Day 4
The downwind sailing conditions continue as we eat up the miles in our bid to be the first boat across the Atlantic, we are consistantly posting 200+ miles over a 24hour period which will have us in Kinsale within 8 days.
More damage has been reported amongst the fleet as we push on relentlessly, on Team Finland we have suffered some damage to the main sheet traveller, a temporary repair has been effected but we will need to replace this once we get into port. Other boats are reporting spinaker pole tracks coming adrift from the mast and more kites have ended up in many pieces.
We see that we are in 8th position in this race and the mood on board becomes slightly more despondant, once again we are taking a different route than the rest of the fleet, we are taking a more southerly route trying to keep on the southerly edge of a low pressure system that is generating 30 knots of wind. The northern route appears to be generating more wind (upwards of 40 knots) but this could expose the boat (and crew) to more damage, the only course open to us then would be to reduce the amount of sail that we are flying and thus reducing speed. This could be the biggest tactical decision of this particular race.
Day 5
The very cold, damp conditions persist as the Labrador current continues to bring cold air from the Artic, this means that most crew are now wearing base & midlayers with the foulies over the top although I cannot remember the last time we donned some many layers - Pacific I suspect. It all comes back now, 10 days of persistant rain left everything soaking wet - boots, socks, foulies and midlayers, oh the joys of putting that lot on at 02.00hrs!
We are looking at the race "scheds" which show that we are slowly climbing up the leader board, we are now in 5th position and the mood is upbeat although we have been in this position before.
Australia report a whale strike, this could be a very dangerous liason as a35 tonne ocean yacht comes into contact with the beast from the deep, thankfully both craft and creature escape seemingly unscathed.
Day 6
We continue to pound on grinding out in excess of 200 miles a day, if this pace continues we will certainly arrive in Kinsale early and it will be one of the fastest crossings across the pond. We were reminded of the potential perils of this particular ocean by Sir RKJ, who recounted a story of the QE2 passenger liner encountering a wave that hit the bridge, if you bear in mind that the bridge is 120 ft above the water line then you get an appreciation of the size of these rogue waves.
We are now deep in this low pressure system and we are experiencing consistant winds of up to and over 40 knots, this allows us to generate over 20 knots of boat speed as we surf down the huge rollers which seem to be well organised in sets of 3 which makes helming slightly easier.
That said, keeping  the kite flying and maintaining boat speed is taking it's toll on the boat and the crew. I was off watch in my bunk below when I heard a crash and the boat lurched sideways - no doubt about it, the boat had crash gybed after the preventer had broken. The preventer stops the boom swinging in an uncontrolled manner, when this happens clearly anyone or anything that gets in it's way could be in potential danger. Unfortunately one of our female crew left her head in it's path and got hit by the vang block that is attached to the boom. She wasn't knocked out initially but about a minute post injury she collapsed on deck. Imagine the scene, 40 knots of wind, a rolling deck as we surf down huge waves, the boom doing it's own thing and a "man down". As the boat medic I was summoned on deck and "Taffy" Morgan a retired dentist came on deck to check on the fillings!!
After an initial assessment on deck the casualty was brought down below and neuro observations were commenced over the next 24 hrs, thankfully all transpired to be well and we continued racing, not that we had alot of choice really since we were still just under a 1000 miles from land and expert medical help. As a precaution I asked for the cordless drill to be charged up and made ready!
Australia play their stealth card and go "under the radar" for 24hrs, they are maintaining their northerly position but will they head south? Time will tell.
We continue to take miles out of the fleet and move up to 4th postion, this race is critical for us so that we can consolidate our position and aim for an overall podium position in Hull, not bad considering that we havn't raced in three races due to the Cork rescue and the demasting.
Jamaica are leading this race at this point, they too are really pushing for a win in this race, they are in 4th postion overall and want to be on that podium in Hull.
Day 7
Casualty in reasonable condition although her usual outward persona is somewhat quieter post accident, not surprising really given the trauma that her body has experienced.
800 miles to the Fastnet rock and there is a real buzz on the boat as we all recover from the "head injury incident" and find that we are now up to 3rd postion in this race as we get nearer to the finish and take miles out of the Cork boat.
Jamaica experience problems with the mast track and have to reduce the amount of canvas that they are flying as any additional pressure on the track could rip it off altogether.
Australia come out of stealth and we continue to pull ahead of them - great news.
Wind is now blowing force 9 and we decide that this is the moment to play our own stealth card and go under the radar.
Life on board continues as usual, on watch, off watch, mother watch producing the usual mix of pasta, rice and pulses with the occassional treat of spam or corned beef thrown into the mix!
Day 8
Out of Stealth and we are in the lead, we are pushing this boat as hard as we dare, we have been flying the Yankee 3 due to the wind conditions but the pressure is breaking some of the hanks (brass connectors that connect the sail to the forestay and allow the raising and dropping of the sail) these will need to be replaced "on the move". Still averaging over 11 knots per hour and the sea state is getting a bit more confused.
We need to attach a line to the second reefing point on the main, this means hoisting someone up the mast (me) to do this task. Not easy given the conditions and trying to tie a bowline one handed with the boat pitching and rolling at 21.30 hrs in the semi darkness!! Excitement growing as we near the iconic Fastnet Rock 5 miles ahead of Jamaica and with a favourable tide that should aid our passage.
Cork have arrived into their home port, really pleased for them although they will not win the overall race due to the handicap system. We are told that we have to be across the finish line before 10.00am to beat them.
Our own mast track seems to be coming adrift, this could cause us problems as we approach the "Old Head" at Kinsale since we have to put in a gybe to get around the headland and Jamaica are closing in on us fast, surely we are not going to blow this race as well, are we?
Foredeck crew are ready to manually take the spinaker pole down if we cannot effect the dip pole gybe as we approach the "Old Head" at 04.30hrs and the lead on Jamiaca down to 1 mile. The command goes out from Rob on the helm as the whole boat holds it's breath as we perform perfect gybe and head towards the finish line which is two miles up the estuary.
At just after 5am TF cross the finish line only 8 minutes ahead of Jamaica to land the first podium postion since Australia, long long overdue and the party will be long.
Just to illistrate the importance of getting that gybe right, reflect on the plight of the Hull & Humber boat, lying in 3rd postion with Quindao in 4th they got "that" gybe wrong put the pole through the spinnaker and lost a podium place by just 90 seconds. Never ceases to amaze that after 2000+ miles racing across the ocean that it comes down to 90 seconds to seperate one boat from another!
Breakfast provided at the Kinsale Yacht club washed down with copius quantities of Murphys - life is good!!
Bring on the presentation and the coverted yellow winners pennant that so many of us want as TF are crowned winners of the Transatlantic Race.

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