ARC blog 2019 - Sofie, injuries, wooden spiboma

The Sirli!

The Atlantic has long been a dream for me, and now I'm sitting here, a twenty-year-old girl as first mate on Sirli. With me I have my skipper Fredrik and together we complement each other very well. We teach our crew everything from steering, setting sails, trimming and reefing. They are becoming very skilled now. I can relax more and more the further we get on our journey. It's not just them who have developed. I myself feel that I have grown as a person. I love the great responsibility you feel, the trust the crew has in you. How you've managed to solve problems without having to ask for tips and ideas and be able to answer all the crew's questions.

We have been through a lot together. Breaking records in the fastest prep for the Atlantic, large schools of dolphins, sharks and whales. We have swum at 4000 meters, had bleak and squalls, rain and sunshine. We have celebrated the first Advent and 50th anniversary, washed and cleaned. We are like a big family now.
A few days ago we damaged our gennaker. The spinning lids folded and the halyard locked my hand between the masts while the rope ran freely. I thought my fingers had broken, that the rope had cut through completely, then I have no memory of what happened. I've been told by Patrik that he knocked my hand out, and I can't even imagine how it would have gone if he wasn't next to me. I sit down next to Fredrik who stands and steers, and realize that he is needed more in other places. After all, I have another hand to work with. I take over the helm and he runs off to the rest of the crew who are trying to get the gennaker out of the water. It is stuck in the rudder. When we've thrown in all the fuel anchors we have and taken down the sails, I sit down with Fredrik to bandage the wounds. It's only then that all the pain comes. It's quite fascinating how the body can switch off things that are irrelevant when a difficult situation arises. The crew come running in, shouting happily that they've got the sail off the rudder, and they re-hoist the jib and once again head 270 degrees towards St. Lucia.
16 hours later, another event occurs. This time we get an unexpected gybe and the boom breaks. We lower it to the deck and continue on with only the jib as a working sail. The next day, Fredrik has come up with a great idea on how to use the mainsail even though we have no boom. Everyone in the crew helps, everyone keeps the happy face and we fight together to make his idea work. After 6 hours of work, everyone looks up at the sail with satisfaction. There it is again. We can continue with the third reef and full jib.
Yesterday we passed the halfway point! Exactly at 20.00 at longitude W 38* 00, Njord, the sea god of Nordic mythology, jumps out. With his hook in one hand and bucket of water in the other, he baptizes us all.
Now we are finally real sailors!
Now it gets shorter and shorter until we have land in sight. I said before I set off on this adventure that I wanted to have something to talk about when I got home. I wanted a tougher challenge that I could then brag about with a straight back to all my loved ones. Now I have my adventures and events and we solved them together, just like a big family.
Have the best!
Hugs Sofie

Hello svejsan!

We are now in day 12 of the Atlantic voyage and have finally reached halfway in distance. Just before midnight we passed the 38th longitude and therewith halfway to St. Lucia. The first half has been a slow start with weak winds, which however made it possible for sun fishing and other things. Hopefully the second half will go much faster, around 8 days. Our ETA, i.e. expected arrival time, is on St. Lucia day. It has then gone about 20 days over and is well among the longer ones, largely due to the difficult to read and weak winds from las palmas. We had a wave this morning that hit the boat, with a wet salon and a wet cabin as a result, so now sheets and mattresses are drying in the sun. The wind has stabilized fairly well at between 15 and 30 knots, about 8 to 15 seconds. The waves are starting to get better proportions and therefore provide better surf than before. Yesterday, unfortunately, our self-made spribom in wood broke, and a temporary repair lasted less than an hour. We are therefore forced to cross the rest of the way, but it goes well too. We eat well and live well on board, a little more dizzying than before perhaps. We start to feel the smells of rum punch and coconuts!

Fair winds as usual wish Alex and Dan with crew on Bianco!