Trading wind

Shortly after writing the last log entry the Clipper accelerated again. Therefore we passed the date line already last night, so our choice to start today as being Tuesday turned out fine. An historic clipper captain would have enjoyed the conditions of our voyage. It is just right to sail this crossing in a record time. Based on our weather charts we are likely to stay in an area with a strong breeze from the East. During the crossing from Tahiti to Sydney we needed to sail just over 7 knots in order to arrive within the scheduled 20 days, but with unchanged condition we might arrive a week too early.
The historic cargo sailing vessels were always keen to travel as fast as possible. Time was valuable, but the honor of commanders and crew also added to this ambition. We feel the urge to set all sails as well to achieve the shortest possible travel time, but we are somewhat restrained. Our arrival in Sydney is already anticipated by a small fleet that will meet as at sea. They are even selling tickets for the event. We would definitely make the wrong impression by staying in port for an unscheduled week or so. On the other hand it would allow us to sell our own tickets, as we can’t ignore the fact that we will always be Dutch…

Richard Slootweg
Captain Clipper Stad Amsterdam