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Fleet Updates

DaveH

DaveH

Mr Hedgehog
Staff member
Starting this thread to capture updates from the fleet as they arrive -
For right now, they are relatively sparse, most are settling in, with seat belts secured.

Seems to be a bumpy but fast ride for most - everyone is checked in and tracking well from my perspective
No breakages have been reported as of this morning

Tracker

DH
 
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From AKUMU 1501z 06/23

Checking in.
Akumu is cold and wet.
Need to get more west.

From TOPAZ 1602z 06/23 -

After a wet and wild night the sun is out and the wind is starting to back a bit. Got plenty of rest though it was exciting at times trying to sleep while surfing at 10-11 knots.

Took in a bit of water, spent most of the morning bailing out compartments. Waiting for conditions to calm a bit more before attempting a hot meal though is still some bump in the sea state.

All for now!
 
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Yes, there is more news!

From WHITE ROSE 1524z
All good on White Rose.

Jim Q was wrong about there being no shipping past the Farallon's. White Rose had to change course around 3 am to avoid USGC Eagle….under sail and heading to SF. I think other vessels had to dodge her as well since she cross at 90 degrees to the leading boats.

From REVERIE 2230z
Monday June 23 Reverie is in her element, loving the windy reach. All OK.

Also, FUGU very nearly copped a 2hr penalty by missing his checkin window by an hour or so.
Fortunately for Chris, Alex stepped in after my 1930 PDT position report, and "relayed" an overheard VHF conversation between SOLSTICE and FUGU at around 1900L time... and then Chris checked in.. we'll call that good enough.

Have a good night all
DH
 
OK - Lots of updates today -
apologies - it was a long day at the office for me
 

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Fleet Updates - JUN 24
Some breakages, all still sailing well, if a bit slower not that they're clear of the coastal compression

From REVERIE 2218z
Day 3 Tue 6/24 all good aboard Reverie enjoying our little drag race with SOLSTICE, no other boats within AIS range now

From FUGU (series of inreach messages) ending 2230z
  1. Tore the tabbing off the hull
  2. Off the starboard ap. Proceeding with tiller pilot
  3. I have fiber glass and epoxy.
From STARSHIP 2241z
Flyin’ my Code 0. Beam reach. It’s gorgeous out here. Thanks for helping me get here.
Wow!!

From SOLSTICE 1640z
  1. Hey Dave, finally got a chance to get to my email to send a Proof Of Life. I sent you a text message as well too. Somewhat of an emergency today with an electrical fire on board with my propane solenoid controller catching fire. It was the controller that’s next to my galley that caught fire while I was in the head, of course engine running to charge batteries and food in the oven. the process now is removing all wiring from the solenoid itself, which must’ve had a short and bypassing that system entirely so that I can still use oven. I do have a jet boil back up in case I can’t get the propane online. I’ll keep you posted.
  2. Update for you… I removed the solenoid and controller and direct plumb the propane tank through the pressure regulator directly to the oven/stove. had to get creative with the limited pipe fittings on board. Not something I wanna do every day with without a hardware store, that’s for sure. Conditions were perfect to allow me to tackle this issue and MacGyver it back together. Beam reaching and 15 to 20 kn breeze currently. No spinnakers yet. Thanks for being on standby.
From AKUMU 1527z
Checking in. There is life here in the
Akumu swamp.
 
Great updates. In a couple of weeks I am doing Vigo Spain to Madeira solo. So I feel a connection to these brave men.
 
more from AKUMU 0430z Jun 25
Appetite getting better.
Drinking water.
Had apple, carrot, bread and chips.

Reaching down to stay in the 15 kt breeze.

Had a little sunshine and put a few things out to dry.
Put gorilla tape on the hatch.
Yes, it leaked way worse than expected!
Port bunk is a soggy mess.

Akumu
 
A bunch of stuff from TOPAZ - catching up some backdated logs

1505z JUN 24
Topaz 6/24 AM race report
Finally made it out of the rough stuff, seas are in a much more manageable state. Looks like I dipped a bit too low and caught some of the light stuff on the ridge. Tried to start the A3 last night but it was too early and ended up taking it down. Crossed pretty close to a commercial vessel Atakama around 12am, hailed them on the radio had a quick chat.

