ut of the light and fluky and into fast track to La Rochelle, 12 knots at the barn right now. 370 miles to go for us, 18 miles
more for Swedish Match.
I am watching the battle up front between Toshiba and Silk, just
as you are. Toshiba has sailed an excellent race. At first they
positioned themselves correctly in the Gulf Stream, then they
stayed far enough away from the high pressure off Nova Scotia,
something Silk did not do. A week after the start, Toshiba was in
a foot race for four days with Merit Cup. As they approached the
ridge, Toshiba made the move to the north, obviously a calculated
move, and Merit did not. Now Silk and Chessie have come in from
the back while we all parked. Always in the lead or very close to
it, Toshiba has made about five correct decisions in a row on a
very tricky leg. I think they deserve to win this one.
For us, we are still "between the man and the hoop." It is not
easy to match-race someone in the ocean for 3,500 miles only
knowing their whereabouts once every six hours. But it is the
right strategy for us and, now that the course is narrowing, we feel
less and less anxiety about their possible routes. Our mission
for this leg is to win the war, not necessarily the battle. We
are just hoping it doesn't get too squirrelly coming into La Rochelle
tomorrow night. The current will be against us, that much we know
already.
The girls have sailed an excellent leg and I am happy for them.
The EF campaign has been a great opportunity for them and this leg
is showing how much they have improved. I am sure La Rochelle will
receive them in a huge way.
The forecast for the next 36 hours is northeasterly wind 10-15
knots, getting lighter as we approach land tomorrow night. We
should arrive around 02:00 UT on Sunday.
Stevie told me yesterday that Friday would be our last day of
food. I did not mind too much because the leg has taken longer
than forecast and you have to cut these things close if you are
racing. Then he "found" another food bag. The good news is more
food. The bad news is that it is Chilli. I don't know if I can
afford to eat.
