Heading South Pays Off
After concentrating efforts rowing south over the past 10 days, the crew are in the perfect position for incoming positive winds this week.
The team have found themselves in just about the most perfect position for the upcoming weather this week. They didn't spend ages getting too far south, but they’re still south enough to start getting some support from the wind, whilst the more northerly crews are likely to get stuck in yet more still and treacly conditions. So how have they managed to do this?
Can they magically predict the future and tell them where to go to get the best conditions? Well as it happens...yes! The team have a weather router; an actual human back on land looking at the weather for them., and it's paying off. Tom confirmed this morning that they're now getting around 8 knots of wind and this is set to increase over the week.
No time to rest!
The shift patterns were extremely challenging in blistering heat over the past week. Rowing for two hours, at pace, in the heat, was becoming unmanageable. So they switched to shifts of one hour on, thirty minutes off.
Whilst one hour on is very sensible in the temperatures they are reporting, thirty minutes off is not enough time to get any proper rest. So between midnight and 6am they're rowing as soloists for two hours at a time, which means four hours off. This is a great bit of rest to get, but really it's the only proper sleep they are having.
Rowing effectively as a trio was always going to be a challenge, but doing it in this heat with little wind has proved to be absolutely brutal. Thankfully with increased winds, things are looking up.
How are we able to bring you location updates?
This video also offers an interesting glimpse aboard the boat; we can see the YB Tracker at the bottom right of the screen which enables us to watch the teams progress across the Atlantic.
Not only that but the passing yacht cheered the team up no end!
Just a reminder that the trio are taking on this phenomenal row in order to help provide Homes for Veterans through the charity Alabare. You can support them by donating here.
* Credit to Atlantic Campaigns for the image of the team in action.
