(3 Aug)
Hello all,
We had our first sail Friday on the Olympic waters here in Qingdao. It's going to be an interesting event!
Waves and swell left over from Thursday's storms and high winds left the waters extremely rough - much like a washing machine. The winds were light, 3 to 5 knots, which made sailing extremely difficult as there was not enough power in the wind to get through the waves. Nevertheless, we had a great sail. Everything on our boat (named Harry) is working well and it is great to be reacquainted with him since we last saw him in late June when we loaded the container to China.
Saturday we had another good sail, training with the Norwegian team. Winds were offshore - puffy and shifty - ranging anywhere from 2 to 10 knots. This gave us a taste of another type of wind we could experience during the event. The waters were calmer, however there is still a persistent swell with the light wind. A relaxed attitude and strong stomach will be key for the event!
Today we are to expect normal seabreeze and finally we can see the sun and blue sky. It has been fog practically all day every day since we have been here!
Thanks for all your good lucks and support. Keep the emails coming!
Go Canada!