We Won!

It's official! The Minnow won in the Multihulls Division of the 2005 ARC. We weren't first across the finish line, but the other boats had enough motoring penalties to put The Minnow in first place.

http://www.worldcruising.com/arc/results/ARC05_results_cruising_overall.pdf

Photos!

Photos of the trip acreoss the Atlantic!

St. Lucia!

The Minnow made it to St. Lucia! Some others in the multihull division got there first, but they all have motoring penalties coming. We may end up in 1st or 2nd place because we didn't motor (except for maybe an hour of motoring in the wrong direction when they kicked me off the boat).

Here are the details of my evacuation, with pictures:

http://xpda.com/mutiny



Bob

day 18

“The Minnow” ARC 2005 Atlantic Crossing

Mike’s Exciting Day 18 Update!

The wind picked up slightly, as predicted. Wow. I believe that this is the
first time the weather condition has even remotely resembled the forecast.
So we decided that we would reef the mainsail in the afternoon, while it was
still light outside.

The potential problems with reefing the mainsail were (1) the outside cover
has been bunching up in numerous places so it could get jammed at an
undesirable location and (2) it could easily break. Every time we move the
mainsail we incur a significant risk of one or the other.

With this in mind, we chose to reef the mainsail to the second reef (about ½
way down). This ended up costing us .5 to 1 knot for a few hours in the
afternoon. But by nightfall, we were glad we made that choice as we saw
steady winds in the mid 30s from time to time throughout the night.

Update on the “Bob-gone/boat-not-breaking phenomenon: Bob still gone, still
nothing broken. Hmm…

Things are pretty well back to normal now. We have adjusted to being
Bob-less, and other than the boat not breaking, things are pretty much the
way they were. This morning as normal, Serge was outside listening to
static-filled French news on the portable SSB (he sure misses his native
language). As normal, Jim was asleep on the couch (Melinda, he is competing
for the “maximum hours of sleep per day” record that you currently hold). As
normal, David was reading a book. And, as normal, I was cheerful,
conversational, and dadblasted chipper all morning.

Unless something significant happens, this should be our next to last day of
the ARC 2005 Atlantic Crossing. I think we’re all ready to get there.

Fishing report:

A dolphin a day keeps the tuna away. We got another dolphin today. Cleaned
it, cooked it, ate it.

Today’s Nautical Term:

Mutiny. A mutiny is when you have a really crappy captain and you get rid of
him. Bob catches on quicker than I thought.

He emailed: “After the mutiny, I was cast adrift. After an interminable
period of drifting aimlessly about the Atlantic, I was hoisted aboard the
M/T Patris. This occurred on St. Nicholas day, the holiday for the patron
saint of seagoers, and insured a year of luck for the Patris and its crew.”

So he hasn’t died yet.

Arts and Entertainment:

Serge and I played an energetic game of chess while enjoying highlights from
Verdi’s Aida.

The movie-watching craze continued tonight. “Master and Commander” was the
top bill. The others watched it in two shifts. I opted to read a book since
I had already seen it.

day 17

"The Minnow" ARC 2005 Atlantic Crossing

Mike's Exciting Day 17 Update!

The wind has slightly and steadily increased over the last couple of days.
And it's supposed to keep doing that for the next few days. We are sailing
with a full mainsail and a solent (small jib). We have been alternating
between a lot downwind, and wing-in-wing downwind. That's where we have one
sail pointed to the left and the other sail pointed to the right.

We would be going faster if our gennaker hadn't deserted us. But hopefully
tomorrow we will have plenty of wind for our remaining sails. Tomorrow will
probably be a reef-the-mainsail-day. That's not normally a big deal.
However, when limping along with a chafed main halyard (the rope that holds
the main sail up) that could break at any time, it could be an adventure.

We were all dragging a bit this morning. So I cooked a mess-o-pancakes and
we ate all of 'em. There were a lot of naps that ensued.

We got some updates on Bob through indirect email. Nothing very informative,
but it seemed to indicate he hadn't died or anything yet. I still think he's
a pansy. But I have to hand it to him - he got to get on an enormous VLCC
oil tanker, AND he gets to take a helicopter ride.

OK, I might be a little jealous about the VLCC part .

One thing is very interesting about Bob abandoning ship. Since he left, we
have not broken anything. I will try to keep tabs on this phenomenon.

Fishing report:

We seem to be able to catch one nice dolphin per day. We did that again
today. Cleaned it, too.

Arts and Entertainment:

"The Ref" and "A Midsummer Night's Dream" ran multiple times from 6:00am
until . well sometime tomorrow.

day 16

"The Minnow" ARC 2005 Atlantic Crossing

Mike's Exciting Day 16 Update!

