Hauling the Mail on a Flat Reach - Balancing the House of Cards

I am finally experiencing the textbook reaching conditions these boats are built for. All of a sudden, the pain of working through and around the low pressure system for the first few days seems a sensible trade.  It was a painful baptism by fire but Le Pingouin (LP) and I are better for it.  We are forging a great bond, but more on that later. I don’t have all the answers yet to her full cadre of personal charms and challenges. I can tell you that this boat flat out “hauls the mail” on a flat reach and I have never soloed such a weapon. 

My Finot 50 (Tommy Hilfiger Freedom America) was a fantastic boat and deserved retirement as a movie star (Charlie St. Cloud), but this thing feels like wielding Excalibur.  Sometimes I have to just stop… and say there is something just not right about doing 22 knots in 20 knots of breeze on 60 foot monohull.

“Should I really go lie down right now?” 

“What would happen if we hit something right now?”

It is fantastic to experience and I although the fleet and I will share many videos from offshore, I still don’t feel like enough people have felt the raw exhilaration of such an experience. At least this was my feeling alone by myself on a beautiful full moonlit night.

BUT!!!!

All of the above comes with a counterpoint.   There is a scary backside.   These boats are incredibly powerful and seem barely manageable by one person, despite all of the sailing I have encountered alone at sea.  It does feel at times as if you are constantly balancing a house of cards; that when, and sometimes it will, come tumbling down; your race boat or life could well be over.

That kind of moment occurred on board LP the other night when my yet to be named, and super necessary, port autopilot lost power to the drive motor.  While I was lying down on the floor next to the nav station the boat steered through a gybe (steered through the wind from behind) which instantly left everything, including the powerful sail plan, swing keel and yours truly all on the wrong side of the boat.  It was a sudden and violent maneuver with the boat slammed to its side far enough that the sails lay flat against the sea. A fleeting moment passed quickly in the chaos as I feared hearing the crack of the carbon mast exploding, leaving the boat’s rig and my dreams of a circumnavigation to fold. I am familiar with this type of situation, and so are other solo ocean racing sailors, but it has never happened for me like it did on this boat.  In my dazed and nearly asleep state of mind on a dark, rainy night, the event was so violent that I initially thought my keel had snapped and the boat was going turtle. 

I was able to resolve the mess and slowly pick up my cards and build my house again. LP gave me a break by not letting anything break.   Now we have another bit of respect for each other.  Initially I thought the batteries had drained low enough that the hard working autopilot wasn’t being given enough to eat, but while moving along yesterday on the other autopilot, a thorough inspection revealed that a power wire to the drive motor had come loose and was only intermittently making contact.  Yes, I was the one who wired the pilots myself, so I felt pretty darn stupid upon this discovery.

All’s well that ends well. Excalibur is an incredible weapon but can easily cut both ways.  On a lighter note, let’s get back to the fun part; anybody have any mail they need delivered?

Best,

BVL and LP

Dog Fight on the Water

Do you remember in Top Gun when Viper (the old war veteran trainer at Top Gun) was dog fighting Maverick for the first time? After not being able to knock him out quickly, he says “damn this guy is good.”  Well, that is how I feel about Gutek.  He has played the right side of the course perfectly and I was trying to cover both sides as long as possible. He got out on me.  I am putting all I have left to get over there in time to stay in touch with him.  I have been through every sail change known to man the last couple of days, including night gybes of the Spinnaker. I try to reserve this maneuver for very special occasions as it is a big sail and having something go wrong could spell hours of clean up or worse.

My shout out of this blog is to Samson Rope.  I was sitting here last night with every ounce of sail this huge rig can muster. I stopped to think to myself “wow what a mess it would be if that little rope for the tack line on the kite parted.”  I don’t know what to do to fix that mess. It didn’t and as usual the rest of the Samson ropes on the boat are taking the punishment with a smile.

Thanks for checking in,
Brad

It Ain't Easy To Get Used To Things

Update 19 October 0600

I'm still a bit under the weather, haven't been able to get any sleep just yet.  The weather's very tricky, plenty of big holes in the breeze, and lots of work; reefing and unreefing and changing the big front sails.

Ironically, one of my super eco-friendly hydrogenerators - the tools that will allow me to sail around the world without burning fossil fuels - caught a plastic trash bag and needed some repairs to the system that holds it down.  But we're good for the moment with a temp fix.

It is definitely a bit strange, getting back in the groove after so long away from solo racing, but lots of work aboard keeps my mind off shore side life, and things will settle in soon.  Looking forward to being more at home out here!

