My mate Ian's round the world race with Clipper Ventures…...

[Giles]

Jockeying for position at the start

The crew are on the rail and we're racing

[Giles]

OK, so he has put a tack or a gybe in and he is now heading in a similar direction to the rest of the fleet, maybe he was heading north to find more favourable winds, guess I'll find out at some point…..

[Giles]

So this is the reason for the apparent lack of pace:

In fact they were in the wrong place when the tide turned and are being pulled east, in the opposite direction to the one they wish to travel in. They have two knots of breeze but the speed of the tide against them is more and therefore they are effectively moving backwards. They are trying to use their sea anchor - known as a kedge - to hold them in position off Portland until the tide turns and they can shake loose.

[Beatle]

woah, this is funky stuff…hope they make up for the lost time...

[Giles]

Well the thing about these long races is that it is a marathon, not a sprint..  Some of the younger skippers will push their boats hard, and during a 40,000 mile race, things will start to break.  Ian, I am sure will take the longer view.

[Beatle]

well, than let´s look at the tide-break as part of the master plan…

[apba1166]

Great pix! Robin Knox Johnston is a friend of yours!?  He's the true spirit of the extreme version of this type of sailing. He's mentioned quite a bit in Lundy's Godforsaken Sea. Go Ian!

[Giles]

Yep, Robin is a friend and the best people in the world to spend any sort of time with.  I learn so much from him, whenever we are together….

[apba1166]

Giles, you ever crew one of these kind of things, or race dinghys or whatnot?  By the way, what's the link to he site that follows the race, that little map you posted….

[Giles]

I do a little bit of sailing but have not been out on one of these.  I'm toying with the idea of doing a couple of legs in the 2013/14 race.  They'll have completely new boats based loosely on the open 70's, now that'll be fun…....

http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/index.php/follow/race-viewer/

[jimmy]

glad to hear they are ok. they're no really behind in the grand of things

[Giles]

He is now up to third:

http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/index.php/follow/race-viewer/

I will stop being so over excited about this soon and.

And Jimmy yes, with 40,000 miles to go, it makes bugger all difference,

[jimmy]

i keep checking on them too. wish they had a live cam on board.

[Giles]

There will be stacks of media coming soon.

[SarahD]

@Madame:

We're very excited about having places on one of the spectator boats that will be sending all the Clipper yachts off on Sunday.  Lots of fun (but my dear friend Sarah is Ian's fiancee and facing a year apart, so there will also be some tears…)

Dear friends helping to mop up the tears - Legends that are Mr and Mrs P.  Ian wanted to come back for cider x

[SarahD]

@Giles:

He is now up to third:

http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/index.php/follow/race-viewer/

I will stop being so over excited about this soon and.

And Jimmy yes, with 40,000 miles to go, it makes bugger all difference,

Oh no you wont stop getting over excited just bored stupid by me going on and on!  All this support for Ian is fab, thank you.  40K miles is all he has to do - I have the wedding to arrange - he got off light!

[Madame Buttonfly]

@SarahD:

@Giles:

He is now up to third:

http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/index.php/follow/race-viewer/

I will stop being so over excited about this soon and.

And Jimmy yes, with 40,000 miles to go, it makes bugger all difference,

Oh no you wont stop getting over excited just bored stupid by me going on and on!  All this support for Ian is fab, thank you.  40K miles is all he has to do - I have the wedding to arrange - he got off light!

@SarahD:

@Giles:

He is now up to third:

http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/index.php/follow/race-viewer/

SarahD, how wonderful to have you "on board"!

I will stop being so over excited about this soon and.

And Jimmy yes, with 40,000 miles to go, it makes bugger all difference,

Oh no you wont stop getting over excited just bored stupid by me going on and on!  All this support for Ian is fab, thank you.  40K miles is all he has to do - I have the wedding to arrange - he got off light!

SarahD, how wonderful to have you "on board"!  Looking forward to updates over glass or two of vino on Thursday.  Keep your chin up, sweetheart

[Giles]

http://s988.photobucket.com/albums/af7/ironheart634S/?action=view¤t=MVI_0940.mp4

[Giles]

Ian has reached Madeira in 8th position (out of 10), therefore completing the shakedown leg.  He had a storming last 24 hours, apparently my kind words of support, "Get your fingers out of your feckin arse and race", served as some sort of inspiration…...

The next leg is one of the biggies, Madeira to Rio (one of the ones I want to do in 2013).

[Giles]

The first of the "real" legs is underway. Madeira to Rio.  Ian is in 4th atm, but with 3,500 miles to go it barely matters at this point