The sea state continues to be truly tumultuous. We are sailing with a current of about two knots (which is good) that is going against the swell (not so good), which creates such confused seas.

CAMPER is going pretty well generally speaking bumping from wave to wave coming from all different directions. Every now and then a set of large steep waves with no backs to them come along and the helmsman have to spin the boat on the crest of the wave so as not to crash directly off the back of it. Its been said more than once that it’s a good thing it is daylight and we can see the waves or else there would be some pretty big crashes down into the deep troughs of the waves.

The waves aren’t the only danger. There is still is a fair bit of debris in the water. Only this morning we narrowly missed a full sized pallet by a metre or so. And yesterday we passed a large unmarked and unlit steel buoy. Hitting anything like that has potential to be a real showstopper.

Everyone on board is pretty good, heads down and hard work, even though we are continuing to sail a course, which regrettably is taking us further away from Auckland. It is something that has to be done if we are to minimise our time in the painful light air forecast for the next wee while and to navigate our way as best we can across the three-knot Kuroshio, or ‘Black Tide’ current which runs north past the Luzon Strait to the east of Taiwan and then north-east to Japan. Again it’s the wrong way to Auckland… torture!

Speaking of torture Adam has been pretty crook in a world of pain, which he thinks is a mix of stomach bug he had before getting on board and seasickness. I truly feel for him, he is bravely battling on through it. I think he has stopped feeding the fish by now which is a good sign

Daryl thinks Adam is coming right since he got his opinion back.

On a more serious note I guess we shouldn’t complain too much about motion, when we think of what the brave folk of Christchurch have been living with for the past year since the devastating earthquake. Our thoughts are with everyone down there one year on, especially after we visited Lyttelton  last winter and saw the destruction first hand.

Oh and while we are sending messages- a very special birthday message from all of us onboard to our wise and wonderful shore manager Coxy. I don’t know how old you are, but I do know you are wise beyond your years- and your experience…you are just so experienced!

We will look forward to wishing you a belated birthday when we get to Auckland….

Ah Auckland…did you know in 2009 Auckland ranked 4^th equal in a survey of the quality of life of 215 major cities of the world.

That’s not hard to believe! I love Auckland.

GOLDEN QUOTE:

“Had a few little tastes of current against wind earlier this morning, there are no backs to the waves in those conditions so the landings are severe. Not too much a problem in the daylight as we can steer around them softening the impact on the boat, but a big issue in the nighttime. It looks like we will arrive at the Taiwanese coast in more conditions with strong current and breeze- boat breaking conditions so we will have to tread carefully to get through in one piece. Boat and crew doing well but a tricky couple of days ahead.” CHRIS NICHOLSON

Overnight CAMPER has extended out to a 16.5 nautical mile lead over second placed Groupama. Sanya is in third place 18.3 miles off the pace. After a long starboard leg heading towards the southern tip of Taiwan the last eight hours have seen CAMPER tack onto port and then back onto starboard in an effort to exit the South China Sea in a strong position.

CAMPER and the rest of the fleet are now facing a key tactical decision on the best option to take in order to minimise the impact of a looming windless zone. Boats can either take a longer route to the north in an effort to avoid the ridge of high pressure settling over the Strait of Luzon, or aim to get south east early and through the Strait before the wind shuts down entirely.

CAMPER skipper Chris Nicholson says that that the outlook for the next 24 hours is extremely complicated with plenty of minefields ahead.

“Our weather models are divided at the moment so there’s no clear picture on what the best option is for exiting the South China Sea. The one things that does seem to be guaranteed though is that it’s going to be painful.

“Right now it’s a bit of a game of snakes and ladders out here, but the breeze does seems to be rotating more to the right than expected so that’s favouring the starboard tack for the time being.

“We’re are just playing things conservatively and focusing on sailing the boat as fast as possible. We’re in a good position at the moment and have managed to put a few miles on the guys behind us which is always nice, but the next few days and getting out of here in good shape are going to be pivotal and it’s a pretty complicated situation ahead.

“I’d be very surprised though if we end up heading north around Taiwan as that involves sailing several hundred miles in the wrong direction which would be a bold call for anyone to make.”

CAMPER in the latest position report at 1500h 22 February NZT is in first place averaging 12 knots in a 13 knot south easterly.

