Monday 26th January
2009
FINESSING ONES
VEHICLES
Even though the wind has been lightening in
strength all morning, there appears to be a lethargy amongst the crew. It?s really spinnaker weather again, but
another sail change?! No one can
bear to change the sails AGAIN. I
wonder around the cabin and note that everyone?s energy is firmly fixed on
finessing their vehicles. Ian has
fitted lights, a steering wheel and other such gadgetry on his green race car;
Sam?s self propelled water bottle is starting to look more like a car, a sleek
looking bonnet having been fitted; Linds has been working solidly on her sail
boat, measuring the rigging, fitting the masts etc. Malcs is reading his book having tossed
his vehicle aside, disgusted at it?s inability to propel itself ? back to the
drawing board then.
I go on the SSB for the 12 noon radio schedule
to take a note of other boats positions and for an idle chat, gleaning
information from them as to their sail plans, progress, wind strength etc. We?re slowly catching up with the group
ahead but we need the spinnaker up.
No one seems to be interested as drills are whirring, hammers tapping,
sandpapers rasping, heads scratching, heavy sighs
exhaling.
It is only after lunch that Malcolm is spurred
in to action agreeing that it is indeed spinnaker time ? HOORAY up she goes with
practised ease. We add 1.5 knots to
our speed.
Malcolm has been moaning about the amount of
forlorn looking apples in the fruit bowl and so I decide to do an apple crumble
for dessert tonight. Simple plan,
only I make the assumption we have more flour than we have in fact got; the
consequence being that the crumble just isn?t crumbly. With a gloopy, buttery, sugary mix all
over my hands I ask Sam to add lots of porridge oats to bolster the dryness of
the mix. It just wasn?t
working. Mmmmm?.I chose to ignore
it and went on to the main course; I had found some delicious looking fillet
steaks buried in the freezer. But
the crumble, which wasn?t a crumble, haunted my every move in the galley. Even
hiding it with copious amounts of custard couldn?t disguise its heavy
stickiness.
Night watches commence and the spinnaker is
still up?..watch this space for tonight?s activities on the
foredeck.
Position @ 0700 26.1.09: 13.35S
26.06W