Pleasant sailing now, just starting to dry some things off and waiting for the sun to come out. About to have some oatmeal and coffee for breakfast, may mean the bucket finally comes out. Those who know, know ;)

Otherwise getting plenty of rest and calories, gonna tweak up a little higher to see if I can make my way back into that better wind.

1144z JUN 25
Topaz 6/24 PM race report
Spent a good chunk of the day trying to find the right gear, turns out it was the code zero with double reefed main. Topaz was feeling slippery again.

Changed heading about an hour ago to enter the slot car leg, which meant wind was just a tad aft for the code zero so moved back to the a3 and I think it will stay up this time. Boat is feeling extra smooth and still making 8 knots give or take.

Salad for lunch, possibly salad again for dinner. Trying to get through my refrigerated provisions so I can shut off the fridge and conserve power. Hopefully when the sun stays out longer this is less of an issue but may need to run the genny tomorrow just to keep stuff topped up. Either way there is a second battery so plenty of capacity if I don’t get to it but easier to run the genny than switch the battery given where everything has ended up.

Sunshine did good to dry out the boat and cheer me up. Already finished one of my books fall of Hyperion in case anyone was wondering) started the next one (Endymion).

That’s all for now, topaz slipping on by!
 
A note about time stamps on this thread - I have been posting in entries in Zulu (AKA UTC) time.... that may be confusing for some, but since my workaday world spans multiple time zones, with different versions of daylight & standard time I find it's become reflex to reference one universal truth.
Deal with it.

DH
 
06/25 Updates - long post

From TOPAZ 1513z
Had an exciting night under a3. Was going fast for a bit even slept for a few hours and everything was fine. Then around 4 Am I got a pretty bad wrap and spent the next couple hours working it out. Lost most of the ground I had gained so taking the morning to sort out sails and lines and get some good food and rest before I try again.
Otherwise all is well aboard the good ship topaz!

From STARSHIP 1517z
Quiet night. But now I have to deviate south, so I have to swap the 0 for the big aso. With my characteristic speed (ha ha) that’s 2 hours at least.
Better than a rocking chair.

From INNFALL 1526z
6/25 Day 4 InnFall. All is well. Talked with Akumu.
We are within a few miles of each other. Nice to talk with another human. Cheers

From SOLSTICE 1534z
Good morning so far… No electrical fires and broken tiller to have to deal with today. Repairs accomplished and doing my best to put some time in towards Hawaii. Had a fast evening and nice morning. Breakfast yogurt with granola fresh berries. Also captured my first deck squid 🦑 on board today. Always funny to see those creatures and wonder how they make it up on the deck like they do. Anyway, busy navigating, inspecting and sorting things out on the boat while planning my next moves today. All the best to this great support team and fellow competitors to be safe while enjoying the ride.
Gray and cloudy conditions at the moment out here in the great Pacific Ocean… Winds between 15 and 22 with wind gradually shifting aft. Looks like we’re crossing the ridge today.
Michael
Cal40Solstice

From AKUMU 1652z
A/P not driving well.
Woke up many times throughout the night to adjust course.
Up early to drive today.
Spoke with Infall on VHF around 08:30

From FUGU 1721z
Epoxy curing 24 Hr I might start pushing again all is well other wise

From WHITE ROSE 1824z
All good on White Rose. No problems. Spinnaker going up after I hit send

From REVERIE 0027z (Jun 26)
Overnight wind increased a few times to low-20’s but backed to 135-140 TWA. Still sailing cutter rig, decided to wait until morning to hoist the kite as the night is pitch-black - cloudy, no moon or starts.

6/25/25 Wed
Grey drizzly morning again, and warmer yet, almost too warm for foulies. A couple of squid on deck.
Took down stays’l and inner forestay (took a while, 7:30-9 am) and hoisted S4 (9-10 am), as the wind still pipes up into low 20’s at times (but mostly 16-18 kts). Solstice gained a lot of ground and is now to the South of me. S4 is flying nicely and seems quite forgiving (much more so than A2).
Winds got lighter by lunch time, thinking I should have S2 up instead.
As I was having a nice lunch, I was rudely interrupted by a loud bang. Went outside and saw the pole banging about the forestay. The brand new 10 mm guy (in fact I just finished rigging it one day before the start!) blew up right below the shackle knot! Ok, doused S4 (nice and easy with the new sock line run to cockpit - per Jim Quanci), took it down, and set S2 instead (all in all took about an hour). Definitely lost some ground and looks like Solstice took the lead in the monohull division.



