new years day race

new years day race

Sunday, May 11, 2014

5/10/14 report from on board Nirvana


Nirvana is sailing under partly cloudy skies and 8-10ft quartering seas with a reef in the mail and a stays'l. Sound familiar? Well every once in a while the wind dies a bit and we think about pulling out the genoa, then that thought goes out the window as the breeze comes back up. Then we think about another reef and the wind dies down. We know we aren’t in race mode so are using the "wait at least 10 minutes until making the call rule". We have seen puffs up to 28 but nothing sustained over 20.
The team is doing well, getting sleep and excellent food thanks to our provisioners! Although I can say that on starboard tack it is very interesting to try to open the fridge! Thanks for the warning Julie! Gary had a good laugh at me this am as I was trying a different method of opening it- which was very unsuccessful but funny to watch. I sat on the floor to try to get better leverage as the boat rolls but as soon as I would try to unlatch the fridge door I would slide all the way across the salon floor. Needless to say I went back to the standing and trying to time the door opening to the rolls- only the turkey flew out that time! And as Gary said "it never flew while it was alive, it might as well do it now!"
Animal count: 2 more albatross and nighttime school of dolphin.

Nirvana out,
Shala



Unfortunately Harrison was extremely seasick for the first day and a half, but fortunately he is starting to get better now that the medicine is kicking in. The rest of the crew is doing well.

Julie

2 comments:

  1. Hello to the crew of Nirvana. I have to tell you that it is fun tracking your progress and matching that with weather maps. I had visions of your great sailing weather and this latest report confirms it. Please give my sympathies to Harry and tell him that he can blame his dad. When I worked in the Coast Guard and we sailed for a few months at first I thought I was going to die, but then it got better. So Harry, it does get better and you get your sea legs. And its fun when you do get to land though. You certainly won't be walking in a straight line. All the best to you all. Steve Blacklock

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  2. Ah yes, the refrigerator. Sounds like you had great fun, Shala. We didn't have the fiddles that Gary fashioned for the fridge when we had her, which made it even more precarious. But the best rule is don't try to open it on a starboard tack. As my son-in-law just said, that's what small ice chests are for. Of course if you have no ice, that's not helpful either. Since the starboard tack is the one you spend most of your time on, opening the refrigerator gets to be quite a chore. Wish I had been there to see the fun, Shala.

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