Salty Dawg Rally Day 5

I have Lee cloths for constraining me while sleeping but I never use them. I like to get up & look around the boat & get back to sleep with minimal interruption.

A nice little breeze has sprung up. Is it the real deal or is it just a passing phase? Do I raise my sails and head off in a new direction or do I wait and see what comes of it? I waited and half an hour later it died.

Clear starry sky tonight from horizon to horizon. There is no moon so it is pitch black but you can see a slight mist all the way around the boat. Quite magical.

There is a counter current of about half a knot that I have been fighting for a few hours now. I have a speed log on the hull that measures my speed through the water and I can compare it to the GPS SOG (speed over ground).

Even though it is not cold, I like to use a heavy wool blanket to sleep under because it is comfortable and cosy. Sleeping on a boat is difficult anyway so you need as much help as you can get.

I have 100 gallons of diesel on board which can get me 600 miles or about 5 days of motoring. I have probably used about 15 gallons so far and have come a third of the way so I am in good shape.

I slept well last night in preparation for the forecast bad weather. I got up a half dozen times & each time slept for about an hour or two. I don't set an alarm.

Even though there is no wind I have reefed the main in preparation for bad weather. I also swapped out the genoa with the tear in it for one a little bit smaller.

The ocean is huge. You would think that with 83 other boats out here that I would see at least one! But no. And don't get me started on all those stars up there.

I am about to go up on deck and video record the sunrise. I plan on putting all the sunrises and sunsets for this voyage into a video to show how calm it is.

I broke down this morning and made myself a cup of coffee. Now I am sitting in the cockpit, watching a glorious start to the day and sipping my cup of joe.

Let's just debunk this nonsense about the Westsail being as slow as a wet snail. It just ain't so. Period. Full stop. The 5th day out in the Rally and I am second in the pack of 83 boats. Ok so I did leave a little early, but so did half of the pack. Anyway time will tell. Let's see when we get to the BVI.

My 4th day was not a good day distance wise. Just 90 miles with most motoring against a one knot current and light breezes. 500Nm down and 800Nm to go.

Yet another one of those small birds has come to keep me company. And I mean really close. Like inches away from me. The thing is, I am 500 miles from land.

I'm having to sail at 170 degrees to overcome this current to get me on the rhumb line at 150 degrees. Plus it is a one knot drag. Frustrating!

I think I have solved my problem with the refrigerator causing interference with my satellite device. I relocated it outside in a Ziploc bag. Here's hoping.

I spent the last few hours getting ready for the rain and gales that are supposed to hit early tomorrow morning. I stored everything loose from the cockpit down in the cabin, got my foul weather gear ready and washed out all the salt from my face mask to wear when it rains. My best sail plan guess for a day of 25 knots from behind is a reefed main and staysail. Now if it all goes south, then I will dump the main and run with just the staysail. If it is lighter than that, then I will raise my smaller genoa and after that, shake out the reef.