Love to all of you guys, thanks for checking in.

Best,

-Brad


[photos from Luiz Kahl; www.intercreate.com]

Truckin' To Finisterre

After a few minutes in second place just after the start of the VELUX5OCEANS race in La Rochelle, France, Brad overhauled the leading boat and was over the horizon within a few short hours.  Luiz, Nitro, JC, and Wazzle followed on a RIB and we'll have some pictures up shortly.

Brad extended his lead overnight, running with full sail downwind in beautiful autumn conditions.  As of 2000 CET/1400 EST Le Pingouin leads Operon by 16 miles, and continues to sail faster than his competition. 

You can see the fleet's progress at the official VELUX5OCEANS tracker here, and check back later for Brad's own update and the photos of the start.  Also check out Sailing Anarchy's story "Gone, Daddy, Gone" for links to the farewell ceremony on the dock and video coverage of the start.  VELUX has a great movie up as well.  Thanks for all the interest!


-Meaghan Van Liew

Good Morning Start

Sunday, October 17

The build up to this morning has been amazing. Velux and the Clipper Ventures have really developed such an incredible experience, not only for the skippers and crew, but for the entire public. The docks are lined. Family, friends, fans and thousands of others have rallied for this special day. I want to thank all of the individuals and sponsors who have helped get here. It is nice to have family here. My father is on the docks, along with his cousin from Annapolis. It will be hard to say goodbye to Meg and the kids. I am eager to see how the “42 year old version” of this race works.

The weather looks good. The first 500 miles will be focused on getting through safely. Cape Finisterre is heavy with fishing and other commercial traffic. The Bay of Biscay can of course be one of the most treacherous places on Earth, but right now it looks as if we may have pleasant North to Northeasterlies and 15-20 knots. Not bad considering the beating the bay has delivered in the past.

I look forward to getting offshore and sharing the journey with you!

Au revoir,
Brad

24 Hours to the Start

Saturday, October 16

Le Pingouin is looking good and the “keys” have officially been passed from my incredible shore based team to me. We’ve cleared all pre-race inspections and met the criteria for the start. The scrutineering is a rather involved process. The sails were all checked in with race officials and to comply with the stability test we had to move the keel back and forth to verify that it does not cause the boat to heel beyond the allowed limit. The displacement of the boat was also confirmed by measuring freeboard.

Today was filled with the last activities in prep for the start on Sunday. This included shopping for fresh provisions to accompany my staple diet of AlpineAire dehydrated meals and Grawnola. I’ve packed some fresh fruits, bread, and sausage which will be nice treats for the first week offshore. Other than the shopping I put my head around the lifestyle onboard for the race, so we cleaned the boat, took any unnecessary weight off, added sleeping bags and double checked utility items like flashlights. It is somewhat of a “pre-launch” sequence to make sure I am ready to roll tomorrow. The tiniest detail can in fact throw you for a loop. In 2002 I forgot a hairbrush and spent 40 days forking my hair.

Every racer has their own way of preparing for the adjustment from life on land to the solo racing lifestyle onboard. My fellow competitor Chris from England has already started torturing himself a bit with sleep deprivation and the transition to sleeping in small bits. My philosophy is more like jumping into a cold pool. I’m not very good at doing things slowly, so I go straight from a pretty standard schedule on land to the intensity of 25 minute naps and a total of about 4 hours sleep in each 24 hour period. The first 24-48 hours is tough and I won’t sleep. I tend to knock myself into exhaustion mode in those first couple days at sea. The first 5 days at sea tends to feel like 1/3 of the journey. The next 5 days feels like another 1/3. From there on out the pain has a nice settling affect and I hit my groove. This is all of course based on my past experience of solo races around the world in 1998/99 and 2002/3 and ocean crossings before and after those epic events. We’ll have to see if the VELUX 5 OCEANS of 2010-11 changes those patterns.

I’ll be sending one more blog as a Sunday treat, and then it is on the boat and on my way to Cape Town. Thanks for checking in and please do continue, as the stories will get more interesting as the race begins!

Brad

Competition Strong and Talent Runs Deep

The competition in this race will be as intense as anything I have faced before. Some have asked me about the number of entries and suggested that fewer boats might equal less intense competition. Not so. The racers that are here in La Rochelle appear 100% committed and the talent runs deep.

