Approaching Half Way by Woodvale
18 May 2009 21:14 BST

New race leaders, Boat No. 7 ‘Bexhill Trust Challenger’, with a 32nm lead over the next closest team, Boat No. 13 ‘Pura Vida’ are now just days away from reaching the half way mark.



Having taken a more Northerly route, Bexhill Trust Challenger are cashing in on the positive winds and weather conditions that only they are currently experiencing, averaging speeds of 2.5 knots and daily runs of 50 plus nautical miles.



One month into the race and after 1,427nm of grueling rowing, the Bexhill Trust Challenger boys are just 139nm away from the half way mark, a major milestone in the Race. It’s all down hill from this point onwards!



Meanwhile, the rest of the fleet, who all chose a more direct, Southerly route are suffering from adverse winds and confused currents. For the smaller crews, the Pairs and one remaining Solo entry, each and every single mile towards Mauritius is hard work and daily mileages are down to single figures. However, the Indian Ocean is unpredictable and where as the weather conditions on one day can favour teams in the North, the next day it could be all change for the better of the teams in the South.



In desperation to get out of the eddy hole that has plagued the Ocean Angels for the past three days, the British all female Fours team sacrificed their morphine to the depths of the Indian Ocean in a last ditch attempt to sedate the raging sea long enough for them to row free of its clutches.


Their plan seems to have worked and today Pura Vida has started to move in the right direction again, albeit slower than their rivals, the boys onboard Bexhill Trust Challenger.



For the latest positions of all the teams taking part in the Indian Ocean Rowing Race 2009, please go to the Progress Page on this site.



You can also get all the latest race updates by joining us on Twitter at, www.twitter.com/oceanrowingrace.

Angela in a Bucket by Deb

May 17, 2009

Speaking of Bucket and Chuck it (a term that brings to mind Jeopardy-what is how do you go potty on an Ocean rowing boat?)..... Angela was able to chat a moment without being cut off, and told me that she fell into the potty bucket and got stuck. She described herself as looking like a scoop of ice cream in a bucket cone. That brings to mind an image that I could probably create in Photoshop, but won't. So the state of the potty bucket on Audeamus is not great at the moment. Even after they were able to pull her to safety from her bucket cone.

Deb

Bucket and Chuck It! By Woodvale
16 May 2009 20:48 BST

It is a common misconception among people not in the know that Ocean Rowing boats are fitted out with similar facilities to an ocean going yacht – a galley, a cabin with bunks and heads. This sadly, is not the case!



The galley is a small camping stove used to heat up meals on the open deck of the boat. The cabin is a tiny covered area barely big enough to sit up in let along stand and the heads are simply a couple of 99p buckets!



The mandatory kit list stipulates that each team must take three buckets, one for washing up the dishes, one for washing clothes and the third and final bucket to be used as a toilet.



For Guy and Andrew onboard Boat No. 6 ‘Flying Ferkins’, three buckets is not enough. Their toilet allocated bucket went overboard by accident in the first week of the race. Their washing up bucket, that then doubled up as a replacement toilet, broke under the strain and the third and final bucket together with a crack down the side is only just holding together. Let’s hope it lasts the distance! To hear Guy’s latest podcast all about the dyer toilet situation onboard the Flying Ferkins, please go to http://blog.indianoceanrace.com/.



Elsewhere in the fleet, Boat No. 7 ‘Bexhill Trust Challenger’ has taken the lead from the Ocean Angels in Boat No. 13 ‘Pura Vida’. The usual relaxed and jovial blogs sent back by the Fours ladies has been replaced today with frustration, as they have been forced to helplessly watch their substantial lead slip away and the see the boys overtake them.



With the best 24hr run today of 63.09 nautical miles also going to Bexhill Trust Challenger, the British Fours guys will be celebrating today. However, a change of weather conditions and sea state for the better in the area of the girls could make for an interesting battle over the next couple of days.

Closing the Gap by Woodvale
15 May 2009 18:39 BST

Could the decision to take a more northerly route, made by Boat No. 7 ‘Bexhill Trust Challenger’ in the early stages of the race, finally be paying off? This is a question that the British four man crew are bound to be asking themselves tonight as the gap between them and current race leaders, Boat No. 13 ‘Pura Vida’ is today down to 69 nautical miles, the smallest its been for quite some time.



As the Ocean Angels report being in some kind of vortex with no phone signal, little breeze and a lot of teasing by the sea, which is refusing to let the team hold their position in any direction, the Bexhill Trust boys are quickly closing the gap. That said, they too have had their fair share of Indian Ocean extreme weather experiences over the past 48 hours, when out of nowhere, a monstrous wave hit the boat full on.



Despite almost knocking Matt and Nick overboard, all four crew members remained unscathed by the incident and the Indian Ocean only managed to claim one pair of rather worse for wear pants from its attack. We hope the owner has more than one pair and if not, look out Mauritius – you could be in for a naked arrival!



Just behind them and also closing the gap on the leaders is the third, Four man team, Boat No. 5 ‘Rowing for Prostate’. An unexpected call from the Prime Minister of New Zealand to let the team know how proud he is of them and to invite them to meet him on their return has spurred the team on. The Prime Minister also offered the crew some advice on their watermaker problems – it seems that even the Prime Minister of New Zealand has become an avid blob watcher!



Whilst the Rowing for Prostate crew cross the Indian Ocean, Hamish Ladbroke who had been part of the New Zealand team but was forced to pull out because his niece was suffering from Cancer has been rowing 2 hours every day since the start of the race. Taking his rowing machine to the cold streets of Wanaka, near Queenstown, Hamish has been raising awareness of the Rowing for Prostate entry and much need funds for the charity. He vows not to give up on his dry rowing challenge until his has reached the fund target of $10,000.



