‘midst the grackles

Murphy1- The inventor of Murphy’s Law which states (in various ways) that if something can go wrong, it will. 2- Irish beer and the elements have just combined to deliver one of Those Moments. We have been climbing the latitudes to the NE to make a bit of space for the forthcoming blast but the wind backed to the point where I thought it necessary to gybeGybe - A sailing term for turning the boat so that the stern passes through the wind. Potentially dangerous if not controlled because the wind can fill an uncontrolled mainsail from the wrong side and crash it across the boat, possibly causing damage to the rig and anyone getting in the way.. Black, overcast night, faint glow from the horizon to the west. Haven't seen the stars or the moon for days – unremitting nightly gloom. Out into the cockpit, set it all up, remembered the checkstay just in time, tweaked KevvoStainless steel self steering device, built by Kevin Fleming, used on Berrimilla and countless others across and a nice gentle gybeGybe - A sailing term for turning the boat so that the stern passes through the wind. Potentially dangerous if not controlled because the wind can fill an uncontrolled mainsail from the wrong side and crash it across the boat, possibly causing damage to the rig and anyone getting in the way. later, start tidying it all up. All a bit delicate – main way out to port, boat rolling, preventer not yet sorted and tight so uncontrolled gybeGybe - A sailing term for turning the boat so that the stern passes through the wind. Potentially dangerous if not controlled because the wind can fill an uncontrolled mainsail from the wrong side and crash it across the boat, possibly causing damage to the rig and anyone getting in the way. back very much on the cards. Keep head down, get preventer on the cleat, then headlight in red, go forward to release and re-run starboard preventer. Bang headlight against the boom and, enter stage left Professor Murphy1- The inventor of Murphy’s Law which states (in various ways) that if something can go wrong, it will. 2- Irish beer, it goes out. Dead. Corpsed. An ex-parrot headlight. A moment of absolute blackness – brace, keep everything in place by feel and then the eyes adjust and still have reasonable night vision and yeeehaaa! phosphorescence all around, swirling coils in the wake aft but – a big slashing gap in the overcast and there in glorious glowing diamond cascades across the sky was the milky way. Almost as wondrous as my first aurora off Baffin Island.

Just had a message from GroupamaIn this context a massive trimaran attempting a round-the-world record for the Jules Verne Trophy. They overtook us twice – once before we reached Cape Town on their first attempt which they abandoned after damaging a hull. They preceded us into Cape Town and we visited them there. They sailed back to France and set off again and overtook us way to the south before we reached Hobart. More about Groupama here (Wikipedia) 3 – they will probably pass south of us on Feb 28th, as we close on Tasmania. Go guys!

And so we wait for the blast. A lot will depend on the actual wind direction when it arrives but I suspect there will be 24+ hours or so of bare polingExplanation here, trying not to go too fast and get sideways on a big wave.