Panerai Transat Classique Day 4 - Pure cut and thrust!

Panerai Transat Classique 2015 - Day four. Panerai Transat Classique http://www.transatclassique.com/

Panerai Transat Classique 2015 - Day four. © Panerai Transat Classique http://www.transatclassique.com/

In the coming days the consequences of the options chosen by the yachts will start to make themselves apparent; the two extremes being on the one hand Amazon and Faïaoahé sailing the northern route, the most orthodromic (the shortest route), and on the other Altair at the southernmost flank of the fleet. And between them the small fry are continuing to hold their own, undoubtedly benefitting from their capacity to surf on the big swell created by the trade winds. Who’s going to seize the advantage? Which boats are going to cave in under the pressure? Who’s made the right choice? For the moment all the competitors have everything to play for... so, expect the unexpected!

Words from the sea

Stephane Benfield, Altair

Panerai Trans Atlantic, a classic so far. We are sailing through the night here under the moon, the previous watch has just dropped the Jib Top as we had a squall with 46knots in it, aside from that we are enjoying sailing along in the high 20s with a range of sail combinations, a luxury we have being a schooner with a wardrobe of many different options.

The crew of Altair, especially the full time crew would like to say how welcome they all felt in Lanzarotte, we all had such a good time there and everybody at the port and in the bars/restaurants in the port were so friendly. The marina staff and all of you in the organizing committee were, and continue to be, a fantastic group of professionals, and fun too. I think we can speak for the whole fleet in thanking you all for your hard work putting this together, there are 16 people onboard Altair and all of us are smiling at this great opportunity to compete in this race. Let’s talk about the sailing, what a great start and how spectacular it was to see all the boats streaming down the coast that first afternoon, none of us really knowing what the others would do, credit to Corto to sticking to their plan and going solo to the East of Fuerteventura. We enjoyed that first afternoon and the sailing between the islands, all the boats looked great together and we have Panerai to thank for that.

We have the owner and his family onboard at they loved every minute of that first afternoon and are continuing to do so. We got away from the islands cleanly although with a few gybes in the first night we were all keen for some open ocean. We have had some spectacular schooner sailing out here and have had the boat topping out at 16knots with the wood work screaming for more, or just screaming! After 30+ Hours of sailing last night we had the mighty Adventuress pass just 4Nm across our stern, sadly at night and just out of sight but so close after that amount of time, they certainly gave us something to think about, it was great to see the fleet so close on the first night, although with today’s position report we see the spread is nearly 200Nm miles already. We all have so many more miles to go and look forward to hearing stories from the fleet.

The crew of Altair, especially the full time crew would like to say how welcome they all felt in Lanzarotte, we all had such a good time there and everybody at the port and in the bars/restaurants in the port were so friendly. The marina staff and all of you in the organizing committee were, and continue to be, a fantastic group of professionals, and fun too. I think we can speak for the whole fleet in thanking you all for your hard work putting this together, there are 16 people onboard Altair and all of us are smiling at this great opportunity to compete in this race.

Let’s talk about the sailing, what a great start and how spectacular it was to see all the boats streaming down the coast that first afternoon, none of us really knowing what the others would do, credit to Corto to sticking to their plan and going solo to the East of Fuerteventura. We enjoyed that first afternoon and the sailing between the islands, all the boats looked great together and we have Panerai to thank for that. We have the owner and his family onboard at they loved every minute of that first afternoon and are continuing to do so.

We got away from the islands cleanly although with a few gybes in the first night we were all keen for some open ocean. We have had some spectacular schooner sailing out here and have had the boat topping out at 16knots with the wood work screaming for more, or just screaming! After 30+ Hours of sailing last night we had the mighty Adventuress pass just 4Nm across our stern, sadly at night and just out of sight but so close after that amount of time, they certainly gave us something to think about, it was great to see the fleet so close on the first night, although with today’s position report we see the spread is nearly 200Nm miles already.

We all have so many more miles to go and look forward to hearing stories from the fleet.

