Today's Report
May 21/10 0800 JST / 1700 local
Position:
02°20'N, 107°26'W (North Pacific Ocean)
Sometimes it's nice to be wrong. Yesterday we wrote that it doesn't get any better than the perfect sailing conditions he was enjoying. But it DID get better when winds climbed into the high teens during the day, giving Saito-san his best 24-hour DMG of 184 nm. Even Saito-san was impressed, declaring it "amazing!" this morning. His previous top DMG was 160 nm on March 30.
Despite reducing the genoa to half size, he saw the boat hit 9.2 kts several times during the period, and speeds in excess of 8 kts were often reached when the wind gusts were angled just right, coming in from the SSE on a beam reach. He's keeping his eye on sail and rigging wear, including the smaller damaged area in the main he was not able to mend earlier in the week. He said there has been no obvious worsening.
He advised that he will continue gradually heading up north, as he finds the effects of the Doldrums weaker and the winds stronger above the Equator than they were a few days ago. The wonderfully favorable current maintains for the next 100 nm or so above his present position, at which point ClearPoint shows it slows, then reverses to the east, at about 004° N. Once past that, he'll catch a ride on the the East Trade Winds, which should see him through to Hawaii (in 3,000 nm) and beyond.
He's now 1,055 nm from the Galapagos, averaging 132 nm a day since he left.
***
Distance in last 24 hours: 184 nm
Total distance completed: 21,117 nm
To Yokohama: 7,030 nm (distance remaining: 25.1%)
Heading: 270
Reported boat speed: 7.5 kts
Average boat speed: 7.7 kts
Weather: Clear
Temperature: 25.0° C
Barometer: 1005 hPa (slightly up)
Wind (from): 12-18 kts, ESE expected to be 12-16 kts SSE for next 19 hours
Waves: 1.0-1.5 m
Current (from): E at 1.4 - 1.8 kt (favorable)
Engine: 0 hrs
Generator: 8.0 hrs
Sails: Genoa 50%, staysail 0%, mainsail 1-pt reef
Position Map
