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Fleet Updates

From InnFall JUN 28 1713z
6/28 Day 8 InnFall. Having a wonderful time. Sunshine this morning and deep blue water. Beautiful adventure.
 
From TOPAZ JUN 28 1936z
I am excited to be approaching the halfway point of this race, which I should achieve in the next few hours. From this point forward the miles will diminish and the anticipation of seeing my wife, family, friends and fellow competitors will slowly grow.

While the first two days were tough from a physical and ocean conditions perspective, last night was probably where I started to confront my own limitations within this adventure. Exhaustion finally caught up with me as I tried to push hard with the s2 all night with limited success.

Sometimes you have to go slow to go fast, and sometimes you can’t find the right gear to get the boat moving how you think it should. Often this is the culmination of the skippers own exhaustion, and has nothing to do with their vessel which has remained a constant throughout the race.

To change perspectives a bit, I decided to throw in my first gybe and see if getting the waves on the other side of the boat would help. The two angles are pretty close now, though starboard pole is still favored, but going through the motions of the gybe seemed to give me a slight I was hoping for. I will flip back on to starboard pole later this afternoon, but this at least tactically should put me into a bit more wind for the next day or two before I eye the next gybe to line up with the finish.

Having rested a bit now, and gotten a good helping of breakfast (a double portion of oatmeal and coffee) my morale has returned and Topaz is reacting appropriately to my suggestions. Even the low points have still been so much more vibrant than the mundane day to day of my regular life. I’m finding myself fantasizing about what configuration changes I want to make to the boat before the next go around!

Topaz, happily going her merry way,
 
From REVERIE (JUN 29) 0152z

Made reasonably good progress overnight but wind lightened in the morning, so going slower (still with the poled-out genoa) but still got over 160 nm in 24 hrs by 16:00.
Partly sunny and almost hot during the day.
Late afternoon wind increased to high teens -low 20’s again, and a couple of squalls with upper 20’s, glad I didn’t have my big A2 up yet.

Half-way mark crossed around 18:00 (1060 nm to go)!!
Time to open the half-way party, thanks to Randy s/v Tortuga!
 
From TOPAZ (JUN 29) 0342z
Topaz 6/28 PM report (halfway party edition)

Wow what a difference a day can make, especially when you throw in a little bit of rest and celebration.

As reported earlier I was feeling pretty beat last night, but today marked the halfway point for me in this race leaving just over 1000 miles remaining. I’m now officially closer to Kauai than I am to the SF Bay.

My lovely and amazing wife put together a really fantastic halfway box with letters and notes from many friends and family. Regardless of how I perform at the end of this race I’m excited to know I’m already a winner just having her in my corner. Not only has she supported me in this whole crazy adventure, she took the time and initiative to herd all my friends and family to put this together without me even knowing. I was so surprised!

I also want to acknowledge Randy if s/v Tortuga who I don’t even know, but he handed me a halfway party bag before I left SF. This included many useful items I was direly in need of (like chap stick!) as well as a mini shot bottle of vodka which helped me achieve additional rest and relaxation.

There are so many other people I should acknowledge for help along the way, and there will be a time and a place to properly do so, but I do want to also publicly thank my friend Matt for helping with ground logistics for the trailer while I’m away, and of course my parents who some how just accept that I’m doing this and cheer me on the whole time.

Still a lot of race left and still a very close match up. This was very much what I needed today (along with some sleep!) Topaz and I are rearing up to give this second half everything we got! See you all in hanalei!
 
From AKUMU (JUN 29) 0422z

Friday, I got the kite up for about 4/5 hours in the afternoon. Same deal as yesterday, wind very much on the beam.
Fast sometimes, but lots of round ups .

Started seeing flying fish just a few big ones at first, later on started seeing lots of little ones.

Had lentils and carrot for dinner.
Batteries is very low down to 20% hopefully get some more sun tomorrow.

Same trouble with the auto pilot it wants to lead to weather and if you tried to correct it winds up oversteering 45° to leeward.

Saturday the 28th
Good sun today batteries are charging back up .
Wind has moved aft, but couldn’t get the spinnaker up because the auto pilot wouldn’t drive properly. Wound up almost dropping the spinnaker in the water.
Set the drifter out on the pole running wing on wing, auto pilot seems to be doing fairly well with that.
Pretty disappointed in this run so far I was hoping to be doing a whole lot better.
Saw a couple of floats in the water, no glass ones, a bicycle helmet and a couple chunks of rope.
Saw one of those beer bottles with the resealable flip top, by the time I realized it might be a message in a bottle it was gone.

Had a fairly nice run for about three hours before sunset just surfing the boat between the waves and enjoying it.

I think it is going to be breakfast skillet for dinner.
 

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AKUMU Jun 29 1510z
Akumu checking in.
Hove to so I can facilitate adding an upper gudgeon. Was getting noisy. Have a long pin so I was able to double it.
Back underway soon .
 
