La Promesse NED7576

The old Furuno 207 Weatherfax is doing a wonderfull job. For those interested, I save all downloaded charts to educate a next generation sailors at home called Floris (12), Wouter (9) and little princess Alou (6 and who prefers to be a tiger!). Floris will participate in Dutch hampionship teamsailing Optimist (NED3215). Wouter sailing his ‘Wouterzooi’ under NED3086.
Alou mainly coaching the boys from the rib.

A subset of the charts we used during the race I will list on my website after the race. For those interested keep an eye on my website for two weeks after the race.
Bright clear from a steady and sound signal from Pinnenberg (D) show us the next low approaching to give us another hard job tonight and Saturday with some SW headwinds towards St Kilda.
So now, we are sailing as fast we can along the rhumbline to Sula Sgeir. The farther south the better!

With a red thin liner I emphasize the UK and Ireland (which are in fact resized to some larger ‘wattensee insel’ now that these trimarans circumnavigate the empire in only 3 days or even less, ofcourse).

On the rollercoaster La Promesse is these days it’s difficult not to, by accident, take or annexate (is that English) parts of France and Belgium around Dover. One rogue wave made me take Pas de Calais from Dunkerque to Dieppe. An area that could be of stra tegic importance if one wants to control all shipping through the Strait. How lomg would a RBI take in that case?

In my fantasy there is a Furuno weather-next. Where we draw our own weatherchart and feed that into the machine to see that only hours later the weather changes……

Close reach today is a welcome relief after beating in rough seas. Deep and sound sleep helps us charge battery beyond the bulk stage. A good tea (lapsang souchon mixed with earl grey) and coffee (for the captain) as well as a good shave and a more comforta
ble ‘sitstop’ are in the range of float charge and even feel fully charged for a while afterwards.

ARCTIC LADY on starboard. 288m (10m draft, 49m beam) tanker with destination PECEM. Huge hell orange tanks on deck good visible from a distance of 9nm.

Clear weather, few showers. Wind WNW 16-19kts. Backing W later and SW tonight. That’s gonna be another tough 36 hours of beating.

Thanks again for your attention if you’ve come to read this!

JanKees & Bart

Been there, seen it, done it!
Twice!
With who?
With Bart!
In 2006 clockwise, daylight, to win RWYC Shetlands RBI in class en 2nd overall behind Michel Kleinjans. And now anti clockwise, pitch dark (that rock must be somewhere there).
Exciting! An island in darkness is scary. It feels so close you can touch it. Although the chart says you’re 8 miles offshore. Big holes and high mountains sea.
Chicken curry and ‘borrelnootjes’ for dinner.
Socks do smell.

This afternoon in taking out a reef we lost our Yellowbrick racetracker. We did a man overboard routine immediately but couldn’t find the thing back. All is right here.
Good breeze from the wrong direction we’re beating up to Lamba Ness and the Muckle thing.
Another 56 nm before the roundabout where we’ll take the first left (UK remeber).

Please follow tracking information on http://www.ned7576.com under Links & contact.

Ahoy JanKees & Bart

…. in rounding Muggle F(l)ugga.
After such a flying start and run towards Peterhead in 48 hrs the 150nm beating upwind towards Lamba Ness and Muckle Flugga is testing morae. Boat just tacked without any order to do so.
As I was getting ready for keeping watch.
And so ruined myy fresh made coffee.
As to mention an example.
Wind is much less but a confused sea is till in place which makes sleeping difficult. BANG!
Nonetheless, we are sailing in beautiful waters. Clear sky with clear moonlight. And rains of falling stars.

Had a large group of fifteen or so Dolphins playing around the boat yesterday afternoon.
Intelligent animals. I’m sure that when they come up alongside the cockpit they see you and at least hear my whistle. They lasted for more than half an hour. Swimming ahead of the boat, underneath, staboard, jump, underneath, port, jump. As if they were wav
ing. If we were not in a race, I would have jumped in and joined them for the game!

with laughter from 60nm SE off Fair Isle,

Bart (Zzzzzt) & JanKees
La Promesse

Bart Boosman’s famous omelette (breakfast, lunch, brunch, dinner, whenever) 1. onions
2. onions
3. Red Leicester (cheddar)
4. eggs
5. peper & salt
6. onions

The cooking is acrobatics. But, both Bart and I, prefer shaken. Not stirred.

Edinburgh on port side.
Reef in reef out.
Ballast in, ballast out.
Bunk in, bunk out.

Even been under double reefed main and staysail.
Morale fair to good.
Breakfast imminent.
Coffee soon.

Outlook for the next 24 hours:
See if we can go trough the low center and pick up other flow than NW. Prepare for a bit of beating and hammering.
Fun.
Sssssjjjjtt, Bart sleeps.

….. it is.
Seriously tough.
Sea seems outrageous.
Crossed Arwen this morning just as their spinnaker halyard broke. Spectacular sight but pity and trouble and a lot of work for their crew. They surprised us with a dead down wind course under spi.

We’re carrying one reef and staysail. Doing 9-11kts over ground AWA 65deg. 280nm to Peterhead.

Outlook of WNW7 and even N later is a bit scary.
For that leg we wish we’d stepped on an 80 foot Wally.
With a library and a dryer.

We’re fine. Good watch and sleeps.
Pasta Bolognese, Rice Cashew and Cruesli for Breakfast.

JanKees & Bart

Jerry Freeman learned that one first has to finish to finish 1st.
Difficult enough to keep all parts
together in rough weather of today.
First retirements due to damagr are a
pity. We’re glad we could repair ours.

Under code0 in Gull Stream off Ramsgate.

Zoom in for our professional patch.
Dungeness. 42kts true gusts in 35 fresh sustained.

IRC One
Jankees Lampe’s Open 40, La Promesse, is revelling in the downwind conditions. The other half of the Dutch Two-Handed team is Bart Boosman, who was shouting for joy at the Skippers’ Briefing when he heard that the course was being reversed. La Promesse is trucking along, averaging over 15 knots, leading IRC One and the Two-Handed Class and fourth in IRC Overall.

See sevenstar site