Jasmina - Daily Log - Days 1 and 2 - Learning about Chafe!

Wow, what a first day. The start was quite a spectacle. Light winds but plenty of colour on this downwind start. Stayed west through the acceleration zone which paid off as lay 18th overall (out of 220) after first 23 hours. And third in our class. Have a bet on with Jasmine, another Beneteau 57 to fund the beers in St Lucia. We went further but they sailed smarter and have 1 mile less to go to the finish!! Paid a price though. Carried the Parasailor all night and shredded one of the guys, ripped the spinnaker head fitting out of the mast and wore through the Genoa UV protective layer in parts. Oh well, never was one for patience and the long game! Went up the mast to try to fix the spinnaker head but bottled out after the 3/4 point - 3 meter swell and 23 knot wind was a little lively.. read more...

Jasmina - Log - Days 3, 4, 5 (Wed to Fri)

Following Tuesday’s success in re establishing the spinacre halyard Wednesday saw us back to average 910kts and just under half wind speed, we have peaked at 15kts surfing down 3m waves. On the fishing front we happily repatriated a 4cm flying fish - goodness knows how it got on board must have been a maiden flight!!! perhaps then only to be consumed by the "monster" that attached its self to our "pink Octopus" fishing lure . Got away after 10 minutes fighting!We are now settled into some routine, we are almost a quarter of the way across, and in trade winds and bobbing 4000m above the Cape Verde Abyssal Plain below. The Ocean is 24 degrees and the air temp is in the 30ies during the day and not much cooler at night.On the food front things proceeding well - Pork Chops in Cider. read more...

Jasmina - 22/11/2009 - Log Day 0 - Getting to the start line

Jasmina is a Beneteau 57 and her crew have been sailing mates for about 12 years going off for a week each year. In 2007 we decided to go for the Atlantic with ARC 2009, shortly after which Robert (middle right on the photo) was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND). We strove to keep the dream alive and here we are, a complete team with Robert with us. 50% of people die within 2 years of diagnosis so we are all only too aware of how rapidly debillitating and challenging this disease can be. It is a credit his family, medical team back home and sailing mates  in the support they have shown but the spirit and courage/commitment that Robert himself has shown is an example to us all. He cannot speak (communicates with a note pad), cannot eat or drink (all special food has to be. read more...

Jasmina - Log Summary Days 4 to 14 - Ocean Virgins

Our crew of 6 are all first timers at crossing an ocean and to the ARC experience. Notable amongst us is Robert who has had Motor Neurone Disease for 2 years and has coped fantastically with the trip in spite of his significant physical challenges. As we contemplate arriving tomorrow evening it is interesting to look back at experiences, lessons learned, fun, and what a harsh teacher the Atlantic can be.Chafe and missed rig inspections took their toll. Thursday evening (Day 4) the cruising chute parted from the bag at the mast and was trashed under the boat in 6 seconds – witnessed by Victory Too who we were close to then. On day 6 the spinnaker pole sheared at the mast (no longer useable) . Then the main boom vang failed (metal shear at the boom end) and a harsh lesson was learned about. read more...