SOLSTICE Jun 29 1614z
Checking in from Solstice with Proof Of Life on day seven June 28 (sic - send Jun 29, DH)
Busy day yesterday first planning for and then executing a jibe, cleaning up the lines, then dialing it in throughout the day on the new tack with a new rhythm. Funny how the boat feels completely different from starboard tack versus port tack, huh?
🤔

Then rolled out of my bunk, realizing I needed to get into the opposite side of the boat. Hope all is well with my fellow competitors. Sure is amazing out here in the great Eastern Pacific! I just love watching the flying fish and the beauty and power of the squalls as they roll through.
Solstice out.
 
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WHITE ROSE 2304s JUN 29
Alive and well. Tear in asym. Haven’t had a chance to see if it’s fixable. Have a back-up used kite which will go up once I’ve adjusted the length of the sock control rope. It arrived just before I left so didn’t get a chance to try it out.
 
REVERIE 0023z JUN 30
All good on board Reverie Sun 6/29, slow going winds 9-12 flying my last remaining kite (A2) trying to stay with the pack.
 
AKUMU 2012z JUN 29
I was able to reset the a/p gain. Doing better.
Must have gotten changed when I was trying to adjust the tack angle.
Thanks for listening!
🤪
 
TOPAZ 6/29 PM race report 0110z
After a fitful night the day before I opted to go easy on myself last night and let the “white sails” drive wing on wing through the night. This was lower maintenance than the s2 (which is a lot of square footage on this boat) and won’t win me any races but it at least kept my pace ok while allowing for a more restful sleep.

Today the winds have been lighter all day, around 12 knots, and I finally shook out the first reef for the first time the entire race I think. I gybed first thing this morning (whenever the sun came up, which was around 7am PDT but that time zone is becoming more and more meaningless as I travel west).

I’ve been trying to keep a hotter angle all day with the lighter winds as I skirt the edge of a bubble slipping down from the high. Nothing is at a standstill, and I’m still definitely in the trades, but the 12 knot plus surf’s have been limited today.

My router wants me to throw another gybe in for 20 miles and then gybe back but I am going to ignore it since it is a computer and it has a tendency to really walk the razors edge which is not needed for my current strategic objectives.

It took most of the morning but I finally got the settings dialed for port pole here and topaz is sliding along. My average will suffer as winds are definitely a notch lower but I think the added distance of having cut over earlier would not have paid off. Based on a few different forecasts it looks like I should get headed in the next day or so and only have a gybe or two left before reaching the island.

Last item of note is I have finished off the fresh provisions in the fridge, with the exception of the avocados which will now ripen over the next couple days. Also the two heads of cabbage I was given have remained resilient, though I don’t know if I have the heart to eat them now given all we have been through together. Sort of like tom hanks and Wilson in castaway, except it’s me and two heads of cabbage which I have named Fred and Glenda. Glenda is the purple one.

Finishing the fridge items is of note since it means I can turn off the fridge now and hopefully won’t need to run the genset every 3rd day. There is still a massive block of cheese I’ve been working through, but if it goes over the side in a day or two so be it. Serves me right for provisioning at Costco.

I will miss the fresh food but it’s not that much further and I look forward to the sweet bounty that awaits in Kauai.

All for now, Topaz jamming along!
 
WHITE ROSE 2304s JUN 29
Alive and well. Tear in asym. Haven’t had a chance to see if it’s fixable. Have a back-up used kite which will go up once I’ve adjusted the length of the sock control rope. It arrived just before I left so didn’t get a chance to try it out.
Tim, good on you to have a b-up kite! Keep pushing. Rooting for you.
Rod (C-Dock)
 
AKUMU - recvd 0516z Jun 30
Sunday the 29th
Been a busy day today, got up first light and installed an extra gudgeon for the top of the rudder. It was popping and grinding, sounding like it had a crack in it. Fortunately, there was room for a second one so I installed that on the transom. it’s still clunks as the pins shift but doesn’t sound anywhere near as bad.
Next, I found the manual for the auto pilot in my phone and found out. I had some settings mixed up so I got the gain sorted out. And it’s working 100% better.
Got the kite up after that and took turns driving and running the auto pilot.
The spinnaker net I made up works a treat! Saved me from a wrap a couple times! I was also able to back down the boat with the kite up!
So quite a few flying fish today.
Not as many vela velas.
Getting close to halfway, but I think my party will have to wait until the morning
 

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TOPAZ 6/30 AM race report
After what felt like a quick night ducking and weaving through squalls, I managed to keep good boat speeding while still maximizing resting. It is now warm enough to pull the command chair (aka my bean bag throne) out into the cockpit.

