Ericsson 3 Leg Two Day 5 QFB: received 19.11.08 1145 GMT
"How are you Gustav?" Anders Lewander shouts to me when I stick my head up the hatch to throw some water out. "All good," I answer, pretty satisfied with my work during the morning with bailing and sponging the entire boat and making a very appreciated meal of porridge.
How are you Anders?" "Fed up! There is not enough wind!"
Ok, so there’s only 20 to 28 knots. We have obviously been spoiled with high wind speed the last couple of days and an average of boatspeed around 20 to 25 knots.
The conditions are fun, but tough in the long term. Last night, in complete darkness, we had a quite dramatic broach. We were sailing in steady 30 knots and rough seas when a big squall came in.
In just a few seconds, the wind increased to over 40 knots. Magnus Olsson was helming at the time and when he felt the wind coming, he said a prayer:
"No broach, please God, no broach".
Just when he finished, a big gust hit us and forced the bow deep under water and at the same time, we were heeling badly. But it felt like the boat just continued to accelerate. I was lying in my bunk at the time and struggled to hold on. It was one of those times when you feel that the boat is sailing you and not the other way around. And the master overall is Mother Nature. We have unfinished business.
The crew was completely flushed, and if they had not been hooked on with their harnesses, they would have been washed overboard.
When you are hit by the water in around 30 knots of boatspeed, it’s like running into a wall. This time bowman Anders Dahlsjö lost his grip and got smashed into a winch handle down to leeward. The handle bent badly and Anders was in agony, holding his hands over his ribs. Now we have one more guy on painkillers.
Magnus Olsson just climbed down the hatch and spontaneously said: "I would be lying if I said I’m not longing to start heading north soon."
We have been sailing really well the last days in the drag race towards the scoring gate. We are on starboard tack now and waiting to gybe until we get the westerly shift that will take us north.
Gustav Morin – MCM