Jeremiah Bailey, Adventuress

Panerai Transat 2015, and we've been cracking on for another 24 hours; those hours fly by, and yet at the same time it seems as if we've already been at it for a week!

Every change of the guard is the beginning of a new set of circumstances. New weather and sea conditions to assess and monitor. At times our Lovely Lady of a vessel, her helm and her working parts need wrestled or cajoled or rigged or rerigged or jury rigged. Sometimes, however, she just needs a soft sweet talking to, and then she puts a smile on our faces. Phosphorescence glowed blue in the dark, frothy night waves. The seas built, and mischievous rollers took the cap rail by storm and splashed the deck and any sailors who happened to be caught unaware, paying particular devious attention to those who ventured topside without foul weather gear.

Swells and gusts have been, were, and are very persistent, making driving a tricky challenge of a treat. The moon rose and its pale beams of light made easy sail handling. Hearty soup full of cured sausage and vegetables and spiced aromas boiled on the gimbaled stovetop. Dawn patrol and the horizon was an angelic rock stage. Sunlight burst skyward behind dark storm clouds. The soundtrack of a blue water vessel climbing, dipping, riding, and slicing with purpose kept playing all day. Squalls appeared in the distance, whipped up a little wind, then swept by us without a care for our floating speck on the wide sea. Captain Salzman wrote in the log, 'We are sailing the old Fife as she was built to be sailed, and all the crew has been earning what little sleep is available.'Blasphemies and curses mean all is well throughout the hard work, so it's cuss like a sailor for the general run of humorous conversation, joke-filled watch changes, and everyone-in-everybody's-way movements to and fro, fore and aft, and in and out of the head. THE head. Yep, we're down one at the moment and it's full of, well, things that naturally go into a head. Ah, life at sea! The romance! The smell! Never to fear, the galley wins again. Potatoes and pork and fluffy eggs sizzle and fry, lasagna bakes and basks the below deck space with rosemary and hope, and hot liquids keep pouring forth. We're having a run on lemons, and the now very noticeable lack of ginger has me wondering if one of our competitors had a cheeky thought and bought out the stores in Lanzarote to make it appear that they were out of stock? I wish I had thought of it.

The tea kettle handle gave up the fight, and a few personal thermos gaskets have a tendency to fail, but fortunately sea gaskets hold tight, and the winch handles provide perfect purchase. Lighters keep firing, grins keep flashing, and miles keep flying by. Is it rhythm? Is it hysteria? Rhythmic hysteria? Hysterical rhythm? Pablo and I sang Johnny Cash during a morale rousing foc's'le moment, 'How high is the water Mama?' Ten feet high and rising. Caballeros, we sail on.
Panerai Transat 2015, and we've been cracking on for another 24 hours; those hours fly by, and yet at the same time it seems as if we've already been at it for a week!

Every change of the guard is the beginning of a new set of circumstances. New weather and sea conditions to assess and monitor. At times our Lovely Lady of a vessel, her helm and her working parts need wrestled or cajoled or rigged or rerigged or jury rigged. Sometimes, however, she just needs a soft sweet talking to, and then she puts a smile on our faces.

Phosphorescence glowed blue in the dark, frothy night waves. The seas built, and mischievous rollers took the cap rail by storm and splashed the deck and any sailors who happened to be caught unaware, paying particular devious attention to those who ventured topside without foul weather gear. Swells and gusts have been, were, and are very persistent, making driving a tricky challenge of a treat. The moon rose and its pale beams of light made easy sail handling. Hearty soup full of cured sausage and vegetables and spiced aromas boiled on the gimbaled stovetop.

Dawn patrol and the horizon was an angelic rock stage. Sunlight burst skyward behind dark storm clouds. The soundtrack of a blue water vessel climbing, dipping, riding, and slicing with purpose kept playing all day. Squalls appeared in the distance, whipped up a little wind, then swept by us without a care for our floating speck on the wide sea. Captain Salzman wrote in the log, 'We are sailing the old Fife as she was built to be sailed, and all the crew has been earning what little sleep is available.'

