The preparation begins

The main boxed could officially be ticked off, but certain items still had to be addressed.  These included:
i)  Whether Ryan and Michaela (aged 13 and 10 respectively) were old enough to race;
ii)  The IRC Handicap certificate of the boat had to be sorted out;
iii)  The relevant qualifications of the crew (specifically the skippers and their ocean going miles) had to be approved; and
iv)  The returning of the boat to Cape Town post the race.
 
The above issues (with the exception of point iv) having been dealt marked the beginning of the large preparation process.

Dad, moved to adapt one of his job-planning charts to a race-planning chart, and we were off.  My inbox also increased with an average of 13 emails a day as Dad moved to including us all, Ryan and Michaela included, on every email and document that had anything to do with the race.  (I did not know that my dad knew how to send email, nevermind use the "reply-to-all" button.)

The list was as follows:   

1.      Project plan and programme

2.      Budget

3.      Finalization of charter                                                                                M

4.      Entry form and formalities

a.      Ships papers and consent for use

b.      Transfer responsibility of owner (ref NOR) to MRR

c.      Review and update IRC certification

                  d.      Acceptance or review of skipper qualifications

e.      Payment of entry fees

f.        Confirmation of acceptance of entry and of compliance

g.      Formalize return shipping arrangements

h.      Maintain contact with race headquaters

5.      Ciao Bella inventory and inspection

a.      Rudder                       

b.      Engine                  

c.      Batteries                                                                                             

e.      Sails

                   i.        Hull and associated         

j.         Fuel and gas

6.      Safety compliance

7.      Emergency equipment

a.      Ships EPIRB

b.      Life raft

                  c.      Grab bag

d.      Personal EPIRBs

8.      Communications

a.      Review the provisions of RRS41 – See NOR Sched 1 Par 3

b.      Satellite phone

c.      SSB Radio – Radio Licence

9.      Race strategy and weather routing

a.      Mark Hammick’s weather routing stuff

10. Boat transport

a.      Trace cradle

b.      Establish load dimensions

c.      Permit requirements

d.      Transport to Cape Town

e.      Launching in Cape Town

f.        Quotation for shipping

g.      Customs, clearances and formalities

h.      Contact John Martin direct – per Crockett

i.        Finalize return arrangements

j.         Ship cradle to Rio

k.      Loading in Rio

l.         Customs and formalities

11. Travel documentation

a.      Passports

b.      Visas

c.      Air tickets

d.      Travel insurance

12. Provisioning

a.      Water

                   b.      Food

                   c.      Medical supplies

13. Electrical systems and Instruments

a.      Check functionality

b.      Manuals

c.      Additional GPS

14. Boat organization and packing

15. Sail testing and Basic maneuver practice

16. Operational organization and roles

17. Post race inventory and refurbishment

18. Hand over Ciao Bella

And that was what landed in my inbox on 29th September 2010.  And that same date marked the beginning of the preparation process.

The journey begins

Before we delve into the details of our adventure, it is probably fair to give some background as to how the adventure has come about. 

Post Dad blowing his cash flow on four tickets to Australia for the kids to sail in the Mirror World Championships in Albany in early January 2011, Brennan kindly pointed out that their tickets were scheduled to return on 14th January.  Exactly a day before the start of the Rio race.  So lazing around on the vaal on some idle Sunday afternoon, the famous sentence started like this:  How cool would it be if...

And the rest is history.

With the idea merely still pie in the sky, we moved to looking at the possibility of a getting hold of a boat.  While Three Wishes (our 33ft trimaran that is moored on the vaal) was an option, the chance to do the race on a racer was that much more appealing.  The deal was sealed as Mark Hammick kindly lent us his 35ft Simonis design yacht - Ciao Bella.        

We have since spent many a fun Saturday and Sunday on Ciao Bella since.  A beautiful boat which I hope is going to love the trip as much as we are going to enjoy sailing the trip on her. 

After the first seed was planted on that lazy Sunday afternoon, to today as we load Ciao Bella onto the truck for her trip down to Cape Town, much has happened.  I hope to share some of the bits and pieces that have happened in the past three months, and as we move along share more pieces of the adventure with you.