15th March, 2002 -The "National Investment Institute" arrived safely in Capetown at around midnight last night local time. The crew are by now showered and looking alot more respectable than prevoiusly! They are now looking foreward to the next leg to Kerguelen Island and again into the Southern Ocean. This expedition is not over by a long shot yet!
Previous Updates:
13th March, 2002 -As it would always happen when you are close to your destination, the crew of the "National Investment Institute" are expreiencing light headwinds and sloppy 2 metre seas. This is frustrating for the crew especially with only 228 miles to go! The yacht is still due to reach Capetown on the 14th so the crew will just have to sit tight!
12th March, 2002 -The crew of the "National Investment Institute" has a mild drama last night as a steering cable snapped. It was fixed nice and quickly with the yacht getting on its way again. The wind is around 10-15 knots from the South..getting colder, still not quite cold enough for the thermals yet but it will be soon!
11th March, 2002 -The "National Investment Institute" continues to reach its way across the Atlantic on the final stages of this leg. The yacht is still due in on the 14th..averaging around 120 miles per day. The crew saw a pod of dolphins hunting for food today..amazed at how cunnig and vicious these normally gentle creatures can be.
10th March, 2002 -The crew on the "National Investment Instittute" recieved an interesting weather forecast today..from Townsville Radio in North Queensland! One of the quirks of HF Radio, the crew were happy to hear from home, putting them in a good mood! They also saw two ships today, the first since leaving Martin vaz Island..showing to the crew how close they are to their destination!
9th March, 2002 -The wind has again eased to around 5-10 knots. This has put the schedule for the "National Investment Institute's" arrival into Capetown back to the 14th. This is a little disappointing for the crew but the upside is that the wind has swung around so that the the boat is reaching its way across a beautifully flat Atlantic. Days like this need to be savoured..as described by the skipper Dave Pryce it's "champagne sailing".
8th March, 2002 -The "National Investment Institute" crossed into the Eastern Hemisphere today, the same hemisphere as home! The wind is still around 10-15 knots and the crew are looking foreward to getting into Capetown on the 12th and letting their hair down a little. Its been a long time since their proper landfall in Punta!
7th March, 2002 -The wind has eased further from yesterday down to around 10-15 knots making for nice sailing conditions though it is a bit of a headwind. The boat is making good time still looking to be in Capetown by the 12th.
6th March, 2002 -A cold front last night brought the crew of the "National Investment Institute" a nice little "shock to the system". With winds gusting to over 40 knots, the crew had to quickly put in a couple of reefs in the main and drop to a smaller staysail. Since then the wind has eased to a more pleasant 20-25 knots; certainly making a change from the last few days!
5th March, 2002 -The "National Investment Institute" continues to drift its way toward Capetown. They are still stuck inside a super High pressure System which seems to be giving the crew no joy at all, averaging just 4.5 knots over the last 24 hours. At this stage the crew are still hopeful of arriving at Capetown by the 12th but this may well change!
4th March, 2002 -The "National Investment Institute" has has a slow ol' weekend, only managing to average just under 5 knots during that time. The boat is in the middle of a large stable high pressure system which is not helping the yacht in the area of favourable wind! Despite this the crew are still in very high spirits and looking forward to the yacht landing in Capetown on the 12th. The crew have seen the first dolphins since leaving South Georgia, maybe a good sign!
1st March, 2002 - The "National Investment Institute" is gently reaching toward their next stop under 12-15 knot winds and slight seas, averaging just under 5 knots over the last 24 hours. The yacht is expected in Capetown on around the 12th March. The conditions are still fairly humid with a heavy cloud cover but fortunately no rain.
28th Feburary, 2002 - The "National Investment Institute" is beating its way across the Atlantic after entering a huge rain cloud whic promptly turned the wind around on the yacht's nose. The crew were fortunate enough to see a pod of Sperm Whales..the first big whales since leaving the South Coast of Australia! The crew are very upbeat despite not being able to stop of a Martin vaz Island..can't win 'em all!
27th Feburary, 2002 -The crew of the "National Investment Institute" is enjoying a gentle run across the Atlantic thanks to a 15-20 knot NW breeze. They were able to average nearly 8 knots over the last 24 hours which hopefully will put them in Capetown around about the 12th March.
26th Feburary, 2002 -An uneventful day on the "National Investment Institute", not too many of those! The yacht is running before a light 13 - 15 knot NW wind making good time though. The crew are all well and enjoying being able to stand on a relatively flat surface for a while!
25th Feburary, 2002 -The "National Investment Instititute" is now on its way to Capetown. They are reaching around a nice big high pressure system, keeping their speed up to around 7.5 knots. The crew bit the bullet today and had a freshwater wash so at least the smell on board is a little better!
