Panerai Transat Classique - Day 8

Bowling along

At the midway point already, the competitors of the Panerai Transat Classique 2015 have been clocking up averages to make your head spin and could cross the finishing line as early as 19 January. Morale aboard is high despite the frequent squalls.

Six days and one hour! That's how long it's taken Altair to reach the midway point of this edition of the Panerai Transat Classique. Today's world is moving ever faster, and classic yachts aren't bucking the trend. To cover the first 1,400 nautical miles of the race, Altair logged an average speed of 9.6 knots, and when you take into account that, to do this, she sailed a total of 1,600 nautical miles, her true average speed was a whopping 11.03 knots. Phenomenal! In comparison White Dolphin, the Beltrami design that went on to win the previous edition of the Panerai Transat Classique in 2012, clocked up a respectable 7.28 knots. And all the participating crews agree: this race is a fast one. Very fast! One man who is very happy about the way proceedings are unfolding is Loïc Blanken, managing director—and founder—of the Panerai Transat Classique: "Sure, the yachts are bigger than those of the two previous editions and the winds are particularly favourable. But every sailor should note that these boats from the 1920s and 1930s really are capable of astonishing performances in an transatlantic race. Olin Stephens and William Fife were obsessed about speed... and they're proving it even today."

Finishing Monday?

Halfway across the pond already, Altair's ETA (estimated time of arrival) is some time between the evening of 18 January and, more probably, during the following day. In the coming days the wind is expected to veer slightly from the northeast to east-north-east while the sea state will remain problematic. For the yachts this means they will have to work hard to keep on track, gybe regularly to optimize their trajectories and keep their crews and equipment safe and, more significantly, sail further. Race manager François Séruzier makes it crystal clear: "A depression is moving in from the northwest and could upset the trade winds, reducing their power during the final 500 miles of the race. As things stand today, we are unable to say with certainty whether this will affect part or all of the fleet. For the moment the competitors are sailing in a lively trade wind punctuated by numerous squalls. Oilskins are undoubtedly in fashion aboard and the crews will have to wait to get their shorts and tee-shirts out."

Waiting for the sun

The rough conditions are undoubtedly to blame for the brevity of the messages sent in from the ships, especially the smaller ones, and the few lines received at race HQ are full of typing errors, a fact which conjures up images of sailor Jack trying to master his keyboard as it slides across the chart table. Brief news, indeed, but nonetheless good news. Of course, the forecast is a favourite topic, in particular the much hoped for—and soon to be here—warm weather, as is the race itself. Let's hear from Gweneven: "Averages are good and today's weather is truly dull with a fickle wind of 19 to 32 knots and numerous squalls. [...] We're sailing under a poled-out genoa for the night, to keep things safe, and are waiting for a suitable sea to send up the kite." Meanwhile Corto is sailing like mad to make up for lost time: "Concerning sailing matters, we've got the kite up and are making great strides, between 8 and 13 knots. Not bad for our refurbished Corto. We've also seen our first flying fish of the trip, a good indication that the West Indies Arc is getting closer." Morale is high aboard Faïaoahé, as she continues to follow her extremely northern track, despite the uncomfortable conditions: "We've been taking in and shaking out reefs all day. Some of the crew have had a good soaking while others managed their watches better... Lots of squalls along the way. Not much sunshine. Sea rough but not excessively so. And we still haven't seen a single cargo ship, sailboat or whale."

Whales and worries

Sighting some sea-going fauna is always an exciting moment when out on the ocean and some of the other vessels in the race have had more luck than Faïaoahé. For example, Gweneven spotted a 30 foot whale barely a yard from her bow and Adventuress was quick to wax lyrical about another chance meeting out on the ocean: "Oh yes! And there were whales. Big ones. Swimming alongside our leaping Fife dragon, just off our port bow, jumping, putting on a show and reminding us, during these days of fierce racing, to be thankful that life can be so pleasurable." A gentle message in such rough weather. But the focus soon returned to racing. News has been coming in, in dribs and drabs, of minor issues aboard several of the yachts. For a start, The Blue Peter has been having engine trouble, her source of power, and her watermaker has been playing up. Desiderata got her sheets in a twist, Faïaoahé seems to have lost her spinnaker pole, Gweneven managed to put her sails aback, and the sewing needles and carpentry tools are out on Argyll...

Outcome of the race is far from decided

Altair might seem way out in front but nothing at sea is ever certain, and behind her the other contestants are battling it out. Who's going to take second place in real time: Adventuress or Amazon? Who's going to earn a place on the podium in corrected time? There's not much between Gweneven and Corto, or Vagabundo II and Argyll (the latter having recently trounced The Blue Peter), barely three short nautical miles! And not forgetting Faïaoahé who's hoping to surprise everybody with her northerly route and Desiderata who's gradually closing in on the most direct track. Aeolus has certainly been fickle these last few days and there's no reason why the god of the winds shouldn't upset the applecart some more.

Quotes:

Julia Neustein, Desiderata
"The crew of Desiderata have adopted the philosophy of the poem by Max Ehrmann that she was named after.

From the initial frantic start to the race in Lanzarote, we decided to use the opening lines, "Go placidly amid the noise and haste, and remember what peace there may be in silence. Avoid loud and aggressive persons, they area vexations to the spirit." The strategy worked well, as we were the last to cross the Lanzarote Trophy line!

However our spirits were not dashed, and the first day's placing rewarded our hard work with a move up the leader board to fifth place.

