Message From GARYJESSOP

DAY 5...BLUE SKY, LOW WIND
26 09.4 N 116 05.3 W
We have been plagued with lightwinds since day 2 of the race,can t beleive it really thought we were going to have 15 kts all the way.On a good note all our kites are looking good from the repairs made in Hawaii & the boat is nice & dry
The only wind we seem to have bellowing at present comes after Nicole made a veggy soup/stew last night.Spirits are high, all enjoying the moment
325nm to the 1st report mark

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Message From GARYJESSOP

Cheers Santa Cruz bring on Panama
sat 26/4/08 30 47.9 N 119 25.5 W Conditions ; wonderful

Another good start for the Lady Qing & as we pondered with Hull which way to go we were joined by 50 plus dolphins dancing their way around our bow. The wind was pleasant & fresh,the spirits high.
We had said our good byes to fellow seamen leaving the Lady Q;Neil the ledge surfer,Pete Tong,Teddy..all great fun sailing with & plenty of chat.
The skys have been peaceful above us,no clouds,bright blues,the evenings & dawns a dream to be in with their rich colours of golds,silvers,purples & deep reds.The moon & the sun join our party at 5.30.. it is a joy to be on this watch at this hour.
So far we have had the kites flying nicely with some tidy evolutions,as for our position I' m guessing mid place as we havent received the sched information on a regular basis..but the place doesn't matter for the moment, just being here in perfect sailing conditions is a treat to savour after the hard sails of the last 2 legs.
The watch's are called Rum & Coke,Chris & I are still in the hot seat of these.I must say I m enjoying it & who wouldn't with a crew like ours on the Lady Qing(with plenty of chat).
Rum;Chris,Oscar,Cal,Emma,Hen,Steve
Coke;Myself,Christian,Ant,Nicole,Julian.Debbie,Dan
Nicole & Ant had a great last race helping on the foredeck.Christian calm on the helm as ever

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Message From GARYJESSOP

33 35.7 N 127 30.3 W 340nm to go wed 16/4
Still a long way to go for us & remember that's in a straight line,we may have to tack north again & lose some vmg.. we hope to make it by friday but I'm 50/50 on that maybe saturday.So we have had a bad run, the facts; 3 last places out the last 4 races. You hear me say we have a good team & our sail changes and helming are very good & I still stand by that,the leggers coming on for the last 2 legs have a lot to step up to & I'm sure they will.And I wouldnt change the team for anything ,entertaining chat, a skipper that when it gets tough steps up and we have had few hair raising moments and all the challenges that come with a journey like this from high winds to no winds to coming last to being in a podium position.The emmotions of fear/joy/laughter and sadness are all part of the recipe.
Bring on the next leg...the ocean is a wonderful place for the soul

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Message From GARYJESSOP

And the wind comes
We had no wind & prayed for wind and it came, a little late but it came alright.In the last few hours we have been flying the wind seeker(ideal for very light airs/basiclly no wind).Then we got excited & changed to yankee1,within minutes we had to drop reef and hoist the yankee 2 as the wind started to build, again within minutes we had to reef again drop the yankee2 and hoist the yankee 3.. wait for it ...... yep then within minutes again the wind was at 35kts,we had to drop the yankee 3 and go alone on stay sail and main with 2 reefs. All on my watch, however Chris's watch did come and help, a great team perfomance was had by all .
So feeling pretty tired hanking on and off the sails/hoisting and all, but a great feeling to get under power again and on our way.
31 07.5 N 138 03.8 W 870nm to go .. still a long way to g ..... and too much wind
13/4/08 Sunday sailing

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Message From GARYJESSOP

30 46.5 N 140 32.7 W in the North Pacfic.. in calm waters ... speed1.0 kt & VMG 0.8
Happy Birthday Celebrations to the Sizens in Devon this w/e.

Very frustrating here at sea,one can never imagine having no wind espcially in the Pacific...and now I know why pacific means peacful.Every ripple we see on the ocean we hope that it is a sign the wind is coming,we have clouds around us, however no puff.

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Message From GARYJESSOP

OUCH !!!! BACK TO 8th
Just got the update on positions;we have not had one in18 hrs & see we are in 8th,We have again been unlucky to hit another wind hole & haven't moved for the past 18 hrs.We were hoping the rest of the fleet would be in the same predicament ,but not that lucky.I believe we are 150 nm behind 1st & 110 behind 7th ..ouch.
We are lucky to have the 'chat' though & that keeps us going
Everyone frustrated,but then again this is part of it

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Message From GARYJESSOP

10/4/08 2907.25 N 144 05.4 N
It s all close at present ,we were 4th and have now dropped back to 5th, it looks like the other boats have been able to do a nm faster than us an hour hence they have all made 6miles on us.The wind has eased with us,nothing has broken we now have the yankee 1up / no reefs and need a little help from Hermes.
Everyone is Helmng well and the chat is still good .Christain is on top form and Chris's curry was a hit last night.Today I find myself on mother, so it's noodle and pasta from the day bag.. no messing today.
Pete ninja Leung has been up the mast aswell as his fingers non stop in the cookie jar, Kenny (from south park (Nicole)still squeeking so all good.Emma still not too well,Cal and Neil all good with Oscar as ever smiling..so indeed a joyful crew who deserve a podium for hard work and good chat.
1199 nm to go

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Message From GARYJESSOP

8/4/08 24 58.4 N 149 21.7 W
The watch's stay the same ..we have had all the white sails up ,,reefing non stop and even had the mid weight kite up for 10 seconds.. we had a lovely 6 hr or so run with gentle swells and VMG of 10 kts.Both watch's working well together when needed in the high winds.
I m buring off the beers and cocktails from Hawaii by being on the bow and all the shop , I'm sure I will slow down soon.It is lovely to see the wonderful stars at night ,We are surley blessed.
It was hard to leave the surf and cocktails of Hawaii, the break was needed and all batteries are full. feeling great..and really enjoying this journey.
Really looking fwd to S.C and seeing my sister Sarah.
Currently yankee 3 up 2 reefs and 30 kts of wind... and very bouncy son not much sleep

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