Tuesday, 15 August 2006
Day 9 - Artemis crosses the finish line
Things are getting very tense up in the island of Scotland at the moment. Magnum, class leader on the water has rounded Muckle Flugga, the most northerly part of the course. She is now on the homeward leg, sailing due South. Puma has made up a little ground on Magnum during the night as well as second placed yacht on the water, Mostly Harmless. Puma has also extended her lead a little over Jaguar Logic to 30 miles but as we all know, things are changing very quickly at the moment. Jaguar have reported this morning that they have nice winds between 6-12 knots, they are sailing along under full main and no 1 Genoa and all onboard are enjoying themselves and in good spirits. They have managed to get away from Sidney and put a few more miles between them, now at 11 miles, so they doubled the distance overnight.
The yachts have now travelled well-over half the distance, and although Muckle Flugga is seen as the halfway point, they are in fact already on the way home! As I have been sitting here in the office everyday watching every move the yachts have made, it has gradually dawned on me what an amazing race this is. Lots of yachts and crew take part in sailing adventures and races such as this one, but it is normally across the Atlantic or indeed across the channel, and more often than not in good weather and temperate seas. The Round Britain & Ireland race so far has shown that the waters around our islands can be brutal, extremely challenging tactically but also amazingly beautiful. Both teams have reported seeing lots of wildlife from dolphins, to large sea birds and shoals of fish. They have relished getting 'stuck in' and after the first wave of seasickness subsided, actually enjoyed the challenges living at a 30 degree angle can bring! Both Philippe (Puma Logic's Skipper) and I have raced around the world on the Challenge races, and have been into the Southern Ocean beating to windward in rough seas. Living at an angle of 30 degrees plus for weeks at a time was very mentally and physically exhausting. The guys onboard will have experienced this to some degree and on a little yacht with little comfort, have managed magnificently!
Looking at the standings page on the race website, you may have noticed that since Artemis has finished (congratulations Jonny!!) there is a new time to win reference. This means that to beat Artemis on handicap, they must come home before the given time. So for example, at the moment, Jaguar needs to cross the finish line off Cowes before Saturday 19 August at 01.22 hrs. Her estimated finish time at the moment is some 40 hours passed this time, 6pm on Sunday evening. This would be to win the race outright on handicap. As there is such as wide range of different yachts in the race from small to large, each yacht is given a handicap, and from the handicap put into classes. The Logic yachts are in IRC 1 class which is shown on the race website as Division C. During all the qualifying races, every time each yacht finished they were awarded points, which go towards the championship at the end of the season. So it is not just the positions the yachts finish in on this race, but where the points they get put them in the championship overall as well, so every second and every point counts!
A little known fact but did you know…..Muckle Flugga is a small rocky island north of Unst in the Shetland Islands, Scotland. It is often described as the northernmost point of the British Isles, but the smaller islet of Out Stack is actually farther north. The name comes from Old Norse, Mikla Flugey, meaning 'large steep-sided island. 'According to local folklore, Muckle Flugga and nearby Out Stack were formed when two giants, Herma and Saxa, fell in love with the same mermaid. They fought over her by throwing large rocks at each other, one of which became Muckle Flugga. To get rid of them, the mermaid offered to marry whichever one would follow her to the North Pole. They both followed her and drowned, as neither one could swim.
Muckle Flugga is home to a lighthouse, built by Thomas and David Stevenson in 1854, originally to protect ships during the Crimean War. The lighthouse was automated in 1995. Until then Muckle Flugga had been the northernmost inhabited point of the British Isles.
The yachts have now travelled well-over half the distance, and although Muckle Flugga is seen as the halfway point, they are in fact already on the way home! As I have been sitting here in the office everyday watching every move the yachts have made, it has gradually dawned on me what an amazing race this is. Lots of yachts and crew take part in sailing adventures and races such as this one, but it is normally across the Atlantic or indeed across the channel, and more often than not in good weather and temperate seas. The Round Britain & Ireland race so far has shown that the waters around our islands can be brutal, extremely challenging tactically but also amazingly beautiful. Both teams have reported seeing lots of wildlife from dolphins, to large sea birds and shoals of fish. They have relished getting 'stuck in' and after the first wave of seasickness subsided, actually enjoyed the challenges living at a 30 degree angle can bring! Both Philippe (Puma Logic's Skipper) and I have raced around the world on the Challenge races, and have been into the Southern Ocean beating to windward in rough seas. Living at an angle of 30 degrees plus for weeks at a time was very mentally and physically exhausting. The guys onboard will have experienced this to some degree and on a little yacht with little comfort, have managed magnificently!
Looking at the standings page on the race website, you may have noticed that since Artemis has finished (congratulations Jonny!!) there is a new time to win reference. This means that to beat Artemis on handicap, they must come home before the given time. So for example, at the moment, Jaguar needs to cross the finish line off Cowes before Saturday 19 August at 01.22 hrs. Her estimated finish time at the moment is some 40 hours passed this time, 6pm on Sunday evening. This would be to win the race outright on handicap. As there is such as wide range of different yachts in the race from small to large, each yacht is given a handicap, and from the handicap put into classes. The Logic yachts are in IRC 1 class which is shown on the race website as Division C. During all the qualifying races, every time each yacht finished they were awarded points, which go towards the championship at the end of the season. So it is not just the positions the yachts finish in on this race, but where the points they get put them in the championship overall as well, so every second and every point counts!
A little known fact but did you know…..Muckle Flugga is a small rocky island north of Unst in the Shetland Islands, Scotland. It is often described as the northernmost point of the British Isles, but the smaller islet of Out Stack is actually farther north. The name comes from Old Norse, Mikla Flugey, meaning 'large steep-sided island. 'According to local folklore, Muckle Flugga and nearby Out Stack were formed when two giants, Herma and Saxa, fell in love with the same mermaid. They fought over her by throwing large rocks at each other, one of which became Muckle Flugga. To get rid of them, the mermaid offered to marry whichever one would follow her to the North Pole. They both followed her and drowned, as neither one could swim.
Muckle Flugga is home to a lighthouse, built by Thomas and David Stevenson in 1854, originally to protect ships during the Crimean War. The lighthouse was automated in 1995. Until then Muckle Flugga had been the northernmost inhabited point of the British Isles.
posted by Sailing Logic at 2:49 PM