END 06/25 updates
Good Night All - DH
 
When I check 'all boats' I can't find White Rose on the tracker; Perplexity is listed twice? Fat fingers?
 
06/26 updates

From TOPAZ 1337z
I had a great day with the A3 consistently watching the wind start to shift more aft. It’s been fairly windy, especially at night, and around 10-11 pm an already bent part of the bow pulpit broke off leaving a sharp edge exposed. Because I had moved the a3 back to the bow off the pole (to try and power down a bit to sleep) it meant the foot was rubbing against this unbeknownst to me.

Well sure enough I learned what happened up front when the tack of the sail ripped and the whole sail blew out spectacularly. Given it was pretty windy and dark I moved back to my #3 jib so I could rest a bit and do what I can to protect the s2 from the sharp parts of the broken bow pulpit before I hoist it.

Honestly it may have been for the best as the boat was going hard and had I continued with the a3 like that all night something else more catastrophic may have failed. Also it meant I had plenty of sleep since waking up there have been few ships on ais and little tending needed to keep the boat as fast as it can go with the reduced sails.

Once I’ve had some breakfast I will revisit the bow situation and assess if I have enough depth on the wind to sail the s2 from here on out.

Otherwise happy healthy and safe on board topaz. Sail on sailors!

From INNFALL 1527z
6/26 Day 5 InnFall. "She won't get you there fast, but she will get you there".

From STARSHIP 1545z
DDW is sooo slow. I’d better learn to like it.
Have a good day

From SOLSTICE 1615z
Checking in from Solstice on June 26, 2025 at 9 AM.
Yesterday was all about making adjustments, cleaning up, and finding my rhythm. Last night was full press race mode with spinnaker up broad reaching with moderate winds and sea state. Ohhh, and figuring out which was the right direction to go based on the weather models. I was once told by my good friend Robin Jeffers (yes, the grandson of the famous poet) that ocean races are won or lost at night! He’s right, and it sure was a beautiful night with a sky full of stars and Milky Way. Solo racing is extremely hard work and amazing sunsets and nighttime on the eastern Pacific is one of the many reasons why it is worth it. Cheers,
Michael P
Solstice

From WHITE ROSE 1838z
All good on White Rose.
A couple of self-inflicted problems that were calamities at the time, but which got sorted:
  • In preparation for hoisting the spinnaker net, I brought the starboard halyard forward to the pulpit. This was a dumb move. When I rolled in the genoa, the halyard managed to get wrapped in the sail. Two hours later I had it free, during which time Reverie and Solstice gained several miles on me.
  • Beautiful broad reach with the spinnaker flying, hull speed and some, and making up some of the lost miles on Reverie and Solstice. As dusk approached, the TWS started to build form 15 to 18. I was thinking now might be a good time to douse. Too late….wipeout ….Chinese gybe. Saved by the sturdy boom preventer, Synthia’s amazing spinnaker net and a fortuitously timed wave, the bow came round and we started sailing. Needless to say, the snuffer, rigged as per Jim Q, achieved a successful douse. Phew!
Fortunately nothing is damaged and White Rose continues to sail.
It’s a learning experience. I’m lucky to have such a sturdy and forgiving yacht

From REVERIE 2309z
6/26 Reverie reports loss of S2 spinnaker - ripped by a 30 kt gust from a micro-squall early this morning. Continuing with S4, all ok.
 
From TOPAZ 0355z (June 27)
Topaz 06/26 PM update
Today was the fastest day so far for topaz, with a new trip top speed of 16.5 knots and inching closer and closer to that elusive 200nm day.

I crossed behind Reverie’s path and hailed him on the radio, the highlight for me today. Definitely cool to get around 10nm of a friends boat so far from home (or anything else).

The wind built up on us quickly and soon I found my self locked to the helm since slowing the boat down enough to get the spinnaker down needed some care and attention. Luckily I rigged my sock control lines to the cockpit, just as Jim Q had recommended which made this pretty straightforward to douse without too much drama.

It wasn’t until after everything was put away I noticed the wind trend had topped out around 25-26 sustained. It’s always around 10 knots on deck when the wind is aft on topaz,the boat just going half of the wind speed with no upper limit that I have found yet.