Here’s a quick look at the competition I face:

Derek Hatfield cannot be underestimated as a serious threat, sailing a boat that has previously beaten my Le Pingouin on many occasions. During the 2002-3 Around Alone, Derek’s boat (then sailed by Thierry Dubois) smoked Le Pingouin (then sailed by Simone Bianchetti) in every leg of the race. Derek is a man on a mission in his third solo race around the world. He is determined to have a successful voyage following a valiant sail in the Vendee Globe that ended exactly half way around with damage to his rig.

Gutek Gutkowski from Poland is determined. He is a strapping strong guy with experience. He ran the ORMA 60 Bonduelle and also served as Watch Captain onboard WARTA-POLPHARMA in The Race, the non-stop race around the world for multihulls. He appears totally determined and would be the first Polish sailor to race solo around the world. He also has a hefty load of inshore racing experience, a strong team on land and a new sponsor.

Chris Stanmore-Major will be an interesting challenge. He is super focused and intense. Having just finished captaining one of the Clipper Round the World boats, his skin’s still wet and his oillies (foul weather gear to those in the US) still smell. That can be an advantage, having been in the offshore mindset so recently for a complete circumnavigation. He is confident and has a strong look of intent, which reminds me a bit of me when I took on my first solo race around in 1998-99. Chris is no underdog though, sailing the champion boat Giovanni Soldini won the race with in 1999.

Christophe Bullens may have been the best prepared of all entries, until the devastating loss of his rig and sails on his way to the start. He completed his qualifying sail before anyone else, and seemed to have ample time training with his boat. With no time to repair the boat he intended to sail, he is faced with looking at other ECO-60 boats end how race-ready they might be. The guy was a tank Commander in the military for eight years and sails 10,000 miles per year, so his boat maybe a wild card, but he appears ready to race. I hope he finds a race boat that he is comfortable and confident racing.

So there you have it. My brief and personal look at those that are here to face 30,000 miles at sea alone in the VELUX 5 OCEANS. Some have done it before; others are new to the game. All appear steadfast in their intent to compete hard and win. I’m sure we will learn more as the race gets underway and we are all challenged by the elements. If you have not been checking the race website at www.velux5oceans.com there are some great news stories, photos and videos posted everyday.

Cheers and stay tuned as we get closer to Sunday’s start,

Brad

Pace is Picking Up

The pace is getting faster as time marches forward. The start of the race is within sight at only eleven days away. The race village is taking shape. Tents surround the waterfront, with the Velux House as a central attraction adjacent to the race boats here in La Rochelle. It is a delicate balance right now between the logistics that go into preparing to start a 30,000 solo race around the globe and the emotions to do the same. The bottom line is that in less than two weeks I will depart here and head out with not just a goal to sail from France to South Africa as the first sprint of the race, but leave my children, Tate and Wyatt, and all the comforts of life on land.

On the technical side, we hauled the boat last week to work on one of the rudder bearings. We anticipated putting her back in the water this week, but the weather forecast changed enough that we had to rush and get the boat re-launched in front of a significant rain and wind storm.  We have been looking over everything onboard with a fine tooth comb and have the running rigging work complete, as well as the sails getting a thorough check in the loft.  The engine and charging system have been serviced.  There are a lot of moving parts, and with our small team it is important to stay in tune with how the work list looks when positioned beside the timeline.  I am busy in a few different directions and need to juggle training, scrutineering by the race committee, boat prep, family and several other areas.

The unfortunate news of the day is that Cristophe from Belgium has dismasted while delivering his boat to La Rochelle for the start of the race. This is a really big bummer as he was the first qualified racer and had accumulated more experience on his boat than any of us.

As we used to say at USC (that is So Cal for those reading from Charleston)… Fight On!

We’ll be back with more news shortly,
Brad

It is Great to Be in La Rochelle

Location: La Rochelle, France

It is great to be here in La Rochelle, where the VELUX 5 OCEANS race will start on October 17th. That final stretch across the Atlantic was frustratingly slow, however light winds in the Bay of Biscay are always welcome. It was refreshing to dock in the beautiful, historic city of La Rochelle and step off Le Pingouin to old but familiar faces and the tackle that came from Tate and Wyatt. A huge thanks goes to my small but able crew who not only endured the challenges of sailing across the Atlantic despite tropical storms and hurricanes, but also readily accepted the small living space, limited sleep, constant review of systems, water rations, and such. Thanks to JC Caso, Brendan Fitzgerald, and Tim Eble! 