I managed to stay ahead of most of the squalls, getting a nice boost into the low teens as I pass ahead of them on port pole without too beach feet of getting run down. For those of you reading but uninitiated to the “art of the squall” the game goes like this. As you sail (mostly at night) little tiny rain clouds travel down the field. If you can keep your boat ahead of these cartoonish looking clouds (think Linus from Peanuts) then you get a boost in wind and a helpful shift (assuming you are on port gybe) pointing you more or less at the finish. On a lighter boat like topaz this means you can surf out in front of it for 20-30 minutes, and if you are really ballsy (I am not) gybe back and forth in this speed boost zone to really maximize the advantage.

Should you fail to get ahead of it, you are greeted with a light to moderate showering of cool rain followed by a period of light and shifty winds slowing you down and (as if that wasn’t enough) making you feel damp and sad.

Throw in about a half-week deficit in sleep and you can start to really feel what this section of the race is like. As such I spent most of the night timing cat naps so that I could still wake up in time to take advantage of incoming squalls while avoiding getting rained on and slowing the boat down. Last night I only got hit twice, and mostly by the outside edge of these squalls as I was exiting so all in all not a bad run for that edition of the “art of the squall”.

As it has been getting warmer now I’m trying to take advantage of the sunshine to start drying some of these wet clothes that have been accumulating in various nooks and crannies of my boat. Breakfast was my last backpackers soyrizo and eggs, which is made much better with the addition of some hot sauce as these backpacking meals are sort of flavorless without additional seasoning.

Other than that I’m working hard to keep Topaz moving fast, as in these lighter winds (which are forecast to be with us for another day and a half) I have a nice advantage being so light and nimble. Took time to sponge out all the bilges and slowly getting excited for the last section of this race and the upcoming reunion with my wife, family, and fellow voyagers.

Staying dry (mostly)…
 
Solstice June 30 1615z
Today was the day dealing with moderate squalls and lots of them with light air patches in between. Changed down to my S2 spinnaker to better handle the light winds. Ticking off the nautical miles and enjoying the beautiful scenery. Saw a couple of whales today and lots of flying fish again.
Had a visit from a tropic bird and couldn’t help but reflect on the ancient Polynesian navigators who were said to have used birds like these to assist them in their navigation to and from the Hawaiian Islands. By contrast, I also observed condensation trails from the Jets flying overhead, also showing the same navigation routes. Two worlds colliding Thousands of years apart.
Michael
Solstice
 
TOPAZ 7/1 Race Report
All is well aboard the good ship topaz. As you can probably tell from the speeds dipping down in the race trackers, we have entered a lighter wind zone in the race these last few days. This is both a welcome reprieve but also adds new stresses as the boat has been finicky getting into a steady gear where it can be left unattended.

Topaz is what is considered an “ultralight” and one area it definitely outperforms in is light air. However, when the seas are not perfectly flat, and the waves not all going in the same direction, she can have a tendency to bounce around a bit which makes it harder to keep the speed up. It seems the last few days we have been provided lighter winds, indeed! But this has also come with southerly ground swell leading to a sea state that has been tough to balance.

Add to this last night and into the morning I was visited upon by many squalls. While the boost they provide is definitely welcome, it’s a lot of work getting the boat in a running before the squall configuration and then back to the light air reaching configuration immediately after. This lead me to a sleepless night of constantly adjusting the boats trim and direction, only to be completely thrown out of wack by a passing squall, then left to start all over again.

Luckily, the squalls took a break around 11:30am and I was able to get 2-3 hours of decent rest in. Staying ahead of caloric intake and fatigue is definitely the main challenge now as my ability to get the most out of the boat deteriorates quickly as I start to slip behind the needs of my physical body.

And with that final thought, I will leave you all with a recipe I was given just before leaving for the snack I am now eating, “topaz tapenade”. Take one small can of black olives, and one can of anchovies. Mix in the oil from the anchovies but dump the water from the can of olives. Add a dash of garlic powder and a bit of lemon to taste. Mash it all together with a fork and eat atop saltines.

So long for now!
 
From REVERIE 7/1 2124z
Tue 7/1 many squalls last night but not much bite in them, only up to high teens. Wind shifted today, lot of South in it, broad reaching. All good on Reverie.
 
From Akumu JUL 2 1543z
Tuesday June 1
The irony here is thinking that making this passage on a fast boat was gonna be much more fun than making this passage on a slow boat.
Managing expectations and staying in acceptance and staying in the moment are key to peace of mind when doing this sort of thing.
As I’m watching the sunset, wondering what kind of story I can come up with for the mess I’ve gotten myself into, I look at the grib one more time hoping it’s gonna change and tell me I’m in the right place but sadly no I’m just too far north and there’s not much of a breeze here.My plan to travel across the 10-15 kt band at the bottom edge of the high just isn’t paying out.
The sunset is beautiful, I’m fed, rested, I guess I’ll just enjoy the moment.
 

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