2015 Bermuda One-Two Log Entries
6/24/2015
3:45 PM Eastern
Greetings, Sailing Friends and Family- Bluebird crossed (finally) the finish line at Newport around 1AM this morning, and we arrived at the NYC 3AM. Then, we were so exited to be done, talking with the other sailors who arrived, the sun started to come up, we went out for early breakfast, then boat chores, then lunch… in short, I haven’t slept and am zonked. so this will be a short report.
This was a very challenging race. The best route wasn’t obvious, at least not to me. We decided on going North/East of the Rhumb line, for a good Gulf Stream crossing, and then to take advantage of a Warm Eddy with favorable current. All of this seems to work, but then the plan relied on being able to arch back to the West. This plan went by the wayside with the arrival of the strands of Tropical Storm Bill; the predicted 25-27 K winds turned out to be in the 30-40 K range, with very irregular and disturbed waves, several of which crashed into the cockpit. We ended up with triple reefed mainsail (thanks for putting that in, Doug!) and a shred of jib, but were basically blown further North/East. Then the winds died, we had contrary currents, and a long haul to get back to where we belonged.
The finish was challenging, with thunderstorms/lightning and frequent wind changes complicating the approach.
But- we are glad to be done, and now it is a beautiful day, and I will be sailing back to Maine starting early tomorrow, and look forward to a spell with the garden and bees. And even getting back to work! And some gentle summer sailing on Penobscot Bay.
I want to thank John Priestley for being with me- he is a great crew mate, always positive and cheerful, even when things looked bleak. And a great helmsman in flukey light winds. And a great all-around problem solver. And a good friend.
And thanks again for all of the shore support- Bill Cowan at Ocean Pursuits, Loric Weymouth of Weymouth Rigging; Bluebird’s builder Morris Yachts; and Chuck Paine, her designer. I do believe that good preparation is the key to avoiding disaster.
6/24/2015
12:59 AM Eastern
Bluebird has finished! Safe in Newport!
6/23/2015
4:45PM
Kontradiction reported being dismasted, but motoring to Newport. Coast Guard says assistance not required.
All's well on Bluebird.
6/23/2015
6:30AM Eastern
40-38N, 69-06W
Greetings, all- we are chugging along finally headed directly to Newport, moving along at 6K with a contrary current bringing our actual speed down a knot. But sailing along under clear skies, in what has turned out to be our longest Bermuda race ever. But we are hopeful of finishing (for a while, it looked as though we would just sail to Maine!). The remnants of tropical storm Bill did not do us any favors. A little over 100 miles to go.
We have Mirari in sight a mile or two behind us, flying a nice rose spinnaker. We took our spinnaker down just now, to sail a higher angle and avoid Martha's Vineyard. We have seen a steady flow of cargo ships heading for Boston. There have been a few dolphins and various birds. A very off course moth landed on the boat last night, rested a while, then took off- I can't imagine it made it anywhere (maybe onto one of the ships?). Over and out.
6/22/2015
8:30PM Eastern
Finally escaped the clutches of contrary current, moving towards Newport on a gentle but steady NE breeze.
Mirari and Kontradiction in radio range, all ok.
6/22/2015
8:30AM Eastern
Back in action - all ok. A very bad overnight - winds in the 30s, up to 40K, and blown to the north. Better now - hope to make some progress.
6/21/2015
12PM Eastern
10 knots with spinnaker up, 18-20 knot wind from the South.
Moving fast now, finally!
6/21/2015
5AM Eastern
A benign Gulf Stream crossing, except that we are way to the West- hope to recover from that with some favorable current from a Warm Eddy. Heavier winds expected this afternoon/evening.
6/20/2015
3PM Eastern
All is well on Bluebird! Approaching the Gulf Stream, sailing nicely on a 10K Easterly.
6/19/2015
8AM Eastern
We are heading East on a 10-12 NW breeze. John had a nice pod of dolphins on his watch.
About 10 boats still in sight around us. All is well.