Hamish Hooper blogs from on board CAMPER with Emirates Team New Zealand.

For a while now I haven’t been feeling the best, but I have definitely felt worse. I am on a precipice not sure which way I will go- downhill fast into seasick hell, or break through to happy days and feel all right.

Until my body decides which way to go I will continue my aggressive and bordering on excessive intake of little pink and white pills.

Cooking dinner last night was a significant test. Every moment being forward in the galley you know is not helping seasickness with the jolting motion of each wave.

You want to get out of there as quick as possible but its not a good place to rush, with violent movements, open flames and boiling hot water it creates a pretty dangerous place to be. Alas the crew must eat, so freeze dry must be made!

It’s all pretty quiet on the boat this morning; I think I am not the only one not feeling brilliant. We are about 1/3 of the way between Sanya and the Luzon strait. We have Groupama and Telefonica within a handful of miles and as always showing pretty good speed. Again it’s a game of inches and subtlety.

Will Oxley tells me it is forecast to lighten off a bit and potentially the sea state to moderate, which is a bit of a catch 22. Life will get easier on board, but we will take longer to get to New Zealand… I think I would prefer to feel sick but get home quicker. – That’s how great home is!

But for now the sea state is far from moderate. It’s all over the place.

I think I can speak for everyone in saying we are looking forward to leaving the South China Sea behind.

Before we do, perhaps the biggest tactical decision of the whole leg has to be made on where is best to exit the Luzon Strait.

Do we cut the corner and round the top of the Philippines, which takes us closer to the finish with every mile, but risk lighter air further down the track. Or do we keep heading north to Taiwan, which will take us away from the finish, but set us up longer term for much better trade wind sailing most of the way south to New Zealand. One thing is for sure, it will be tense times, depending on what the other boats decide to do.

If we get it wrong the consequences could be great, not only not winning the leg, but also potentially adding on a few more days to the leg, which are days no one can afford with such a short stopover in Auckland.

Speaking of the greatness of Auckland, here’s a fact:

Auckland has the highest number of boats per capita than anywhere else in the world.

And this is why it is called the City of Sails. We live in hope that a good number of these boats will be out on the harbour the day we arrive!

But that’s a long way off – for now, we plough on through the liquid mess.

GOLDEN QUOTE:

“This is like sailing in a washing machine without the soap suds unfortunately. A mix of current, wind and the fact we are right on top of where the ocean floor goes from 600 metres to only 200 metres, all combined to make a pretty messy confused ride. Not what I would call smooth sailing.” – TONY RAE

Slamming into 4 – 5 metre seas, the lead was slim – just 2.4 nautical miles over second-placed Groupama. With almost 5000 miles to race before reaching Auckland,   every little gain helps.

The position report puts Telefonica third on the water 8.4 miles behind CAMPER, Abu Dhabi fourth at 9.2 miles, Sanya 12.3 and Puma 26.2.

Skipper Chris Nicholson said: “The aim this far out is to stay in touch with everyone… work the fleet and take small gains as and when the opportunities arise.

“So far no one has taken a flier and we all seem to want to go the same way.”

The start was unspectacular – the yachts gliding slowly on glassy water requiring extreme concentration to avoid the patches of dead calm. Crews knew it was not going to last.

The previous day’s racing was “suspended” by race organisers for 12 hours to avoid boat-breaking conditions in the South China Sea.

The early morning restart at Sonya got away slowly but the fleet, once out of the wind shadow of the high mountains of Hainan Island and into the South China Sea, encountered the confused sea left over from the storm.

It was back to wet weather gear and hanging on, with water gushing across the decks. The wind had dropped but the sea state left over from the storm was steep and confused. Weather forecasters are predicting that the seas will take longer to ease.

Sea sickness was common across the fleet and crew were clipped on and hanging on. It was difficult to keep their feet as the boats slammed off the waves.

The fleet is heading for the Straits of Luzon – the stretch of water between Taiwan and the Philippine Island of Luzon and out into the Western Pacific Ocean.

Hamish Hooper is back blogging from CAMPER – today on the first day back at sea as they head for Auckland ….

It was a torturous start after not the greatest day yesterday. We had to wait nine long minutes and 13 arduous seconds as Telefonica, Groupama, Abu Dhab and Sanya started before us.

As it turned out it became a slight blessing in disguise..

