We enter the ‘Ocean  Sprint ‘. This is an area where there are 2 lines drawn on the map and no matter where you are when you get the 3 yachts with the fastest times between those lines get extra points.In this case the distance is 250 miles. Initially it is a fast close reach but later winds are less favorable . What we do well is pick the favorable gybes compared to the yachts around us. We entered behind Zhuhai and now are ahead of them,again, and we are now neck and  neck with Halong Bay who were well ahead previously. It’s a  little less cold with the  wind from the south . As we find out  2 weeks later we were 3rd behind Korea by an hour and so we get one extra point. Qingdao who came through 2 weeks later win it bymore than 8 hours.

I wrote a song which was the story of our race pretty. I caught by surprise by Shiyi our media person- we were just practicing!!

Zhuhai and Sanya Saga Lyrics

yes we did it again
we sailed past Zuhaii
we sailed past Zuhaii
oh yes we did

we broke our mainsail
Took a long time to fix
downwind under staysail
in 40 knots

yet chorus

our backing plate broke
we sailed under bare poles
in the wrong direction in40 knots for a whole day
then beat back into it and we lost at least a 100 miles
and yet

chorus

we broke our main halyard
our main halyard

it snapped like a twig rpt

Mary went up the mast
to drop down a string
a new halyarrd was done
and Zuhaii went by

chorus

Zuhaii clawed their way back

sailed well through the night
they were ahead alongside
ahead alongside

we sailed through a storm
and Clyde held his form
kept us downinD

in 50 knots ,then

Zuhaii broached really bad
they sat on their side
They sat on their side
came out a 100 metres ahead

then they put in a reef
they had some grief
they had some grief
and yes
chorus (variation Mike at the wheel)

but our headboard was broke
we couldn’t unreef
Zuhaii with more sail

went by again

then we entered the sprint
behind Zuhaii
behind Zuhaii
we got a favorable gybe

chorus