We have a long list of work to take care of on the boat, but nothing too daunting for the time we have before the start. All would be better if we had a Title Sponsor, but the team is working hard and getting the job done. Kudos need to go out to the Velux and race organizers Clipper Ventures for the professional team they have assembled and the loads of support and incentives they are providing to qualified entries in the race.

It is also great to see Derek Hatfield and his Active House race boat arrive in La Rochelle. Other competitors are expected to arrive this week and it will be nice to see the fleet taking shape as we near the two week countdown to the start this Sunday.

Thanks for checking in. Enjoy the photos below from the arrival in La Rochelle.

Cheers,

Brad

My wife Meaghan and the kids caught their first sight of Le Pingouin from the lift bridge

I steer the Le Pingouin into the basin through the lock

Our children Tate and Wyatt tackle me on the dock

I am joined on deck by (L to R) Brendan Fitzgerald, JC Caso and Tim Eble

The crew is ready for a cold beer and a home cooked meal

09:00 UTC
Lat: 046 degrees 30.491 North
Long: 004 degrees 54.009 West
Heading: 105 degrees
Average SOG: 4.61 Knots
 
In early fall a high pressure system centered on the Bay of Biscay is a very unlikely occurrence. It is actually currently centered on just about our exact location. Le Pingouin and my anxious crew are slowly motoring the last 200 miles of our voyage to La Rochelle.  An open 60 is not a very pleasant motoring environment, with barely a cover over the engine to keep things from getting fouled in the moving parts.  While our 27 horsepower Italian friend (the engine is a Nanny built in Italy) bangs away in the living compartment, talking is more like yelling at each other and ear plugs are a good way to keep from going hard of hearing while sleeping. We endure this to watch the speedo register 4.5 – 5 knots.  After averaging better than 10 knots over the last 4,000 miles we have sailed, and being so close yet so far away, it seems an unjust reward.

This transat has proven to be exactly what the boat and I needed.  I have learned a great deal about the boat and have become comfortable with the new Harken deck layout and handling characteristics of the latest version of Le Pingouin.   In the meantime, we have had every weather condition and sailing angle. Over 4,000 miles we have shaken the boat out pretty hard.  We have a long list of minor repairs and tweaks to do that is headed up by battery charging and water maker issues.  The improvements and changes to the boat have already proven their value.  The new set of sails by Quantum are awesome and the nicest I have owned. The B & G autopilot and instrument package has proven capable of taking over the helmsman position whatever the conditions, which in 50 knots of North Atlantic slop is saying something.   The speed record for the yet to be named pilots is so far 22.4 knots but I am sure that will be a mere memory as the new Le Pingouin crew of "B & G and me" get more miles under our belt.  The Samson rope package is now pretty well fine tuned with the ongoing tweaking that we were doing as we plodded across the pond.  All this and the lifestyle package of Gill foul weather gear, Dubarry sea boots, the familiar Alpine Aire food that has accompanied me on my 2 previous journeys around the world, and some Grawnola for breakfast have proven to provide for a comprehensive yet minimalist approach to long distance voyaging in the name of safely getting to the next stopover as quickly as possible.  If this all sounds like a sponsor plug it sort of is, but the reality is that not only are these suppliers one of the reasons we have gotten this far, but they are also hand chosen to create a comprehensive on the water package for successfully pursuing a 3rd circumnavigation. 

The whole team is anxious to re-assemble in France.  The shore support crew has a daunting list and with a super limited budget they need as much time with the boat as possible.  Meaghan and I are anxious to be together with the kids for a couple of weeks before the race starts, while we are also distracted by the very serious business of keeping the campaign alive through an ongoing and exhaustive sponsorship search.  It is a bit shocking that we have come so far and have yet to find the sponsorship necessary to ensure we can make the race happen. Through the help of companies like Ondeck and many others (some of whom would rather not be named) we will be qualified with a race ready boat on October 17th when the fleet departs on Leg 1 from La Rochelle to Cape Town.  Now it is time to pull a rabbit out of the hat and get some big bills paid before the start so the show may go on.   I guess if it was easy, everyone would do it!

As a way to thank everyone who has put their back into this project I am going to randomly and periodically give a shout out in my updates throughout the race.  It may not mean something to all who follow these reports, but to those who do know it is a small tribute of appreciation.  So, Kurt Oberle and his crew from High and Dry Boatworks… you are the inaugural super stars.  The Awlgrip job is hangin' tough.

It is great to be back on the line with my feet in the chocks and I look forward to sharing another great adventure with all who may be interested.

Until next time,
Brad