LAURA, MATT, ROMAN and MIKE - Read the last posts of my heroes ! - brand news

Laura Dekker

LAURA DEKKER

29-12-2011

Another nice and sunny day here. The water is getting warmer so it was my chance to take a shower today... The temperature rising the conditions called for a nice and smooth showery cooling down... I keep in touch with another yacht that is heading for the Caribbeans that set sail from South Africa one week after Guppy and I did. Over the SSB radio we are sharing common experiences which is always real nice. They are now going thru the same weather system Guppy and I went faced so it was nice to

share about that and I promised that the temperature would get warmer soon ... for they are still in a cold zone being 940 nautical miles behind us.The flying fishes haven't come knocking lately - I guess they understood the message... Sometimes I find fish scales on the deck and today I also found a dried out squid hidden between ropes. Not funny. That thing stank like there is no...  LINK

Matt Rutherford

MATT RUTHERFORD

26-12-2011

I got a bit dinged up about a week and a half ago.  It was blowing 30-35kts and these squally rain showers where consistently passing by producing 40kt winds.  If there’s too much wind my wind generator disconnects (somehow) from my batteries and without that load it starts spinning out of control.  You can tell when this happens because the sound that the wind generator makes changes drastically.  So I went outside to tie off the blades and stop the generator from spinning.  It sits on an eight foot pole, and because of the 40kt winds my boat was heeled over something awful.  I had very little sail up so there was nothing I could do about that.  Anyway, it’s a precarious job but I managed to tie off the wind generator.  In order to get from the back of my cockpit to the companionway I have to step over the lines that run from my wind vane to my tiller.  I’ve done this 1,000 times and could do it blindfolded.  The problem was that it was 2 or 3am and the thick clouds blocked out the moonlight so I was sailing in pitch black darkness.  As I went to step over the line a wave came out of the darkness hitting me with a solid wall of water.  I had one foot in the air so it easily threw me across the cockpit.  I came down hard on a winch right in the ribs and I must have hit several other things as I was dinged up in a half dozen places.  I was alright after a few days but it hurt to take a deep breath for a while.  The point is, when things go wrong on a sail boat it happens very quickly.  One moment I’m sleeping peacefully in my sleeping bag, a few minutes later I’m sprawled out in the bottom of my cockpit with the wind knocked out of me, covered in water, trying to figure out what just happened.  

Well, all in all, all is good.  I’m happy to be down here.  It’s an exciting place with an infamous history.  I’m 1,240 miles from the Horn and right on schedule.  The winds will pick up as I get closer to the Horn.  It looks like I might have a gale in the next few days.  So happy holidays, drink some egg nog for me and have a...  LINK

Roman Paszke

ROMAN PASZKE

30/12/2011

Position the boat: 34 ° 66.66 S, 47 º 74.94 in the, course: 227th The current speed of about 2 - 3 in.

Abeam to starboard Uruguay. Land around 300 nm. Minimal movement of ships.

Roman Paszke:

Sailing teaches patience ...

Always so far is repeated with the crew guys ..

And now he is slightly impatient ..

Last night - the wind almost stopped for good.

Now only a slight breeze can - sometimes - to sail from 1 to 3 knots ..

Nothing is .. according to forecasts - the evening will be better ..

But the boat is always some work to do.

Now the outstanding office work. Also, minor technical inspections.

Pan Ocean lazy, but kind ... gentle swell pushes the catamaran in the ... LINK

Pangaea

MIKE HORN

29-12-2011

2012 promises to be an exciting year with many new and exciting projects happening within the Pangaea Expedition. Mike Horn and the Pangaea Team extend their heartfelt gratitude to their partners and suporters.

"Huge thanks to my partners who have stood beside me during the last 3 years of the Pangaea Expedition. They have opened up boundless opportunities for our Young Explorers who do not cease to amaze us with their motivation and passion to help the environment. Through tough times there is hope. Giving youth the keys to 'open the doors of life' is just one way we can get them to care about what is important to us - Planet Earth - the mother that...LINK