Haleakala in sight!

Date 07/09/01
Lat 21 58 North
Lon 156 27 West
Course over ground: 264 Degrees
Speed over ground: 14 knots
Wind speed: 19 knots
Wind direction: 096 degrees

Towering at 10,000 ft the Haleakala volcano situated on Maui is the first majestic landmark that we sight. You can see and accumulation of clouds with the little tip of the volcano sticking out. Binoculars confirm the details.

How we stretched, our rookie helmsman, Shark!

How we stretched, our rookie helmsman, Shark!

An hour after we checked in for our 100 Miles, nobody else has yet. We figure that this may not mean much as its “easy to forget to check-in”. So we’re pushing the boat as hard as we can.

Tireless start trimmer Mike

Tireless start trimmer Mike

There are two finishing strategies: Either head straight to the finish line or aim for Molokai and play the shifts down the Kaiwi channel as the wind bends along the coast. We are pretty familiar with that phase of the race after some epic Kenwood Cup distance racing in the summer of 2000. We like that approach a lot, however the wind has clocked East in the last 24 hours and those shifts may just not be worth the detour.

Doc never stops, always there

Doc never stops, always there

We’ll make that decision in the next few hours. Of course the danger here would be to not play those shifts and our competitors to make gains by playing them.

Curtis on top of the mast!

Curtis on top of the mast!

25 knots, rocking, masterful Curtis

25 knots, rocking, masterful Curtis

We stretched!

Our last position report.. We hear Pyewacket’s position and the whole boat cheered: We doubled our lead through the night! There is going to be a lot of sleeping once we get to “The best little yacht club in the world”! (Or
maybe not just sleeping…) But until then we’re all going to push our flying white horse like there is no tomorrow. Still much can happen in the big waves and the big wind and what are without much doubt the best sailing
conditions in the world. Big wind, big waves, warm water, beautiful Island!

Pegasus, the flying white horse is starting to ‘accelerate for the barn!”