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Shorthanded Racing in San Francisco Bay

2002 TRANSPAC News and Position Reports

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Thursday June 27

0900 hours radio check in

via SailMail from Steve Wilson on board Westerly

YachtLatitudeLongitudeDTFNotes
Rusalka24.35152.03435
Alchera22.43156.20178
Tease23.38152.55374
Endangered Species24.54150.42510
Seabird23.03152.13407
Zapped   did not check in
Westerly23.37151.22457
Haulback23.52149.29563
DTF = distance to finish, nautical miles

2100 hours radio check in

from Steve Wilson on Westerly
YachtLatitudeLongitudeDTFNotes
Rusalka24.16153.25357
Alchera22.35157.4897
Tease23.20154.19295
Endangered Species24.24151.49443
Seabird22.51153.28336
Zapped   did not check in
Westerly23.21152.38386
Haulback23.48150.36501
DTF = distance to finish, nautical miles

from Mark Deppe on board Alchera

Alchera Log 6/27/02 1456 Hours
Position N22 35 W157 04

Last night was a good sailing night for everyone in the fleet; even Eric on Rusalka was beginning to see the end of the ordeal. When you're only moving a couple of knots, the GPS tells you some very depressing things about your arrival date. (Like, that you are going to run out of food and water first!) But now the winds have filled back in and the sailors are happy to be moving along.

And today is magnificent as well. Clear blue skies, winds are in the 16-18 knot range, and the swells are large enough to surf on. So Alchera has been surfin' to Kauai. 135 miles left to go.

The fleet still continues to operate on PDT rather than try to continuously adjust clocks on the way across. But now the 0900 morning check-in happens just after it gets light, and there are still many more hours of daylight after the 2100 check-in. I've found my body is just not hungry on the old schedule, it's not fooled by such games. So I eat according to Hawaii time.

I suppose this will be Alchera's last full day and night of the race. It will be good to finish. Two weeks being in 'race mode' is very fatiguing. I've got to recharge on my sleep today so that I can make landfall in reasonable mental and physical condition.

But now comes another fun part of the race - hanging with all the skippers as they come in one by one and recounting everyone's wild experiences on the way over.

- Alchera

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