I had intended to narrate this video but after choosing the songs and putting together a rough cut I decided I liked just fine sans narration. Fortunately I have this blog where I can share a bit about the trip:
The start of the Marion to Bermuda race was eerily calm. Light to no wind beating our way out of Buzzards Bay we were racing hard but also trying to rest for what we all knew was going to be a tough bash to Bermuda. As we prepared the boat and fretted about the ocean’s fury it was impossible to ignore her beauty.
The gale did not disappoint. The boat and crew were tested and came through largely unscathed. We did have trouble with the third reef and as the guy who rigged it I spent a fun half an hour dangling over the ocean straightening it out. Taking down our big headsail and putting up our roller furling blade was a bit of a chore. One of the batten pockets on the main got opened by the lazy runner and we had to bring the whole thing down onto the deck and repair it. As you saw at least one immersion detecting light was triggered by conditions on deck and someone’s non-hydrostatic inflatable PFD prematurely inflated.
Sighting Bermuda energized the whole crew who were on the rail at once, perhaps more to dry off than anything else! Bermuda was an amazing destination and the royal Hamilton amateur dinghy club were superb hosts.
The Marion to Bermuda certainly tested me; in spite of that or perhaps because it I’m definitely going again next year!
Finally, a shout out to Nate who kept his GoPro running until it ran out of battery and shared the footage with me. Thanks buddy 🙂
[…] was my first ocean race and second offshore passage. I wrote a bit more about the race in my blog post that accompanies this video. When I watch this video I remember what it felt like to be out […]