying 425 miles but you can realistically add on another 25% as they will be tacking all the way to the Scilly Isles. We believe on the water Puma is around 25 miles behind Cheeki – all very much still to play for.

Meanwhile Playing Around Logic has put in another solid performance overnight and have stayed in touch with Encore, who again have been sailing exceptionally well. British Soldier have eaten up the deficit between them and Encore, and are now ahead of them on the water, for the first time in over 5 days now. Theoretically, British Soldier should be quicker on the water than Encore but now that all yachts are having to tack back and forth, it has become race of tactics rather than just straight line speed. After Iain’s stint on the helm of Playing Around yesterday afternoon, we wonder if Roger has been allowed back to his potions of helmsman or is having to swap roles and now become a bowman – not sure if this is really his speciality! Everyone is having a blast on board Playing Around, they are in good humour, good spirits, and are determined to keep British Soldier at bay and close that deficit between them and Encore.

News from the fleet is that our German friends Norddeutsche Vermogen Hamburg (we raced against them in the 2008 Madeira Race) will be the next to complete this gruelling event, they should cross the finish line by lunchtime today. Well done them!

The realisation has dawned today for both our teams that they have less than a Fastnet Race to go to the finish line, in terms of distance and time on the water. This puts everything into perspective for them, and has given them renewed energy.

We have heard 3 times today from Peter, Skipper of Playing Around. Perhaps he has run out of things to say to his crew, or maybe he is just so excited to be able to use his mobile phone again! Whatever the reason it is very plainly obvious that he, and his intrepid team are loving every single second of this race. They had a great night and made up some good mileage after been able to get some up to date weather data, and then the wind freed them off and they were making 8 knots of boat speed in 17 knots of breeze. This afternoon they had a reef in the main and the No 2 up, and the bowman, Iain, had been given the privilege of coming off the foredeck and having a go on the helm! Watch leader Roger was banished to the rail much to his chagrin! They all have been hanging on every hourly schedule coming from the Race HQ website and know that the race is going to go down to the wire. They are currently 32 miles behind Encore and have been taking a little mileage out of them all day bit by bit.

Meanwhile, Visit Malta Puma has been making steady progress today and are now back to less than 52 miles behind Cheeki Rafiki. They are having their own private battle all over again with Beluga, Winsome and Selene, whom they thought they had well and truly passed some days ago. The weather seems to have picked up a little and they actually now have breeze. Philippe has confirmed today that the weather has been superb, with sunshine and great visibility, although a little chilly. At least on this race Philippe remembered to take his foulies, boots and thermals – he very famously forgot these vital tools of his trade on an offshore race last year…..it was very funny!

Looking at the forecast, it is looking very likely that the yachts will have to beat through the Irish Sea/Western Approaches and most probably also the English Channel before heading up the Solent to the finish. If the wind direction stays the same this will mean that the yachts cannot sail a direct course and have to tack along the rhumb line, making their time to the finish a little longer than they would want.

ETA for the yachts at the moment is: Playing Around Saturday late afternoon, and Puma Sunday morning.

Keep those messages coming!!