Position of Wells Fargo - American Pioneer 49 12N 23 07W
This morning Joe Harris and the crew aboard Wells Fargo - American Pioneer were "hooning" it toward England with the boat speed regularly hitting high teens. It has been a wet and wild ride. For the past 24-hours the crew have averaged over 12 knots and covered 306 miles. "We have adopted a new term called hooning," Joe explained in a satellite phone call. "Hooning is close in meaning to honkin', which for the rest of us means that they are sailing at full speed. The wind is from behind and Wells Fargo - American Pioneer is reveling in the conditions. "This boat was made for this kind of sailing," Joe said. "It's wet, but very exhilarating. Sometimes when we go down a big wave the whole boat gets covered with water. We call it the fish-bowl effect when the cabin windows are completely covered and the cockpit becomes a swimming pool."
The forecasted northwesterly winds filled in on Tuesday evening and Joe, Brad, Brian and Chris have enjoyed two days of fun and fast sailing. It has not been easy. The water temperature is around 50 degrees and everything above and below deck is wet. "At least we are still eating well," Joe said. "We love that AlpineAire Wild Thyme Turkey, but even so we are looking forward to life on land." With Plymouth less than 800 miles away thoughts are beginning to turn to warm food and cold beer, and the conversation centers around the first meal ashore. "We have been talking about having a nice meal on a steady table," Joe said. "As much as this is fun, it sure would be nice to eat from a plate (rather than a high-sided bowl) and be able to put your drink down without fear of it landing in your lap." Unfortunately the weather forecast does not look promising. The north-westerlies will continue for another day, but then they may die out or the wind may swing into the south forcing them onto a beat. A beat is when the wind is from the front and the boat has to "tack" through the eye of the wind to make progress. It's slow and tedious and never the best way to end a passage.
Despite the forecast Wells Fargo - American Pioneer is still expected to reach Plymouth this weekend and will join the rest of The Transat fleet at Plymouth Yacht Haven.
- Brian Hancock (great.circle@verizon.net)
