CAMPER’s boy racers

Hamish Hooper blogs from on board CAMPER

We have been maintaining an average speed of around 23 knots for the last 24 hours.

All of the fleet has had the foot to the floor non-stop.

You can just tell they love it, a full on adrenaline rush. So much so it smells like teen spirit, they remind me of adolescent teenagers taking their mothers car for a joy ride, on the edge of control- I guess the difference being these sailors are some of the most experienced and best sailors in the world, where as a teenager just tends to be jacked up on testosterone.

The race 24-hour record has been broken, regrettably our run from the very first leg, which has stood so strong for so long has fallen by the wayside. At the moment, it is so close to call who will take the prized IWC Scaffhausen timepiece, but I can assure you that there isn’t one sailor on any of the boats right now who isn’t using it for motivation.

We still have another few hundred miles to go before we gybe, which will pretty much signal the end of the run. It is so close and the margin for error is zero. Having to slow down for a single thing will signal the end of your chances.

It will be taken to the wire.

GOLDEN QUOTE: ”This is a serious arm wrestle as we race side by side with our three closest competitors, when to gybe, which sail to use to survive the night. And then there is the pressing issue of the wristwatch. As if the guys needed any more motivation to go faster”
WILL OXLEY