South America is in sight!
The silhouettes of oil rigs have faded into the distance, and can officially see the outline of Carb Frio on the horizon. 65.2 nautical miles to Rio...
The silhouettes of oil rigs have faded into the distance, and can officially see the outline of Carb Frio on the horizon. 65.2 nautical miles to Rio...
Last night saw some good 15knots which had Ciao Bella flying down the waves as the kamikaze pilots took charge. The competition moved from who could reach the top speed, to who could keep it on the plane for the longest. Ricky and Mum's watch saw the wind die down at around 02h30 and has since been sitting at around 8-10knots.
We hope that the weather forecast, like all the others we have received over the past few days, it will be wrong. The forecast for later today does not look that great with lighter winds predicted. We hope this is not the case, as rations are running low and our lack of fishing skills might have us be forced to eat Michaela.
In the event of no breeze, we will move to the implementation of plan 17G: the traditional Ciao Bella light wind sacrifice. Earlier this week had us receiving a mail in which some priceless information was revealed to us by Mr Hammick himself surrounding this Ciao Bella Tradition. The tradition includes each of the guys shaving one half of their beard off (the windward side of the face as to present a smooth slip-streamed face). It also includes having to sacrifice one sailing shoe each. Apparently this sacrifice will have the wind gods look favourably upon you. Priceless advice I tell you!
Besides the obvious attraction of a large 400g steak, there is the chance to share war-stories with all the other crews. We have been lucky enough to compete against some exceptional crews. This race has highlighted not only the high level of skill, but the great level of sportsmanship that these crews possess. The magnanimous gesture of Xtra-link giving up their own race in order to assist Izivungu with water speaks to exactly this.
As the finish line is looming and the breeze starts to set in, it is important to recognise five people:
- Our legend ground crew: Johan, Derek and Aunty Sharyn. Their unwavering support through the whole campaign has been mind-blowing.We hope that the weather forecast, like all the others we have received over the past few days, it will be wrong. The forecast for later today does not look that great with lighter winds predicted. We hope this is not the case, as rations are running low and our lack of fishing skills might have us be forced to eat Michaela.
In the event of no breeze, we will move to the implementation of plan 17G: the traditional Ciao Bella light wind sacrifice. Earlier this week had us receiving a mail in which some priceless information was revealed to us by Mr Hammick himself surrounding this Ciao Bella Tradition. The tradition includes each of the guys shaving one half of their beard off (the windward side of the face as to present a smooth slip-streamed face). It also includes having to sacrifice one sailing shoe each. Apparently this sacrifice will have the wind gods look favourably upon you. Priceless advice I tell you!
Besides the obvious attraction of a large 400g steak, there is the chance to share war-stories with all the other crews. We have been lucky enough to compete against some exceptional crews. This race has highlighted not only the high level of skill, but the great level of sportsmanship that these crews possess. The magnanimous gesture of Xtra-link giving up their own race in order to assist Izivungu with water speaks to exactly this.
As the finish line is looming and the breeze starts to set in, it is important to recognise five people:
- The Stig: This was the man who oversaw over 180 messages of support being delivered to our inbox. His work in the comms department has been phenomenal.
and lastly and most importantly...
- Mark Hammick: His incredibly kind gesture of letting us make use of his boat, for nothing more than a case of Brazilian beer in payment, made this amazing adventure possible.
Right kids - the Caparinhas are calling, and the Kitchen closes at 22h00. Best we get those speedos on and get this baby making those bubbly noises again that she so loves making.
See you in Rio!
PS - Will be updating pics this weekend onto the blog, so make sure to check it out on Monday.
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