JesseMartin.Net
17th August 1999
WELL, this is the last major milestone until home - South Africa and the Cape of Good Hope. It is also a bit of a danger zone in that the pressure systems get squeezed under the land mass and combined with the Agulhas current, which is reported at running at two to five knots, can build the seas into quite a dangerous state.
It is very exciting because I have just now moved on to a new chart that has the coast of Western Australia on it. Finally I can see home (in a way).
Winds got up to 55 knots during the night and had five knockdowns. Three of them were five minutes after each other (rogues I think) and were very hard, shuddering the boat.
One of them I was standing up and swung staying vertical as it went over. I saw the nav table open up which means we went past just horizontal. My guess would be about 120 degrees over. Lost a drogue when the rope broke, one solar panel ripped off, pulpit (forward rail around bow) totally bent to starboard and the lifelines all slack. The stove won't start meaning I can't dry anything, and the sleeping bag was drenched and all of the bedding.
I was pretty scared at the time and am annoyed now because there is another front (not meant to be as bad) coming tomorrow. At least it is not cold.
I've been told that some people have been thinking if I don't get back by my birthday in two weeks, I'll miss the record. Basically the situation is that in seven weeks on October 6, I'll be 18 years and 41 days old - the same age as David Dicks when he returned home.
Who knows what's going to happen and how long I'll take. However, I do plan to complete the trip unassisted.
I've decided that I'm not going to be pressured into going faster than I feel comfortable with.
In my opinion the record isn't all that important.
When the day comes and the trip is over, I'll be taking away something very personal and 10 times more valuable than a record. That's what I'll be content with.