Today's Nautical Term:

Chafe n : a state of vexation : rage

Bob was sure chafed when the doctors said he needed to get his chafed finger
looked at sooner than when the Minnow will get there.

Late tonight (around 5:00am of day 17) we dropped Bob off on a VLCC since
they go faster than us. This way he will get to a proper doctor sometime
Wednesday.

A VLCC is a "very large crude carrier." This thing was enormous. It came
almost to a stop for us. Then we maneuvered to the downwind side of it. It
took a long time to go around it. As we backed toward the ship, it lowered a
big basket down near the water on a crane. Bob was waiting on the back
steps. When the basket got close to the steps, he got in and they raised him
up, up, up, up, up. It was a long ways up to the deck of the tanker. Really
high.

It sounds really simple, and it was. It was simple because (1) the oil
tanker captain knew what he was doing and instructed us on what to do (we
had prepared for a couple of hours on what to do and how to do it (2) the
captain and crew of the tanker were very competent (3) David did a great job
backing the Minnow into place for the transfer (this was not an easy task).

We were all very impressed with the French Coast Guard, who arranged the
transfer and has further arranged for Bob to be flown from the giant ship to
a finger specialist when they get in helicopter range. All this for a single
index finger. On the left hand even.

Bob left the Minnow with threats of vengeance. He has vowed to cut every
rope on the Minnow just to get even. Personally, I think he will mellow once
he learns how to pick his nose right-handed.

After the transfer it took the rest of us quite awhile to wind down. It was
definitely a high energy experience. (25 knots of wind, big waves, and the
realization that a mistake was potentially really dangerous) So after we
were clear of the behemoth, we took our time setting sails, carefully,
deliberately, and sailed off into the morning. We were relieved because
Bob's chafed finger was really ugly.

Arts and Entertainment:

Five minutes before we dumped Bob he was playing "In the Mood" to us on the
baritone. I think he has most of it memorized!

day 15

"The Minnow" ARC 2005 Atlantic Crossing

Mike's Exciting Day 15 Update!

They woke me up again about 7:15 this morning. It was pitch black again.
This time they told me they wanted help raising Whomper, again. There was a
big difference. This time we were raising Whomper out of the water and onto
the deck. It was somewhat worse for the wear with some rips and tears. So we
officially lost our third sail today.

But we still have three sails left. And two of the tore-up ones are
repairable on the boat, if needed. We put up our third spinnaker and kept
going. Now we are treating our sails very, very tenderly. Just a few more
days to St. Lucia and we still haven't motored!

Fishing Report:

One dolphin, which is now in the fridge.

Today's Nautical Term:

Chafe. This is a repeat lesson. Today we had a new kind of nautical
rope-chafing. A rope chafed Bobs' finger. He sure was gripy for awhile.

Arts and Entertainment:

Bob wouldn't play sousaphone with a chafed finger, but he did serenade us
with some rip-roaring baritone solos.

day 14

"The Minnow" ARC 2005 Atlantic Crossing

Mike's Exciting Day 14 Update!

Serge woke me up about 7:15 this morning. It was pitch black. I never know
for sure when Serge is waking me if it's a joke or I'm really supposed to
get up. This time he told me they wanted help raising Whomper. This didn't
help his believability since they rarely let me help with a sail.

But I got up anyway. Slowly. If they did want me to help hoist the giant
sail I wanted to be careful not to strain something. I stretched a bit as I
was coming up the stairs. Then I ambled over to the fridge and grabbed a
cold Coke. Then I stretched some more. That was enough. I went outside ready
to tangle with Whomper. All I got to do was watch and press a button for a
couple of seconds.

At least we are sailing today. I think the current moved us more than the
wind yesterday. With plenty of water now, and light winds with no ocean
spray, we have all been washing some clothes. A lot of the clothes we hang
on the lifelines. At night they get wetter instead of dryer out there. A few
evenings ago I hung a rope under the porch cover for drying clothes when
it's raining and at night.

Clothes are drying reasonably quickly now . I'd say 4-8 hours on average.
For light things like nylon shorts maybe 2-4 hours. Which brings up and
interesting situation. Bob has had a pair of nylon shorts hanging wet from
the same spot in the center of the cockpit for two days now.

Clothes on the line beside the shorts come and go, but the shorts remain
wet. Even fully soaked towels are drying with no problem. Bob checks them
often. He keeps looking for a cause. Water leaks? Condensation dripping on
them? Water dripping from the sail? He even tastes them for salt. But they
remain wet while all the clothes around them dry, time after time.

Now that's unusual. Probably it has something to do with Serge and I wetting
them with a damp towel throughout the day. And dripping water on them
occasionally. And fully soaking them when he's asleep. It takes a lot of
continual effort to keep those shorts wet. But it's worth it to watch Bob
scratch his head each time he checks them.

