How did we find ourselves in this race?
Difficult to say except that it has been a target of mine during the boat building – must have her finished by Feb 03 then we'll enter the 3 peaks! Well, we didn't make 2003 but hopefully we'll get to the start line in 2006– only three weeks to go now.
Despite the introduction, we are hardly a finely honed racing team, we are a bunch of mates who enjoy each others company and are always up for a challenge. In varying combinations we have worked together, sailed together, climbed together, skied together and cycled together – even run a half marathon or two together.
With a combined age of 222 years we are not all in the spring of youth. Our aim? Firstly not to sink, secondly to maintain our status as “amateurs” and lastly not to come last and to finish with dignity intact.
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Richard Stain Email: dick@vibro.force9.co.uk |
A Thank You from the Skipper
The Three (two) Peaks Yacht race
Well, Team Laura didn't finish but we all did our best (and a bit more), we are all alive with no injuries and Laura is safe in harbour. Looking at the leader board it looks as though we will ranked 15 th assuming Huckleberry friend makes it to the finish, If not then we would be 14 th. Not a bad effort for a first attempt.
Our decision to turn back was fully vindicated as the weather really did turn awful and the Met office showed a predicted storm force 10 for sea area Malin on Wednesday. Sea state was “high” one notch higher than “very rough” which means average wave height of 6m. We would not have been happy bunnies to be caught at the Mull of Kintyre in that. So no regrets.
I want to say an enormous “thank you” to everyone involved, it was a brilliant team effort and not just the sailing team.
- Thanks Huw for being a great co-skipper, for all your input with the planning, for a fabulous Team Laura website, for surviving without sleep on some long night watches especially the last few hours into Whitehaven, now we know what surfing is all about.
- Andrew, for organising the food. None of us got scurvy and not a single weevil was spotted in the hard tack. For suffering with me on Snowdon and for providing a superb “meat and three veg” service under some arduous conditions at sea.
- To my son and mate Jeremy, and his mate Dave, for lots of hard work winching and reefing and other nautical stuff. Most of all for a superb run on Scafell, coming in second overall for that leg against top international athletes. A fabulous performance lads. Nine hours next year???
- To Jenny, for driving twice to Whitehaven in two days, for delivering the bikes, for a scrummy casserole and cakes, and for collecting us at the end. Thanks Jen.
- To Jenny (the younger) and Rachael, for supporting their men on and off the mountain, for supplying cakes and other goodies and for being angels of mercy to me and Andrew at Llanberis with tea and malt loaf.
- Thanks Neil for crewing on the delivery trip to Barmouth, and for driving us to Holyhead. And for providing a weather forecast service at Whitehaven.
- Janet for crewing on the delivery trip, for the great food and I must mention by name the LEMON DRIZZLE CAKES. Can we have some more next year please.
- To Anite, for supporting and feeding the bike delivery team.
- Thanks Jo for your last minute dash to Whitehaven to collect Huw and Dave.
- To John, Jo and kids for shouted encouragement as we rowed under Menai Bridge
The official website was rather disappointing in that we didn't get a single mention, we must have been going so fast that we were invisible. But there are two pics of us, on the first aerial view of the start Laura is bottom right hand side. And the one of us rounding Bardsey.
Next Year? This is certainly unfinished business and we have learnt a lot from this year.
Thanks again to all my mates, mate-esses and family
Dick
Thursday 22nd June 2006
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