Blasphemies and curses mean all is well throughout the hard work, so it's cuss like a sailor for the general run of humorous conversation, joke-filled watch changes, and everyone-in-everybody's-way movements to and fro, fore and aft, and in and out of the head. The head. Yep, we're down one at the moment and it's full of, well, things that naturally go into a head. Ah, life at sea! The romance! The smell! Never to fear, the galley wins again. Potatoes and pork and fluffy eggs sizzle and fry, lasagna bakes and basks the below deck space with rosemary and hope, and hot liquids keep pouring forth. We're having a run on lemons, and the now very noticeable lack of ginger has me wondering if one of our competitors had a cheeky thought and bought out the stores in Lanzarote to make it appear that they were out of stock? I wish I had thought of it.

The tea kettle handle gave up the fight, and a few personal thermos gaskets have a tendency to fail, but fortunately sea gaskets hold tight, and the winch handles provide perfect purchase. Lighters keep firing, grins keep flashing, and miles keep flying by. Is it rhythm? Is it hysteria? Rhythmic hysteria? Hysterical rhythm? Pablo and I sang Johnny Cash during a morale rousing foc's'le moment, 'How high is the water Mama?'Ten feet high and rising. Caballeros, we sail on.

Schooner Adventuress, from the ships log and from the ships poet!
The Lanzarote lead-up to the Panerai Transat 2015 race from the Canary Islands to Martinique had a gentle urgency during daytime-on-deck preparation for the Atlantic ocean crossing, and an uproarious, rum-lubricated, social blast-off during nighttime-on-the-dance-floor revelry. We also ate dinner now and then. Most notably in a bowels of the earth volcanic sea cavern.

We left the dock with goodbyes and good lucks and bon voyages and au revoirs, the gathered crew of the Adventuress, finding out at the last minute we would sadly be without Victor, El Jefe. Docklines and pushboats and a schooner full of sailors, provisions, and anticipatory feelings of excitement and nervousness, personified by high-fives and hugs. Away and here we go!

The race kicked off with a spread fleet and an ensuing shakedown run around the marks. A few small fixes on the fly and the topsails were flying proudly. The entire field of entries had confident speed, and feeling out our vessel as we made our way down the Lanzarote coast was a proud moment. The conic peaks to the west stoically blessed our voyage, the sails of our competitors to the east beckoned us onward, and we bid adieu to the paparazzi power boats.

Altair made weigh with elegance and power, and I had hope that we looked majestic as well, with a sashay in our waltz toward open ocean. The wind built with the sunset, the waves rolled up and under from our stern, and baked chicken steamed up the galley. Purple-grey clouds sitting on the horizon glowed with hot-pink outlines. Each watch took their turn at the wheel, night's darkness amplifying the conditions for the helmsperson, and, of course, competition developed for which driver could keep truest course and fastest speed. Ship's rolling lee-cloth rest alternating with sail-trimming, rig-checking, systems-monitoring, out-looking vigilance sent us toward the second star on the right over moonlit seas.
Dawn's sunbeams lit up El Pico de Tiede. The crew worked ambitiously for appropriate sail cloth, navigational advantage, and swell-riding rudder position. We realized we are dangerously low on galletas con chocolate. We also realized we have two potent psychological advantages: Pata Negra hangs with a hypnotizing swing in the main salon, promising fantastic Spanish fare for the trip despite our low cookie count, and our agonizingly slow drip coffee making method inspires dedication and determination for each crew member that tackles the task in turn.

And so we go. The bounding main and the sea-soaked decks. A day in the logbooks and laughter in our hearts. Dolphins on the bow and one generous offering to Neptune for luck: sunglasses in the drink! Buena suerte!
-Jeremiah Bailey

Panerai Transat Classique 2015

Start: 7 January 2015, Lanzarote (Canary Islands)
Finish: Fort-de-France, Event website