The breeze was very light as we virtually started directly into a transition zone between two different breezes. We could see that they were all a bit parked up not long after the start so knew we didn’t want to go the way they did.

Sanya and CAMPER worked very close into the shoreline and managed to squeeze inside the other three boats. It feels a bit like an even start again now, except maybe for Puma who you have to have a bit of sympathy for. Yesterday illustrated just how much of a cruel sport this can be.

This morning’s start truly was a calm before the storm… Now the wind speed is building, we just had our first big bang off a wave sending a massive shudder through the boat and we aren’t even clear of the shelter of the southern side of Sanya. Rather a daunting prospect I am afraid.

I have slight concerns that within a matter of hours once we get into the remnants of the tropical storm which kept the fleet on the dock for 12 hours I won’t be feeling so fantastic… there are still big seas and high winds, which is a perfect recipe for sea sickness.

I wait in hope that it will not rear its ugly head.

A long, hard few weeks lie ahead of us. And perhaps the hardest part of the leg is the next 48 hours until we get clear of the Luzon Strait between Taiwan and the Philippines. Our short-term goal for sure is to be the first out of the Luzon Strait, no need to guess our long-term goal.

We have had a tough few days, in fact a tough race so far with lots of stopping and starting an onshore schedules which border on impossible. At times you feel like a block of cheese being rubbed up against a cheese grater, slowly withering you away physically and mentally, but the guys are resilient and focused, and it feels fantastic to finally be heading for Aucklan

Although in no time at all it has become rough and windy and everything is far from fantastic. Most of the guys and I seem to have a different opinion of conditions when they are like this, they call it great, I call it miserable.

Its times like this that you try to think happy thoughts… like arriving into the Hauraki Gulf on a stunning Auckland summer’s day in front of the pack.

If you don’t know anything about the Hauraki Gulf- it was once described to me as, ‘the jewel in Auckland’s crown, home to a million hectares of sheltered sparkling blue waters, dotted with beautiful emerald islands.’

I think that about sums it up nicely… And that’s where we are heading!

GOLDEN QUOTE:

“Somewhat ironically we started in winds of 5 knots and had to pass through a transition zone which was very tricky by hugging the shore close to Sanya we managed to come out on top in the short term. As we move away from the sheltered land the sea state has built quickly and the wind speed is steadily increasing. Here we go!”  - WILL OXLEY

After a 12 hour stop imposed by race management due to weather concerns CAMPER crept out of a windless Sanya at just past 0700 local time/1200 NZT.

The re-start was staggered, with CAMPER leaving 9:13s behind first placed Telefonica reflecting the order that they finished in yesterday’s Stage 1. However, after three hours of racing CAMPER had made the most of the light and shifty conditions to build a slim lead and be 0.6 miles ahead of second placed Abu Dhabi.

Despite the calm start the fleet are in for an uncomfortable first few days at sea with a large, difficult sea state stirred up a by a low in the South China Sea expected to batter the boats as they head for the Strait of Luzon and the first way point at the northern tip of the Philippines 700 miles away.

From there the course will take CAMPER south past the Philippines and Indonesia, through the Doldrums and the South Pacific Convergence Zone, past Fiji and the east coast of Australia before finally heading for New Zealand and down the eastern coast to finish in Auckland.

The current estimated arrival date for the first boat into Auckland after the 5220 nautical mile leg is March 8.

CAMPER Skipper Chris Nicholson says that despite a tough first few days ahead and the huge tactical challenges that the leg presents the team are delighted to be at sea again and heading for Auckland.

“This is a huge leg for us and we all can’t wait to get back to Auckland. We’re well prepared for this leg, the boat is in good shape and we’re ready to go. I think it’s clear to everyone that as a team we’re incredibly motivated to turn in a good performance into Auckland.

“We’ve been pretty consistent so far and sitting in second are in clear striking distance of first placed Telefonica so now we’re just looking to close that gap up even more.

“We all know that the welcome back into Auckland is going to be amazing and returning to where this campaign all began and Emirates Team New Zealand’s home is going to be pretty special.

“We can’t wait to bring CAMPER past North Head and up the Waitemata in a few weeks.”

CAMPER in the latest position report at 1500h 20 February NZT is in first place averaging 11 knots in a 8.3 knot easterly.