So far this leg has been a real contrast to all the previous legs

This leg is all about the extremes of the Volvo. Three days of sailing 427 nm sailed. When we came through here a few weeks ago it was a wild finish to one of the most intense legs of any around the world race to date. At this point we have barely had a wave over the bow. The benefit has been the chance to appreciate the rugged coast of Devon and Cornwall, the sea life and fisherman in the Irish Sea. Then this morning I got the chance to spend a couple of hours up the rig spotting wind and kicking the battens through after every gybe. We had abn1,abn2 and Brunel all just boat lengths away.

The racing was great but the Irish coast was spectacular. The sunrise exposed one of the most rugged and beautiful coasts you can imagine. It is easy to see why Roy Disney has a home in Kinsale. We all gybed in and out of every bay to take advantage of the shifts. Although at the end of the day it felt like the four boats had just done a coastal tour of Southern Ireland. I am sure there will be some hard miles ahead but so far this leg has been a real contrast to all the previous legs.

Things on board are great with the exception we are half way through our food with not even a third of the race completed. If things don’t pick up we may have to sail straight to Sweden.

That would upset Cheese because he really wants to sail into his home country and have some time to enjoy Holland.

Murph we got your e-mail, it sounds like the compound is great. I just hope we get to see it before we leave for Sweden.

Jerry Kirby