Without wanting to use all the clichés about "where has time gone" etc, it does in many ways feel like a couple of weeks since Level 2 finished and here I am with just 2 weeks to go until Level 3 starts again. I say it feels like only a couple of weeks ago but I find myself already struggling to remember all the manoeuvres - what rope goes where, which one to tighten and which one to release, what order to do things - and at any point doing the wrong one can literally break the mast or make the boom crash down onto deck doing untold damage to the people and equipment below it. I think the single smartest thing I've done in this whole thing was writing myself a cheat-sheet at the end of Level 2 of how each manoeuvre worked which should hopeful refresh my memory a bit. And failing that, I'll simply hope that it's like riding a bike or at least that everyone else on the boat has forgotten too so I don't look like the only fool on board!
So what's been going on since Level 2 you might wonder? Well the biggest change is that, despite my strong and outspoken views on the topic, I have been forced to temporarily join the evil empire of Facebook. Now before you rush out to find me and try to be my friend and the like, I am only using the system (and under a pseudonym) to access the very useful Clipper knowledge database which includes topics such as which warm kit works best, air-travel to/from legs, life on board etc. Sadly it is the only medium through which one can access such tremendously useful information and so I am now one of the 500 million or so of you who have joined Big Brother (Facebook), though I for one will continue to see and speak to my real friends through the traditional media rather than virtually. Other than that I have become a huge fan (and probably bore) or all the virtues of merino wool. I now have 2 pairs of leggings and 4 t-shirts as my base layers which have drifted from the realms of sailing kit into the world of day-to-day clothes and it's now rarely you will find me dressed without some piece of Merino wool on. And despite claims that you can wear Merino for up to 6 months without it ever smelling I still put them down to wash at least every 2 weeks whether they need it or not! (That's a joke mum, put the phone down....).
My final investment has been in a US Forces Bivy-Bag. Now a bivy bag is basically a water-proof outer shell for a sleeping bag which enables you to sleep outdoors in even the worst type of weather. Those of you that have read the Level 1 blog will probably remember the rather uncomfortable sleeping conditions on board where the sleeping bags soaks up water from the damp mattress below while the condensation "rains" on you from above all night. All in all, a rather unpleasant experience. So the bivy should come into its own on the boat. And despite Helen threatening to call the men in white coats, I stand by my decision to test the new bivy by sleeping out on the balcony last week in freezing conditions for a night. And I'm delighted I did as, despite being waterproof the bivy provides no warmth so I found my old sleeping bag, despite advertising itself as good to -14C, simply isn't up to the extreme cold so I will now be using 2 sleeping bags one inside the other on my Level 3 training. Once I got to this combo on my night on the balcony I was toasty warm for the rest of the night so it was a valuable lesson learnt that will hopefully reap hours of warm sleep on Level 3.
So what's Level 3 all about then? Well the first 5 days is land based and involves some very intensive theory on meteorology, navigation, "rules of the road" at sea etc. The courses go from 8am to 6pm every day followed by 2 hours of homework and then on day 5 a rather intense exam which many people have so far failed (and will have to resit before they can enter the race). Now although I can sit and argue that sailing in the freezing cold on a bare, cramped boat with no sleep is fun, even I will struggle to convince anyone, least of all myself that this course is going to be entertainment, but by all accounts it is invaluable stuff that we really need to know if we are to become experienced sailors. And then we have 5 days on a boat sailing offshore. This will be our first real experience of racing conditions. Although on level 1 we did an overnight sail, this will be 5 days at sea in shift patterns and in open seas, so really a good taster of the race ahead. The shift patterns will probably take the form of 4hours on/4 hours off for the 5 days so we'll have to get used to sleeping in 3 1/2 hour bursts. Depending on the wind we're likely to sail to Ireland/west France or perhaps even holland (though this is generally avoided because of the shipping lanes) and of course back! It will be interesting getting used to sleeping at sea, not having any heating/showers etc and of course cooking at sea (which proved tricky on the couple of occasions we tried in Level 1&2). But based on the experience of Level 1&2 I am confident that whatever the demographics of the crew on board (and particularly given they have survived level 1&2 and come back for more) that we will have great fun whatever mother Nature decides to throw at us. And again, if it does turn into an uncomfortable 5 days due to insufficient/incorrect kit I'd still rather find out now rather than half way across the Pacific.
I'll try and post an update at the of Level 3 theory before we head onto the boat (around the 22nd/23rd Feb), failing that I'll do it all in one go at the beginning of March. Can't wait to get sailing again!
Finally, I had my 3 minutes of fame on the Clipper website - for those wishing to read the interview here is the link:
http://www.clipperroundtheworld.com/index.php/race_news/?item=12423&p=1
And finally finally, to those with access to the Quest channel (think you need virgin/sky/freeview) - there is a documentary starting on the 2nd march filmed on last year's race called "Against the Tide" which should give you a lot of insight into what I've got myself into - not sure I dare watch!
