Umiko - Blog 9 6.12.19

Dear Umiko Fans!6.12.18 Blog 924 hr run 255 nmDTD 127.5 nmDear Umiko Fans!Hopefully this will be the last blog before we get in. All of us here want to wish “Second Wind” good luck. A whale strike is terribly unluckily. We have seen the awesome beasts very close to the yacht on this crossing but it is very rare that they come into contact with you. We hope that they are able to repair any damage done and continue to have a safe crossing. I would also like to take a moment to spare a thought for a good friend Susie Goodall. I found out last night that her Rustler 36 DHL Starlight had been pitch poled as she made progress towards Cape Horn. It seems that MRCC Chile has implemented a rescue plan and she is in typical good spirits despite being battered and bruised. As she waits for rescue. read more...

Umiko - Umiko Blog 8 5.12.18

Dear Umiko Fans!5.12.18 Blog 824 hr run 289 nmDTD 424.20nmGood morning Umiko fans. I apologise if this does not read well but I have got up an hour early to write this and I have not as yet had any coffee.The team have been doing great working well together to keep the kite in good trim. As the 24 hour run has suggested the wind had dropped from what were expecting (around 20 kts ) to 10-13 kts. This meant that our progress slowed. The good news is that we were north on the course and would have to gybe over onto the port tack to make some southing (as would most of the fleet) as we did this we got massively freed (one of the reasons we gybed over) with the wind shifting the ESE. This has given us a much better southing course than we were expecting. It has been an incredible trip. We. read more...

Umiko - UMIKO Blog 7 1.12.18-3.12.18 flying to the finish!

Dear Umiko Fans!1.12.18-3.12.18 Blog 624 hr run 297nmDTD 838.8nmSOG 14kts Dear Umiko Fans!I hope this blog finds you well. I appear to be a bit behind on the blogs so I am trying to surmise a couple of days. We have been working hard to keep the boat going as fast as possible so I may have missed a blog or so…The Wildlife…From the 30th on we have been regularly visited by fin whales. They can move incredibly fast and are often going faster than us ( we are averaging 12 kts or so). Flying Fish Attack….These continue last night we had a kite collapse as the result of an impoact to the chest of the helm who then with no horizon or reference lost temporary spatial awareness an collapsed the kite. The BROACHES…Thankfully not too many I think we are up to four total with one on each watch. read more...

Umiko - UMIKO Richard Blog

Sunday2nd Dec: Umiko It’s fair to say that the crew on Umiko are well settled into the daily routine. We have 10 people on board, 3 watches of 3 plus our very valuable Karina (who feeds us well, and keeps a tidy ship), our watch system runs as follows: Watch Hrs A B C8am -12 noon 4 On Standby Off12noon – 4pm 4 Standby Off On4pm – 8pm 4 Off On Standby8pm -11pm 3 On Standby Off11pm – 2am 3 Standby Off On2am-5am 3 (feels like 5!) Off On Standby5am – 8am 3 On Standby OffOver the last 7 days we have also named our watches. Watch C named themselves after a quite spectacular broach (at night) where we managed to gain a riding turn in the sheet and couldn’t release the Kite for a long time. Needless to say, Watch C is called “The Broaching Team”.B Watch have also broached once and wish to. read more...

Umiko - Umiko Blog 6 Halyard repairs

Dear Umiko Fans!30.11.18 Blog 624 hr run 283nmDTD 1350nmDear Umiko Fans!I want to take this opportunity to wish the Skipper Sean McCarter a very happy birthday. Sean and I have been good friends for five or so years now and sailed many yachts and oceans together. He is an upstanding gentleman who will generally lead you astray! We were both commenting on how good this crossing has been in terms of the weather, there have been years where we have had to head north out of the canaries to play on the south side of depressions in order to get wind before pressing south through a ridge of high pressure in order to get into the trades. There have been years where we have been like “Where are the trades”! this year has been great. As a sailor though I am never happy… They are called the NE. read more...