The Summer Solstice has been one filed of frustration, despair, hope and happiness for all on board GREAT Britain. It is a day celebrated as being the longest in the calendar and for us yesterday, it certainly lived up to its reputation! The start of it saw us desperately struggling to hold on to our second place position amongst the fleet as we battled against the wind fickle conditions of a huge North Atlantic high that engulfed and blocked our path in to Derry-Londonderry. As we watched our speeds fall, we could all sense the impending doom and bad news that would swiftly be following in the 06:00am and midday racing schedules that we receive daily. It is perhaps ironic that, despite glorious sunshine, beautifully flat waters and a gentle sea breeze, the mood on GREAT Britain was a frantic and desperate one to say the least. Longest day...it was certainly beginning to feel like it at that point in time. Not even the rare sighting of a huge pod of baby sperm whales, passing 5 metres in front of our bow, could buoy morale on board. We were moving slowly and the day with it too.
However, as the old saying goes, 'good things come to those who wait' and just as our patience was about to wear thin, the weather gods delivered us hope. Hope in the form of a strong south westerly breeze that suddenly saw our sails fill and our speeds rise. The damage had been quite severe, six places we had dropped too, but now was our opportunity to make amends and we wanted all the daylight we could get.
By the turn of midnight and the end of the Summer Solstice we had managed to claw back a whopping 40 miles on the leading pack. Spirits were high and the crew were buzzing, 'this Solstice hadn't been that bad after all' they began to think. Opportunity was there for us once again and as we pushed on, sailing hard, amidst a crimson backdrop of a sky-line glistening with the glow of the midnight sun, a first for one and all may I add, it was true what they said 'red sky at night, sailors delight'! :)