Hyde Sails poised to race across the Atlantic
by Hyde Sails 21 Sep 2009 22:15 BST
22 September 2009
The Clipper fleet is due to start its transatlantic leg from La Rochelle on Tuesday September 22 and Hyde's sails will be powering the fleet on its way to Rio de Janerio. On board Cape Breton Island, photographer and Y&Y picture editor, Tom Gruitt will be sharing his experience along the way as he completes his first transatlantic crossing - you can follow his progress at www.hydesails.com/clipper
Tom is looking to taking part in the first leg of the Clipper Round the World race and says: "Sailing across the Atlantic has always been a bit of a dream for me. My leg gives me the opportunity to sail the North and South Atlantic, and there is even an equator crossing in there too (must think of a gift for Neptune!).
"It will take roughly four weeks to get to Rio from La Rochelle, the longest I have been on a boat is about five days, the fact that I can't get off until I get there hasn't quite dawned on me yet, but I'm sure it will soon. I think the bit I'm most looking forward to is being on the boat as a photographer, the chance to capture stunning images as the action happens and send them back for the world to see really excites me.
"As we approach the last night in harbour until we reach Rio last minute changes and tidying up is going on aboard most of the boats. The atmosphere here seems jubilant, but there is also a sense of anticipation of what's to come. We're having our crew briefing this afternoon in which we will be organising the watches for the rest of this leg. It looks like I'm not going to be assigned to a specific watch, but will participate in both so that I can always be on hand with my camera to get the best shots, whether this will be easier than having just one watch, I'm not so sure!
"The weather forecast for the next few days, when we'll be sailing across the Bay of Biscay, is mainly light winds, increasing the further we sail out into the ocean, so it should be a fairly smooth ride for us all to get our sea legs on again! We leave the dock in La Rochelle at 0630hrs tomorrow for the race to start at 1000.
"The next report I will be sending will be at sea, let's hope I can remember how to use the computer on board!"
We'll follow the progress of Tom on board Cape Breton Island and Hyde's sails over the next four weeks as they cross the Atlantic, sign up to the blog at www.hydesails.com or go to www.hydesails.com/clipper