"If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain and bitter; for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself." Tactics and weather routing are playing a key role in the race, so far our team have been making excellent decisions, going our own way, and making hull speed most of the time, in the right direction!

"Enjoy your achievements as well as your plans." These words ring true in our ears. With the challenging sea conditions, not all the plans have been possible due to some breakages. However the ingenuity and skill of the crew have overcome these and we continue to make great progress.

"Many persons strive for high ideals; and everywhere life is full of heroism." In lauding our first mate who climbed up the furling gear to sort the foresail sheets, and climbed along the boom to fix a wayward batten.

"Many fears are born of fatigue and loneliness." Definitely not on our boat! With a flexible watch system and an amazing sense of fun, moral is high and very optimistic."

Jeremiah Bailey, Adventuress"This is a gentle race of bloody knuckles, squinted eyes, burning muscles, and fatigued minds. It's a focused, raucous, giddy life-elixir of spirit-raising camaraderie, mettle-testing, and throttle-back, inhale-deeply, exhale-to-smile, and love the life well-lived challenges. Down time is oh so rare, and our ship's library of piratical authors like Joey Conrad and Willy Shakespeare and Tommy Robbins lies largely untouched. No rest for the weary. We push and push for our big days, hoisting canvas and piling on the mileage, ever wary of striking sails for squalls in the attempt to efficiently demand all that Adventuress can give us. Which, turns out, is a lot.

[...] We think of our family and friends shore-side, especially those that couldn't join us on this little trip. Team Blackbeard is one player short. The stars and constellations and their history-evoking magical names remain lost mysteries without our Greek professor. Movie making with Leo D. is cool and all, but we're here without the Dean of Dance. Our fishing lines lie dormant without the coaxing drawl of our deep south coffee roaster. And without our head navigator and mentor on this crossing there's a sextant gathering dust, roasted meats don't taste quite as rich, the comforting smell of pipe tobacco doesn't linger in the doghouse, and we are left to remind each other to keep his motto in our hearts, "Do the right thing"."

Bruno Jourdren, Corto
"Ahoy, landlubbers. Aboard Corto everything is going well. We've got into the rhythm of the watches, taking turns at the helm, resting, cooking and doing the washing up! At the moment it's Hugues at the wheel, Maxime is holding the antenna we're using to communicate with you, and Hacène is rustling up something to eat this evening, apparently 'veal in a fancy sauce' for the main dish, and a fine wine in the shape of a Prieuré de Saint-Jean de Bébian. For those who swear by 'vinotherapy', it's a 2001 vintage Languedoc, no less! Malik is reading a book, something called The Old Man Who Read Love Stories. Sounds gripping. As for our doyen, also known as Jean Claude, he's reading The Brothers Karamazov. For the literary deficient like me, it's one of Dostoyevsky's masterpieces. As for me, I'm writing these few lines for you. At every change of watch, we all swap roles, almost all anyway. [...] Write to you soon from Corto."

Oren Nataf, Gweneven
"The sea is a dangerous place... We've stowed our heavy spinnaker because the sea went a bit mad with crossing waves, and steering a rolling boat in pitch darkness can be perilous. We got taken aback yesterday. You must be cautious and not get complacent... Even big Gildas had trouble holding the wheel. Averages are still good and today's weather is truly dull with a fickle wind of 19 to 32 knots and numerous squalls. Earlier in the day a thirty-foot whale brushed past our bow, barely a metre away. We're sailing under a poled-out genoa for the night, to keep things safe, and are waiting for a suitable sea to send up the kite. Love to you all."

Jérôme de Mallmann, The Blue Peter
"Yesterday finished well with a delicious birthday dinner for Jacques and a magnificent sunset. We succeeded in mending the engine's timing belt, and have got power once again. However the watermaker has decided that the sea is too salty and has stopped filling the water tank. We'll have to make do with our stock of bottled water. We're nearing the halfway mark, nearly 3,000 kilometres from both the Canaries and the Caribbean. The African coast will soon be further from us than the American one. The full moon that accompanied us on our first few nights at sea has gone and left in her place an immense starry canopy which observes us from high, a little speck in the universe, a tiny dot in the middle of the ocean. We've only encountered two ships in the entire week. We feel like we're alone in the world. This huge mass of constantly-moving water is lending us some of its strength and, with the help of a favourable wind, is pushing us westwards."

Rémy Gérin, Faïaoahé
"[...] Sextant training all morning, after having put the clocks back an hour for the second time. Some on board are finding it difficult. But in general the crew is making progress under the ship's only submariner [Ed: Admiral Yves Lagane commanded submarines in the Atlantic], and we're not far off our estimated position. [...] Unfortunately we've been unable to make southing, the wind having veered slightly, leaving us too far north, but we're giving it all we've got all the same... And we must admit, it had to come out sooner or later, we've been sailing without a pole since the second day of the race. For a downwind race, it's completely daft. So we've been trying all sort of solutions, tying stuff to the end of the boom, barber-haulers all over the place, blocks hanging off improbable lines. A veritable contest of mad inventors, each trying to find the best solution for sailing at more than 140 degrees from a following wind in a unpredictable sea.[...] Thanks for your various message and your thoughts on the state of the world, it keeps us occupied in the cockpit. Tonight it's cottage pie made with duck. A runaway success (and a big first for Faïaoahé). Pleasant night all. All the best. 10/F77, happy to be at sea, but also a bit sad being so far from you, especially in the circumstances."

www.paneraitransatclassique.com