Halifax Race Start
July 5, 2015
Hello Friends-
So we are off and away on the start of the 2015 Marblehead to Halifax Race. There was a lot of preparation required this week for the first big offshore test of the season, and things like charts and flares and safety gear and running rigging had to be systematically checked off the list. I sailed the boat up from Block Island to Beverly last week and had the boat at the dock for about five days which is pretty unusual and very helpful in getting ready. My friend and co-skipper Dave Rearick of Bodacious Dream fame flew in from Chicago on Friday and was a great help in final pre-race prep.
The start today off Marblehead was in light winds and they sent on an inshore windward leg past the spectator fleet, up the coast towards Boston and then around a mark and East to Halifax. We had a good start- very tight with Dave's old boat Bodacious Dream- being sailed by two Canadians and led the DH fleet at the first mark. However the wind went very light and on the nose and we struggled to the next mark before being freed to set a downwind sail and let the boat go. We have now been going for about 5 hours and have covered over 40 miles and the sun is descending and the breeze has been a steady +- 12 knots from the Southwest. Predictions are that the wind will go light tonight so we are trying to make hay while the sun shines.
So a very happy July 4th to all and we will report in again tomorrow - hopefully well down the track towards Cape Sable and southern Nova Scotia.
Cheers
Joe
