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June 16, 1999
Hawaii to Tarawa Voyage, Update #45
Day 44. Wednesday 16 June 1999 0245 GMT
Wind ENE 3-4. Heading 210M.
Latitude: 06deg 20.735N
Longitude: 177deg 39.202W
Shortly after writing the update yesterday evening the rain thankfully dribbled to a halt but was almost immediately replaced by a SSE wind - coming from pretty much the direction I was headed. Out of the frying pan into the fire: if there's one thing more demoralizing than rain, it's trying to plough through a head-on sea. Actually, above a certain wind and wave strength it makes sense to save excessive strain on ones knees and pedal unit and throw out the sea anchor to check drift. But on a half hour test with the GPS I found I was able to make 0.5 knots per hour ground made good, so I decided to continue pedaling into the evening to avoid losing my hard earned ground made south.
It takes an interesting mind-set to keep motivated in these conditions. Basically, when one takes into account the ground lost during breaks, the boat is at a standstill. But it's still better than going backwards. I found myself looking out of the window at bubbles that weren't moving. Meanwhile my legs were pounding away like pistons on a steam engine and the rational part of my head screaming "This makes no bloody sense at all!" But after half an hour or so of this mind-numbing business a gritty sense of determination sets in that involves nothing more than blinkered vision and brawn. Start thinking - and I find myself being talked into stopping for a while. There is no skill involved. No sensitivity to the surrounding environment needed. Just plain old brainless muscle power.
I thanked all things imaginable when I woke this morning to the return of the old faithful ENE wind. I swore to myself I'd never take this wind for granted again (wishful thinking) and I've been trying to make the most of it all day, even cutting my lunch-break in half. Talking of which, I've been rabbiting longer than I intended on this update..
Jason Lewis,
The Moksha motor
Posted on June 16, 1999 1:42 AM