6/18/2015
7:15AM Eastern
Greetings, sailing family and friends!
Bluebird starts the return trip to Newport at 11 AM EST today. Winds are expected to be light and on the nose, so we are expecting a slow trip. It will be easy to end up in dead wind holes this trip. We are crossing our fingers! I expect that we will be going East of the Rhumb Line. John Priestley and I are rested and ready to go.
Tropical Storm Bill seems to have played itself out over Texas/Oklahoma, but we will expect a little wind and rain from him, possibly Sunday.
Posts at sea will appear at www.blubirdsail.com. Random posts and news from the fleet will appear at www.bermuda1-2.org. And of course you will find links to the tracker there as well.
Fair winds to all,
Gust
6/14/2015
9AM Eastern
Despite this being my 9th Bemuda trip, I’ve never rented a moped before. This is ubiquitous tourist transportation in Bermuda, where visitors are barred from renting cars. I’ve always avoided the scooters, because I like to walk/run, plus I’ve seen the results of falling off… and my mother always warned me growing up “never, never ride a motorcycle… they are dangerous!”.
But this time, I thought I’d spare Jan the long walks back and forth. Besides, the wind in your face, the adventure of the road, Jan riding behind me, Easy Rider…
I got in line at the rental shop. A series of very geriatric riders happily got their scooters and roared off (all experienced riders).
“Ever ride one of these before?” no…
“Well, let’s see” ok….
Soon I’m astride a 50 CC red bad boy. Watch out, Dr. Stannard, Angus King, Olympia Snow, there’s a new sheriff coming to town!
Oh oh, that was very quick acceleration. Especially since I meant to slow down. How do I keep from falling over on the curves? Why is that car coming at me from the wrong side of the road? Oh oh…
I did follow my instructor safely around our little course. We got back to the rental place.
“What do you think?”
I think that I could do it…
“I think so too. But should you do it?”
With a wave of relief, I realize, no, better for me to walk. He seemed relieved as well. I thanked him for his time instructing me.
So Vickie, Angus, Olympia, you’ll have to manage at the head of the “Toys for Tots” run without me, at least this time!
6/12/2015
6:30 AM Eastern
Yesterday, i ran to the top of a hill in the abandoned golf course of St. George. There, a man was doing Tai Chi, to the sound of an oriental flute from his boom box. He motioned to me to join him, which I did. It is like doing slow motion Yoga with focus on breath. I imitated him as best I could.
When the music stopped, we bowed to each other, did a namaste, and I ran on.
No sighting of the alpine swift so far. Perhaps he’s back crossing the Atlantic to get home.
I meet lots of Bermudians out power walking in the morning (not manny runners), many more than I can recall in past years. I think there has been a major public health push here, to exercise more.
I also notice far less trash, beer bottles, etc. on the roads. Clearly an effort is being made to keep things nice!
After many years of service in Central Maine, Jan is retiring today. She is getting well-deserved accolades from her colleagues and her students. If you see her, give her your Congratulations!
6/10/2015
8:15 PM Eastern
Running is a great way for a sailor to explore new ports and meet new people. This evening, I went for a jog to Fort Catherine, about a mile away. Bermuda was of course an Atlantic fortress/naval station for England, especially in the 1800’s but continuing into WW II. Most of the big buildings in St. George, including a nursing home, senior citizen housing, a machine shop, were all originally barracks or other military infrastructure. The shore is studded with old forts and gun installations.
Anyway, going down Grenadier Lane, I came across what turned out to be a Royal Artillery cemetery. Most of those interned died on very specific months and years, corresponding to yellow fever outbreaks. Usually, at the onset of an epidemic, a few died and had moving testimonials from their comrades, inscribed on the monument. Then, a hundred would follow, no opportunity for testimonials. The officers were usually referred to as engineers, the enlisted as “sappers”.
