For a while now I haven’t been feeling the best, but I have definitely felt worse. I am on a precipice not sure which way I will go- downhill fast into seasick hell, or break through to happy days and feel alright.
Until my body decides which way to go I will continue my aggressive and bordering on excessive intake of little pink and white pills.
Cooking dinner last night was a significant test. Every moment being forward in the galley you know is not helping seasickness with the jolting motion of each wave.
You want to get out of there as quick as possible but its not a good place to rush, with violent movements, open flames and boiling hot water it creates a pretty dangerous place to be. Alas the crew must eat, so freeze dry must be made!
Its all pretty quiet on the boat this morning, I think I am not the only one not feeling brilliant. We are about 1/3 of the way between Sanya and the Luzon strait. We have Groupama and Telefonica within a handful of miles and as always showing pretty good speed. Again it’s a game of inches and subtleness.
Will Oxley tells me it is forecast to lighten off a bit and potentially the sea state to moderate, which is a bit of a catch 22- life will get easier on board, but we will take longer to get home to New Zealand… I think I would prefer to feel sick but get home quicker. - That’s how great home is!
But for now the sea state is far from moderate. It’s all over the place.
I think I can speak for everyone in saying we are looking forward to leaving the South China Sea behind.
Before we do, perhaps the biggest tactical decision of the whole leg has to be made on where is best to exit the Luzon Strait.
Do you cut the corner and round the top of the Philippines, which takes you closer to the finish with every mile, but risk lighter air further down the track. Or do you keep heading north to Taiwan, which will take you in the opposite direction to the finish, but set you up longer term for much better trade wind sailing most of the way South to New Zealand. One thing is for sure, it will be tense times, depending on what the other boats decide to do.
If you get it wrong the consequences could be great, not only not winning the leg, but also potentially adding on a few more days to the leg, which are days no one can afford with such a short stopover in Auckland.
Speaking of the greatness of Auckland, here’s a fact:
Auckland has the highest number of boats per capita than anywhere else in the world.
And this is why it is called the City of Sails. We live in hope that a good number of these boats will be out on the harbor the day we arrive!
But that’s a long way off- for now, we plough on through the liquid mess.
