Delta Lloyd Leg Two Day 7 QFB: received 21.11.08 1845 GMT
It will be a busy on deck and at the nav desk on the Delta Lloyd tonight. Two sail changes and a gybe are on the menu. For the past 36 hours, we have been a very happy crew as we gain on the fleet with every position report. The boat is on fire….(metaphorically speaking, of course)… Our fractional code zero has been a workhorse for us. While still making gains, early this afternoon, we changed headsails to our R1 - high clue reacher. This sail allows us to sail about 10 degrees higher true wind angles than our fractional zero. This is a move we thought was necessary to make sure that we stay in touch with the fleet by sailing a parallel course.
Right now, we are positioned to the right of the fleet, and our predictions of more wind on this side seem to be right, based on the latest position reporting of wind speeds and direction from each boat. We still have 22-24 knots of wind, while the other boats seem to be in the 16-18 knot range. Hopefully, we can hang onto this pressure for another couple of hours, and continue to chip away at the fleet.
…The sail changes and the gybe will be necessary as we get lifted (wind shift from west to east through the south) all night long. The scenario will play out like this:
Currently:
TWA: 100
TWS: 22knots
TWD: 315
Sail: R1
2-3 hours from now
TWA: 115
TWS: 20knots
TWD: 300
Sail: fractional zero
5-7 hours from now:
TWA: 135
TWS: 18 knots
TWD: 240
Sail: A4 masthead downwind running sail
Gybe:
Tomorrow
Wind continues its swing to the east…we change from our downwind A4 to some sort of reaching sail ….
Matthew Gregory - navigator