To follow the progress of all the crews taking part in the Indian Ocean Rowing Race 2009, please go to the Progress Page on this site. You can also get all the latest race alerts by following us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/OceanRowingRace.

Ocean Rowing Ailments By Woodvale
14 May 2009 15:08 BST

After almost four weeks at sea, all competitors taking part in the Indian Ocean Rowing Race are beginning to suffer from a range of ailments all to common to an Ocean Rower. These include:

- Salt sores

- Blisters on hands and feet

- Claw hands

- General aches and pains in the back, arms and legs

- Weight loss

- Sleep deprivation

Rowing an ocean has never been glamorous but an extensive mandatory medical kit onboard each of the competing boats ensures that teams can treat these all to common medical problems themselves. For more severer medical matters, teams can ring for advice from the race appointed medic or if necessary, they can contact the race support vessel to request a medical evacuation.

Although they sound and look pretty horrendous, these common ocean rowing medical problems are not permanent and a good douse of TLC once back on dry land soon put rowers back on the road to recovery.

Despite the lack of marine wildlife reported by some of the crews during this first half of the race, solo rower Simon Prior onboard Boat No. 3 ’Old Mutual Endurance’ was visited by a friend yesterday of the scaly variety. A flying fish dropped into Simon’s boat after hitting him square on in the middle of his forehead. This could well be the first of many flying fish experiences - not all of them so welcome!

As we come to the end of the fourth week at sea, four of the seven boats have now crossed the 1000nm mark and race leaders, Boat No. 13 ‘Pura Vida’ are now fast approaching the half way mark, which they are likely to reach towards the end of next week. The eight man speed crew onboard Boat No. 88, Aud Eamus continue to eat up the miles and are now breathing down the necks of the guys onboard Boat No. 5 ‘Rowing for Prostate’.

With the half way mark looming, family and friends back home will now start to think of travelling out to Mauritius to greet their loved ones home safely. Woodvale Challenge has been working with local travel company, Connections to put together a range of competitive accommodation packages for rowers, their family and friends in Mauritius. For further information about the packages available, please contact Connections direct via their website at www.connections.mu/booknow.php.

Blob Watching by Woodvale
08 May 2009 14:23 BST

For the competitors taking part in the Indian Ocean Rowing Race 2009, the focus over the next few months is crossing the race finish line and reaching Mauritius in the quickest possible time. However, for the many family members and friends watching from home, concern for the safety of their loved ones will occupy every minute of every day until they safely step foot back on dry land.



Although each crew must take a Satellite telephone as part of their mandatory kit, continuous and uninterrupted contact with the teams throughout the duration of the race is in no way guaranteed. The extreme conditions of the Indian Ocean and the shear length of the race takes its toll on all electrical equipment as salt erosion, water damage, power/charging issues and potential loss of equipment overboard are everyday possibilities.



For many watching from afar, the only daily contact they will have with their team is the little coloured dot that gradually makes its way across the map of the Indian Ocean on the Progress Page on this site – a pastime experienced by many who have followed previous Woodvale Ocean Rowing Races and aptly named Blob Watching.



Each boat competing in the Indian Ocean Rowing Race is also fitted with a tracking beacon, which runs off the boats mains power supply and automatically sends position data reports at regular intervals up to a Satellite. This data is then collected by a computer package, deciphered and then forwarded on to the IORR website for everyone to follow.



Technology has come on leaps and bounds in recent years but like all electrical equipment, the race tracking is not full proof. The Indian Ocean is covered only by one Satellite; where as the Atlantic Ocean has three. There may be occasions, when the single satellite covering the Indian Ocean is not able to collect the data from the beacon (i.e. if the boat is not in clear view of the satellite). Equally, if the boat is experiencing power/charging problems, electrical equipment running off the boats mains power supply will be temporally unavailable until power has been restored.

Gaps in position reports can be extremely worrying and frustrating for family, friends and anyone watching the race via the website. However, please be patient and try not to worry as in most cases, position data will be restored within a few days.



At the time of writing this news report, Boat No. 7 ‘Bexhill Trust Challenger’ and Boat No. 6 ‘Flying Ferkins’ are not currently sending automatic position reports via their tracking beacons. However, Race HQ has been in regular contact with both crews who are fine and well, and automatic position reports for each team is expected to be restored shortly.

Water everywhere but can you get a drink? from Woodvale

May 6, 2009

06 May 2009 12:47 BST

Despite being in the middle of the Indian Ocean and surrounded by water, fresh drinking water is a major problem for all of the competitors taking part in the Indian Ocean Rowing Race 2009.

Each of the boats carry an electric water maker which, powered off each boats mains electricity supply, pumps the salty sea water in to the machine and via a desalination process turns this is to drinking water.  This process is relatively slow and demands a substantial amount of power so its times like these when you start to look at how much fresh water you really do require to survive on each day.

For solo rower, Simon Prior onboard boat No. 3 ‘Old Mutual Endurance’ this question has been intensified as his electric water maker has stopped working for the second time since the start of the race. 

As part of the mandatory race equipment, each team must carry a spares pack for their main unit and a separate back up hand operated water maker, which effectively does the same job without requiring electricity.  However, this manual process takes much longer but in 200 degrees of blazing Indian Ocean heat, drinking water becomes a priority and all other jobs including rowing are put on hold.

Elsewhere in the fleet, Boat No 88, Aud Eamus start to show their true ability as they pass Boat No. 9 ‘Southern Cross’ on their way through the racing fleet.  Next is Boat No. 3 ‘Old Mutual Endurance’ who should be able to raise the 8 man crew by VHF as they pass by the solo rower later on today.

For all the up to date positions of all boats competing in the Indian Ocean Rowing Race 2009, please check the Progress Page on this site regularly.