Royal Norfolk & Suffolk Yacht Club

We are enjoying a very welcome stay at the RNSYC here in Lowestoft. As
we crossed the finish line on Wednesday evening we were greeted by a
club rib and escorted into the marina. The hospitality has continued
ever since, with the chef offering us a hearty platter of fish & chips
even after the kitchen had taken last orders.

Yesterday the sun shone as we enjoyed lunch "al fresco". Although we
did notice that the wine seemed to evapourate very quickly, especially
once the cork was removed.

Crossing the line at 8pm has allowed us to get two full nights sleep
and recharge our batteries. But our hearts go out to one of our
rivals, Richard House Hospice, who took the easterly route towards the
Nordic coast and are still struggling to get into Lowestoft in the
light airs.

When we left Lerwick the east versus west routing was too close to
call. So we decided to sail the direct route for 24 hours before
comitting ourselves. As it transpired the high pressure ridge split
into two halves allowing a southerly wind to build up in the western
side of the North Sea.

We have managed to hold our 10th position in IRC overall (pending
arrival of Class 4 boats), despite easing off the pace in the first 24
hours out of Lerwick. As the fleet has started to spread out more, our
main rivals now are Roaring Again & Comedy of Errors both less than 4
hours ahead, and Streamline less than 3 hours behind. Streamline in
particular as we are almost within range to track them on the AIS, so
it is great to have a rival in similar conditions. Some of our other
potential rivals such as QII and Greyhound are significantly faster
boats and leave Lowestoft well ahead of us so will have quite
different conditions.

We are expecting light winds for the next leg with some very tough
decisions - inshore versus offshore around the many headlands of the
South Coast. Or maybe we take a more radical route and follow the
north France coast where the tides are weaker. Watch this space......