6 posts from March 2008

razzlfrazzldazzlgrazzlefrazzle!!

With only hours to spare (and packing still to do) before the start of the JOG race to Cherbourg over this Easter weekend and it's been cancelled due to weather.  Don't get me wrong, I'm kinda pleased it's cancelled due to safety but tis disappointing because this was going to be my practice race before joining the big one.

Talking of the big one, I got notice last night that the start of race 9 from Hawaii to Santa Cruz has been delayed becuase of the schedule to get the replacement masts and other rigging gubbings out to Hawaii.  On the plus side, this means I don't leave the UK on 7th April as planned and therefore saves me some money in accommodation in California prior to my getting onboard.  I heard the bank account breath a sigh of relief at that news. 

What to fill the rest of my day with now? Well for starters the rabbits are shedding fur like it's moulting season so they're going to have a grooming session.  Then perhaps I'll vaccum myself down.  I wonder if I could turn down the hoover to a low enough power and suction to groom the rabbits directly without sucking them up the pipe?  Thoughs of Curse of The Warerabbit come to mind.  Maybe best not try that, I suspect the vet won't be so understanding.

Hmm, so last week the top half of the mast broke away from the rest of the Western Australia2011.com boat and I felt a little uneasy with the idea that this is the same boat I'll be joining in only a few short weeks. Today a mild form of panic has set in upon reading that the whole of the mast has made a bid for freedom from the Durban boat.  How many more?

I am endeavouring to calm myself with the reassuring thought that WA2011 will have a new mast and rigging when I join it. . . . . on the flip side Qingdao won't when I join her and that's for the part of the race that is scaring me enough which to cross the Atlantic. I mean, there is a whole lot of water out there and I still haven't managed to psych myself up to actually thinking about being on it and how long it's going to take and, and, probably lots of other irrational thoughts.

I can't back out now, too many people have given sponsorship, but oh deary me, I am feeling very unhappy about the whole thing.

So here I am thinking my fund raising effort is coming along reasonably well and up to 21% of the target total within a month of starting, when my friend Lynne sends out a whopper of an email filled with an amazingly simple (aren't the best ones always so?) idea and with it a very generous gesture.

Lynne & Tim are moving house an have a surplus of stuff which they've decided to sell and give the proceeds to the fund raising effort.  I'm not talking the usual surplus stuff we all have but can't be bothered to pack to take to the new home, there's pages of stuff and all good stuff it is too.

Is that it?  Oh no.  It's sparked the imagination of another friend who happens to have a 'spare' 125cc motorbike which is only 3 years only and he has offered it up for sale and the money raised to come to Epilepsy Action.

Lynne, Tim, Roger you are all stars and you have blown me away.

I've had a word with CT about this and if we've got any stuff to sell but as we only moved a couple of years ago and sold all our kit and kaboodle back then.  Shame.

It has entered my concious this week that I need to seriously think about my weight; that I need to put some on and try and keep it on before, and hopefully during, the race.  Back in September the first week of training swiftly put paid to 1 whole stone of weight and I still haven't regained it and as you all know I can ill afford to have lost it in the first place, let alone lose more. Thankfully week 2 we were in port most nights so it was easy to get extra food in the evenings, or we ate out anyway so no problem there. Week 3 I took supplies onboard with me and began to worry about how I'm going to cope for 3 months.

This weekend I decided that as I am chiefly responsible for what goes into our kitchen stores, and for all output from it that I will indulge myself for the remaining weeks with all my favourite foods.  This surely will get some pounds on the bones? Probably not my bones, but CT is adamant he will be on a keeping fit and healthy regime whilst I'm away and proudly declared tonight, as we munched on our take away Chinese dinners (2 helpings for me), that I won't recognise him when I get to Liverpool.

Sat this evening side by side on the sofa in comfortable compatibility each surfing the web on our own laptops CT asked for the race stopover dates and what date I'm flying out to California.  Then the counting began. Up went the fingers as he tallied up the months. 1 - 2 - 3. "You're away for 3 months?"

"Yes" (tryng to suppress the grin)

"How many meals are in the freezer?"

So is it just a coincidence that I woke up at silly 'o' clock this morning from an unpleasant dream where-in the harsh reality of life on board a racing boat were all too real and uncomfortable, especially the part where the mast came down, which as it turns out when I switched on the race viewer, happened on the same day the mast of Western Australia2011.com clipper snapped in two?

This also on the day before I'm due to go out on a friends boat on its' first sail since its' own mast broke during the Fastnet race last year.

Maybe I should email the WA2011.com skipper and tender my resignation as one of his crew?  Not likely; I've paid my money and I'm going racing.

Oops!  I thought I had 6 weeks left before I join BBB for the start of my sailing adventures, but I don't.  I have 5 weeks.  Lucky then I started the blog today because that's one more job out the way.

Tony sent me a draft of my Trudy Willows Sailing logo which will be used on my fund raising page and flyers and my web site (once I've built it - yet another job to do).  Sent logo out to a carefully selected group of friends for their feedback, pretty much all agree with me the logo is great and only a minor tweak could improve it.  Hopefully Tony will have that done in a day or two.

Visa - another job.  I had to cancel my appointment for tomorrow to get my US visa because my fingers still have a couple of blisters from February's sailing still to fully heal up.  1st April is my new appointment.

Flights - another job.  Had a word with Lisa today and she gave me some surprising and good news that I am entitled to fly on her concessions on my own all the way to San Fran and the price is very reasonable.  Even for business class.  The down side is I'll have to fly via Chicago and that will make it a very long journey indeed.  Hahaha - get me, moaning that it'll take me approx 16 hours to get to San Fran by flights when it's going to take 3 months to sail back to the UK.  Oh the irony.

Music - job kind of in hand.  CT and I went out on a birthday present for Trudy hunting mission on Saturday.  Unsuccessful on the purchasing front but really rather successful when it was time to have a refreshing drink in the pub before getting the train home.  5 hours and eight B&C's later we were on the train.  Equally successful as a result of this was some great tunes noted to be added to the iPo.