At one end of the cemetery, I found a dozen people hanging out, clearly identifiable as birders (or “twitchers”, as I believe they are called by the English- is that a derogatory term?) by their bios and cameras. They were quite exited- apparently, an alpine swift, which normally winters in Africa and summers in the Alps, had been spotted, blown off course to Bermuda by a storm- never seen here before. We waited for alf an hour, then they dispersed to other locations (all staying in touch, should anyone spot it). It was fun speaking with people who were so passionate about a bird...
6/10/2015
5PM Eastern
In my race report, I stated that “I couldn’t understand why I finished so far behind Mirari- I usually come in ahead of him”. Dan of Mirari, who finished first in Class and first in fleet, pointed out that actually, we have only raced against each other twice; he finished ahead of me the first time, and had to withdraw, because of mechanical problems, the second. I should have more correctly said, that as the Class 4 scratch boat (before Roy kicked me into Class 3!), I should finish ahead, if I’m sailing well.
So thanks for the correction Dan, and congratulations on a well-sailed race. I will have to get a magic stick the next time! and we have our match for the return trip.
The truth is that, all boats have an advantage in one set of conditions or another. But the best sailors seem to sail well no matter what boat they are on.
6/10/2015
2PM Eastern
Bluebird is third in Class 3 and 5th overall in the fleet.
We look forward to the return race, where we will be competing for that race, but also combined time of the two races.
6/10/2015
9AM Eastern
Greetings, sailing family and friends-
Bluebird crossed the finish line at 3:09 PM yesterday afternoon - a good time to finish, as the wind slowly died in the evening, stranding the last 6 boats for the night! Hopefully, the fresh morning breeze will bring them all in.
It was an uneventful race for bluebird. Winds at the start were moderate, 10-12K from the NE. This flow persisted the entire race, no big shifts at all. Off of the Continental Shelf, winds stiffened into the 20K range, with seas to match (I have a hard time estimating wave heights, but they looked big!). By the time we hit the Gulf Stream, winds were 25-30K with even bigger seas. But it was all downwind, a very stable point of sail for Bluebird, infinitely better than pounding upwind (which would have been miserable indeed in those conditions). After the Gulf Stream, everything gradually moderated, and the last 24 hours I was able to keep the spinnaker up and move along.
I had relatively little contact with my competitors this race. I was slow coming out of the start (eventually improved with better sail trim), quickly fell behind most of the other Class 3 boats, while the Class 4’s gained. Several boats dropped out early with equipment issues. The much anticipated match between Eagle’s Dare and Resolute ended early as Eagle’s Dare sustained a broken rudder (Jonathan did a great job returning to Newport against the wind with emergency rudder, no doubt hand steering all of the way), while Resolute had to slow down and drop back because of autopilot problems. Several other boats boats during the race had mainsail/chafed halyard problems, slowing them down considerably.
My offshore routine stayed pretty much the same as before. I have not much interest in food the first 24-48 hours, forcing myself to eat the occasional power bar and stay hydrated with juice, water and the occasional coca-cola (the only time I drink the stuff!). Despite always starting the days at home with coffee, the need seems to disappear offshore. Likewise with wine. Once settled down, I eat a reasonable variety of food. This year, I’ve discovered Maine-made dehydrated meals called “Good to Go” that are quite tasty with good ingredients. Just add boiling water, wait twenty minutes, and enjoy! The power bars are “Owl Bars”, from Vermont, also all good ingredients, quite tasty compared to most.
Overnights, I set a timer for 20-30 minute naps; get up, check everything (wind, wind direction, boat speed and sail trim, check for other boats), then quickly go back to sleep.
During the day, I did a lot of reading. One highly recommended book: “Being Mortal- Medicine and What Matters in the End”, by surgeon Atul Gawande. It explores the dysfunction of our medical and social systems in dealing with aging and death, but has great lessons for living a life of meaning, autonomy and joy. I know, sounds dull and depressing - believe me, it’s a very worthwhile book!