Fishing Report:

We caught another 10-pound or so dolphin. We also caught a tarpon or
barracuda, we're not sure which. We let the unknown fish go. We ate the
dolphin.

Today's Nautical Term:

Chafe vb : to rub so as to wear away.

If the ropes are not rigged and set right, the constant motion of the boat
with cause them to "chafe" and wear through. We have to keep a constant look
out for anything chafing on a boat.

Arts and Entertainment:

Today was "break out the sousaphones" day. Bob and I played "In the Mood"
about 100 times trying to memorize it. I should have my part memorized in
about 400 more times.

Daily Log for the Minnow

Saturday, December 03, 2005
late night, 16°34N 044°02W

We finally have some wind! We managed to drop to 53rd place from about 23rd or 30th because we turned right too soon. The wind
prediction had changed in our favor, but they were just tricking us. We spent about 36 hours in really weak wind. It was due to
tropical storm Epsilon, which apparently was a hurricane for a little while. It made wind going to the east, north of us, and the
trade winds were trying to go west, south of us, We were caught in the messy air in between. But now we're moving!

Now we shoud have a tailwind into St. Lucia for the next few days -- long enough to get there. The wind is now 13-14 knots from the
ENE. We're going 7.8 knots towards St. Lucia. Less than 1000 miles to go. I think one boat has already arrived, a 97-foot one.

A few minutes ago I went out side to look at the world. The world looked back. The milky way was out in force, and a long, shooting
star went slowly across the sky. It was like a movie. Actually, the shooting start must have been going pretty fast, but it looked
slow. There's probably a pot of gold where it landed.

We caught a couple of fish today, a dolphin (the fish, not the porpoise) and something else like a tarpon or barracuda. We cleaned
and ate the dolphin.

Mike replaced our salt water pump with a new pressure pump and reservoir. The other pump was dead. The new pump worked fine. But I
just now noticed a red light on the breaker panel next to the lable "Sea Water Pump." Maybe something isn't quite right.

We've been running the air conditioner the past couple of days. Mike and I have been playing "In the Mood" in beautiful 2-part
sousaphonian harmony. Beauty is in the ear of the bee holder. David, Serge, and Jim are about ready to jump ship.

In less than 12 hours, we'll have been on this voyage for 2 weeks. It's still fun!

day 13

"The Minnow" ARC 2005 Atlantic Crossing

Mike's Exciting Day 13 Update!

Ages come and pass, leaving memories that become legend. Legend fades to
myth, and even myth is long forgotten when enough ages pass.

Trade winds. Are they memory, legend, or myth?

They aren't forgotten, that's for sure, because everyone says we should be
in them. Even the ARC literature talks about these alleged trade winds.

Today we floated southish in a very, very light breeze. Heck with trade
winds, we'd settle for any kind of wind today. Bob went swimming again. It
wasn't pure swimming this time since he had flippers and a snorkel on. This
time he removed the fishing line from the right prop. He also removed other
fishing line from other locations under the boat. Funny how that stuff gets
everywhere. Reminds me of flour when I make bread.

Back to the ARC literature, I remember that this race is also called a
rally. It's easy to see why. When we are floating around helplessly like
this it sure helps morale to call this thing a rally rather than a race. So
today we are officially rallying, not racing. But we still haven't motored!

Even with no wind today, this boat is in good spirits. Our generator is
still working. We topped the water tanks again. It was warm outside so we
ran the air conditioning for most of the day. Sitting outside in the shade
was nice, too. Reading on the trampoline under the shade of the solent was
especially pleasant.

One thing nice about floating versus sailing is that we didn't tear up a
sail. This is our second day in a row to not ruin a sail. This was also our
second day in a row to fix more than we broke. We didn't break anything, and
we fixed one thing.

Fishing Report:

We caught another fish that we couldn't identify. This one was had a big
mouth shaped like a barracuda's. It was long and skinny like a snake or an
eel, but stiff-spined, scaly, and with a standard fish tail. It was 3-4 feet
long and scary looking.

Jim brought in a 13-pounder (dolphin) and cleaned it, too. Serge cooked it
for supper. The rest of us ate fish for supper.

Today's Nautical Term:

Today's nautical term is "trade wind." According to Webster's:
- trade wind n : a wind blowing constantly in one direction

While looking in Webster's, I also found:
- memory n : an image or impression that is remembered
- legend n : a story regarded as historical although not verifiable
- myth n : an unfounded or false notion

(personally, I think trade winds are a myth)

Arts and Entertainment:

Baritone and piano duets were the highlight of today's entertainment.
Baritone and organ duets ran a close second (the piano has an organ mode
which I particularly like). There was a lot of book-reading that took place,
too.