Note from Black Pearl 0800 AST Friday 12th
The race has been a bit of everything. The first half was very pleasant, reaching in good conditions.
We have a very wet period followed by the transition into the northerly breeze.
We expect to be on the wind for the rest of today in 10 to 12 knots with a choppy sea.
Hopefully, the wind veers as forecast, and we can finish on a nice reach and be in tomorrow afternoon.
It seems we having a nice race with the multi-hull and actually were ahead of them on the race course at one point.
They did a better job with a rain cloud (geographical position) and put 30 miles into us. Since then, we've been at a similar speed and coming into them a little.
Once we start reaching, they will be gone again, but it's been fun chasing them.
Very surprising is the lack of sea / bird life and only seen 1 ship visually and 1 on AIS.
We did have a dove hitching a ride for a few hours.
Black Pearl maintains a Modest Lead
Thursday May 11 1400 AST
After trailing Tod Slyngstad’s HH 66 catamaran Nemo by approximately 50 miles on Wednesday, Stefan Jentzsch’s Botin 56 Black Pearl had pulled ahead by 3 miles as of 0600 Thursday morning and has expanded the lead slightly to 9 miles Thursday afternoon. The wind has been following them but appears about to swing to the North which should favour Black Pearl. Both yachts past the halfway point this morning.
Black Pear’s l lead in the CSA fleet on corrected time has expanded to 2 ¼ hours ahead of Peter Blunden’s Dufour 500 Life of Reilly. Following 1 1/4 hour behind is the sister entry from the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron, Ray Rhinelander’s J133 Bella J.
- Les Crane
Thursday May 11 0600 AST
After trailing the Tod Slyngstad’s HH 66 catamaran Nemo by approximately 50 miles on Wednesday, Stefan Jentzsch’s Botin 56 Black Pearl NS’s Black Pearl has pulled ahead by 3 miles as of 0600 AST Thursday morning. Both are just past the halfway point in the race.
Black Pearl leads the CSA fleet on corrected time ahead of Peter Blunden’s Life of Rilley by approximately 1 ¾ hours. Following ½ hour behind is the sister entry from the Royal Nova Scotia Yacht Squadron Ray Rhinelander’s Bella J.
A Clean Start Good Breeze and they are Off
Canadian Peter Blunden’s Life of Rilley led the way across the start line of the 4th Antigua Bermuda Race in brisk East winds. A fleet of 6 boats will make their way up the 935-mile course to Bermuda. The scratch boat in the monohull divisions is Stefan Jentzsch’s Botin 56 Black Pearl, the second-place finisher in this season's RORC Transatlantic Race. The likely boat for line honours is Californian Tod Slyngstad’s HH 66 catamaran, Nemo. Others in the fleet include Nova Scotian Ray Rhinelander’s Bella J, and repeat competitors Kevin McLaughlin’s Rye and Richard Dumas sailing Tim Wilson’s El Oro.
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