Onto the race itself - I went West of the Rhumb Line, mainly to pick up favorable currents of the Gulf Stream meander, and also to get on the favorable side of an anticipated wind shift. The wind shift did not materialize, and maybe I went a little too far West, but otherwise I don’t think I would have changed anything. In the end, we corrected into third place of Class 3. Had we stayed in our usual Class 4, we would have ended up second. I haven’t figured out why Mirari, 1st place in Class 4, came in ahead of me (usually, I beat him by a good margin)- he says, “clearly I’m a superlative sailor, plus I had a magic stick!" (mizzen mast that he added this year).
Bermuda - lovely as always. This AM, I went for a run along the beaches and bluffs of St. George, listening to the peeping of tree frogs, watching feral chickens, smelling the lush growth and bougainvillea. Then boat chores- cleaning and drying, repairing various things (or at least, trying to). Jan comes this weekend, followed by friend/return comrade Joh Priestley.
As always, I couldn’t have done this trip without the help and support of my “shore team”:
Bill Cowan and his crew at OceanPursuits - Bill spent many hours installing, maintaining and trouble shooting Bluebird’s electronic and mechanical systems;
Loric Weymouth, of Weymouth Rigging, who replaced our 15 year old standing rigging (believe me, it’s great to be in 30K winds in the Gulf Stream and have confidence that the mast will stay pointing skywards);
and Doug Pope of Pope Sails, who built all of our sails. The most common problem this race was torn/damaged mainsails and halyards.
And thanks, of course, to Chuck Paine, who designed Bluebird and her sister ships; Chuck creates “dream machines”, floating artwork that transports sailors to distant shores, in both dream and reality, safely and swiftly.
And finally, thanks to Morris Yachts, who built Bluebird in 1989. She’s still going strong!
6/9/2015
8:40 PM Eastern
Finished 3:09 PM today, under spinnaker, cleared customs, boat and skipper scrubbed down and ready to catch up on sleep (after a Dark and Stormy!). Reports to follow in the AM.
6/9/2015
10AM Eastern
Finally, a flying fish! 30 miles from Bermuda - clouds, no land yet. Moving along in a nice breeze...
6/9/2015
5AM Eastern
60 miles from Bermuda. The winds are going light, but the spinnaker is up again and we are making 6 K . I am looking forward to seeing "Morgan's Cloud" again - the pink-turquoise reflections of Bermuda light onto the cloud that hovers 0ver it, making it identifiable from miles away.
Again, this trip has been surprisingly devoid of fish, whales, mammals, birds. Not a single flying fish or even a jellyfish. But also, no trash.
Have not seen, or heard from any competitors for a day or so, but hopefully they are about. Several boats (Kontradiction, Aggressive) were having charging problems and were in radio conservation mode.
Over and out.
6/8/2015
1:30 PM Eastern
Very hot, but still have a good breeze - hope that it last all the way! About 100 miles to go.
Have seen very little wildlife so far- no Dolphins, few birds, no flying fish. Not even Portuguese Man O'War. Some sargasso weed is starting to appear. Maybe that will bring some creatures.
All's well on Bluebird.
6/8/2015
2:15 AM Eastern
Greetings! We are well through the Gulf Stream, which was it's usual windy and boisterous self - but we appeared to get a good current boost throughout. Now we are in Happy Valley, the usually calmer approach to Bermuda. So far, we still have wind.
All's well aboard, but we are starting to look forward to arriving!
Bluebird and crew
6/7/2015
7:30 AM Eastern
A wild and rocking night last night- winds 30K, rolling waves. Bluebird good; skipper a little beat up. But making 8-10 K over the ground.
6/5/2015
Bluebird at Sea 40:20N, 70:44W Midnight
The fleet got off to a good start, beam reaching out of Narraganset Bay in moderate 10-12K Easterly winds. Once outside, we hardened up a bit, everyone essentially going just to the West of the Rhumb Line. Bluebird seemed slow at first, quickly dropping back from the Class 3 boats to join her Class 4 comrades. Eventually, I got her trimmed up better and made better boatspeed.