It’s just getting dark now and boat is still surfing up to low teens under reefed main and #3. None of this was in any of my forecasts and it’s definitely lasted longer than a localized squall type event. Curious what is driving this phenomenon and how long it will last. I’m grateful it’a not on or ahead of the beam this time.
 
06/27 Updates

From TOPAZ 1737z
Last night I was feeling a bit sluggish and beat up after a very harrowing spinnaker run. With the wind still pushing mid 20s I decided to leave the working sails up and opt for more rest. Given the sheeting angle on my #3 I found an angle that was fast but a bit higher than I would have liked to go and snoozed my way through the evening.

This morning I’m feeling refreshed, and got the spinnaker back out in between early AM squalls. Now we are happily skipping along as I ponder when exactly my first jibe will happen.

Eggs for breakfast all is well aboard topaz!

From REVERIE 1820z

Yesterday (6/26) was a bad kite day on Reverie. Early in the morning, my big S2 got caught by a 25+ kt gust from a micro-squall. The boat rounded up, the kite filled and blew up all the way across the yellow horizontal stripe. Lower part went in the water, had to shrimp it out, that was the morning workout. Took everything down, packed it. Pretty bummed about the S2!

Took a while but finally hoisted the smaller S4 symmetric spinnaker around 08:00.

Lumpy seas in the afternoon, boat rolling as the wind fluctuates between upper teens and low 20’s, spinnaker not happy, difficult to find a groove where it doesn’t collapse all the time.

Talked on VHF to Loren on Topaz around 15:00, who was catching up to Reverie.

Around 16:00 the boat wanted to round up in a gust again, and the pole broke. S4 caught wind and we had a bad wipe-out. Rounded up, rail in the water, I couldn’t let the lines go quickly enough and the S4 was shredded to pieces, what a mess! Lowered and packed the shredded kite, cleaned up. Feeling down, what a bad kite day on Reverie! 2 brand new spinnakers in one day!

Talked to Loren again in the evening, he’s going well but had trouble too, destroyed A3.

Poled out genoa going dead down wind, and had a nice dinner. Reverie now in cruising mode.



From PERPLEXITY 1209z (June 28)

Things are going pretty well on Perplexity. The first day and a half were un-ideal with too much sail for the conditions. Then the puzzle of how low to go. I probably didn't go low enough even though I ended up lower than intended. Had some great spinnaker sailing and learning that is it possible to get a wrap with a net. The wrap occurs on the snuffer lines. The good news is you can still get the whole thing down. So I did that with the A2 and promptly launched the A 5, 15 minutes later, another wrap. I think it was the light wind and bumpy conditions. Took a couple of hours to unwrap them and off again. The weather looking ahead is certainly a puzzle. Routing says go west towards the high in order to jibe over with the shift. I'm not convinced!
 
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From TOPAZ 1600z (Jun 28)
Today was one of the most pleasant days of sailing I have ever had I think. Perfect trade conditions, t-shirt sailing, wind in the mid teens but hardly noticed on deck as the boat skips along the waves.

Made radio contact with white rose and reverie today. Was nice to chat with my fellow voyagers.

Otherwise not a whole lot to do other than keep checking on body settings to see if I can squeeze out another fractions of a knot. The 200 mile 24 hour run still eludes me but I’m in a groove now and I think I can get at least one in before this is all done.

Getting to the end of my fresh food. It was a really nice option while it was available, especially the salads. The two heads of cabbage on board are still going strong and have been a great little bit of extra tastiness to add to mostly prepared foods. It must be time to start making some dinner haha.

Topaz is surfing on by,
 
From SOLSTICE JUN 28 1520z
Dave and RC...

Solstice checking in this morning of June 28th at 0800hours eastern Pacific Ocean Time ( I made that time zone up). Nice to have reached the halfway point and I look forward to opening up my package to see what goodies are inside. It has been some awesome fun downwind sailing rotating between squall spinnaker and light S4 symmetric spinnaker as needed. All is well on Solstice today and trekking right along. Weather models are very interesting so it will be fun to find out when everyone decides to jibe towards the barn. Looking forward to more beautiful sunrises and sunsets and wildlife as we get closer to the islands.

Note to other competitors... Make sure you take a break on your foredeck and look around at this magnificent ocean. I did, and I was immediately humbled by it and will never forget that (and those) moments! We are so lucky!

Cheers from Michael on Solstice.
 
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