First Class 40 to cross the equator |
| Saturday, 29 July 2006 |
Jonathan Crinion and his yacht Friends of the Earth became the first Class 40 to cross the Equator. The Owen Clarke designed yacht is on passage to Europe for the October start of the Route de Rhum.
The Toronto based sailor and a sailing freind are delivering the boat from Cape Town where she was launched at Jaz Marine with the help of Owen Clarke designer, Allen Clarke just over a month ago. Freinds of the Earth are in there own race to get back to Europe in time to measure, complete a single-handed qualifying sail and prepare the boat for the race start at the end of October. Almost fittingly, the mainsail on the boat that is raising awareness for the international environmental charity Freinds of the Earth is labelled with the strap line - The Big Ask. Intended of course as a wake up call to us all to focus our thoughts on what we can do for the planet and the environment we and our descendants will live in.
The yacht recently left a planned stopover at St Helena where repairs were made to her pilot system, important because on the way up north she will have to stop at one of the island groups to let Jonathan's single crew member off. Jonathan needs to complete a qualifying passage for the race on his own and Brian needs to go to his wedding !
This just in hot off the boat by Satcom C:
Position: 0,00.01N , 14,53.10W
Speed: 9 knots, Course: 323 deg.
UTC Time: 28. July 2006 10:20
'Friends of the Earth crosses the Equator'
We have covered 3165 nautical miles so far and are slightly more than half
way to the UK. We have our massive 'Friends of the Earth' Gennaker flying
off the bowsprit and a full main. With not a cloud in the sky and gently
rolling waves we could do with more wind but we are happily coasting along
at 9 to 10 knots anyway with lots of suntan lotion on. Haven't been in a
queue, no traffic lights or congestion charges, in fact we haven't seen
another boat since leaving St Helena - just clean air and a vast ocean
seemingly filled with flying fish. Best of all we we came all that way with
just a bit of wind and sunlight. I cannot believe the number of flying fish.
We cannot go more than 200 m before a school of flying fish take to the air
and skim away from the boat. They go for about 30 to 50m and then bounce off
the water and keep going en-masse. It's not just random jumping either, you
can see that they are quite adept at flying and know how to play with the
wind. A wonderful treat to watch. The moon only comes up for a moment in the
evening, so it is still very dark with a spectacular display of stars and
planets. A meteor lit up the sky like a flash of lightning, that lasted half
a minute, as it crashed to earth last night. There is a sailing expression
'Head in the boat' which basically means its important to stop fussing with
all the stuff on the boat and look around at what surrounds you on the
water. When I look at all the stars and planets as we sit on this vast ocean
it's easy to feel totally insignificant in the scheme of the universe and at
the same time feel wonderfully unique. I can't help but think that 'Head in
the city' is part of the problem facing humanity. Toronto had huge blackouts
for a week two years ago. It was wonderful! There was no electricity and in
the summer evening you could hear children laughing and playing outside,
candle light suppers and barbeques all around, people went to bed early, and
every corner had neighbours chatting. The hum of air conditioners was gone
and traffic moved better than it ever has. People were courteous and shared
what they had and I hear there is talk of a staged re-enactment because
people enjoyed the moment and talk fondly of when they had their 'Head out
of the city' and momentarily they could see the stars again.
All the best,
Jonathan
For more information go to: www.jonathancrinion.com
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