Weather has since gotten lighter, with a heavy mist/light rain. The 7 PM radio chat was lively, with reports of whales and dolphins. Everyone is on watch for the fish traps/long lines that dot the drop off from the Continental Shelf.
I really should get the spinnaker out at this point, but think I will wait until either the rain stops or dawn- although I'm sure some are up!
Fair winds to all, Bluebird and crew
6/4/2015 - PM
Greetings, all- our last night in Newport before the start of the race. We are ready to go. The weather predictions are quite favorable, with relatively moderate winds out of the NE; no hurricanes or very heavy weather expected. The Gulf Stream has a favorable meander that should also help speed us towards Bermuda. I would expect most boats to be going just West of the Rhumb Line.
The original fleet has dwindled down to 27 at this point, but not a bad showing overall. Because there were a lot of boats in Class 4, I have been kicked into Class 3 to balance the numbers out. I did like being the fastest boat in Class 4, instead of the slowest in Class 3. When following the boats on the tracker, remember that finish times will be corrected by the handicap, so that a boat that is behind may correct ahead. The class leaders are adorned on the tracker with a “crown”; I do think that is based on corrected time.
The boats to watch, both for first to finish and first overall, will be Scott Miller on Resolute (J-122) and Jonathan Green on Eagle’s Dare (J-111). Both are talented, tenacious and very competitive skippers; Jonathan usually wins everything that he enters, including the last OSTAR (single-handed form England to Newport), but he is in a new to him boat.
I have enjoyed being in Newport, especially once the rain stopped. I start the day with a run, usually take a loop through the Newport Shipyard, home of some of the most beautiful and impressive boats in the world, from traditional designs like the Sparkman and Stevens designed Bolero, to ultra race boats like 100 foot Comanche, and everything else in between. The days are then spent doing boat chores (always something that needs doing), meetings (weather briefs, inspections, etc), and finally socializing with the other sailors. But I think we are all ready to get out on the water.
The communications system from the boat does not allow for email lists, so I will be sending single reports to Amber, who is managing the website. But I’m happy to hear from anyone!
Fair winds to all, Gust and Bluebird
6/4/2015
Bluebird's flags are flying high and we're ready for the start! (view Photos for images) Weather is looking good with winds forecast for tomorrow to be easterly at 5 to 10 knots with seas of 2 to 3 feet. View weather forecast report.
5/30/2015
Passing Monhegan - all is good. (view Photos for images of the island)
5/28/2015
Greetings, sailing friends and family!
Despite having sworn off any more Bermuda races in 2013, Bluebird is off again for her 8th trip across the Gulf Stream to that sunny island. We leave this Saturday, May 30th for Newport RI; then depart Newport single handed Friday June 5; returning double handed Thursday June 18th with crew mate John Priestley. John is a veteran of many Bermuda races, including two on Bluebird. He is a great shipmate and racer. Jan will make the sensible trip and fly out to meet me.
Bluebird is in great shape, thanks to the efforts of Bill Cowan and his crew at Ocean Pursuits in Rockland; Doug Pope of Pope Sails in Rockland; and Loric Weymouth (Rockland again!) who replaced our 15 year old standing rigging. Upgrades for the race include the replacement of our old autopilot (which has failed on a regular basis) with a new B&G pilot, with associated instruments. We have added a new solent type forestay, that will allow me to hank on a smaller sail for higher winds, without removing the primary genoa. And, we have a new satellite device, the Iridium Go!, which will allow me to get email and weather gribs offshore.
I will try to maintain a log at www.bluebirdsail.com To check positions and general race info, go to www.bermuda1-2.org. Clicking on “tracking” in the upper left hand corner will lead you to the yellow brick tracking center, which allows one to follow our position. I welcome emails
I thought I might add some philosophical notes as to why one does these kinds of adventures, but quickly realized I’d better not look into it too closely…
Fair winds to all,
Gust
BLUEBIRD SAILING ADVENTURES