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"Ocean Racing Rookie"(tm) Goes Hobart!

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TL;DR We did it. We finished Sydney Hobart 2021 race two-handed. It was awesome. I'm totally sold on shorthanded racing from now on, especially for long offshore. No crew management issues. Less paperwork (I've got enough even for two of us, can't imagine chasing 15 people for their vaccination certificates). The head is always free, so I can wake up 10 mins before my watch and not 45 mins, as I used to do on a fully-crewed boats. Food is easy (our lunches and dinners for the whole race is less than one meal on Arctos..). No dealing with other people mistakes - whatever goes wrong it's my fault. Communication is easy. Shall I continue? (photo by Andrea Francolini Photography Pty Ltd) What went well? We've Learned A Lot It was a hell of a learning curve for me. I've learned a lot and I've learned how much is still there to learn (it's not like I didn't know but...) The Start I didn't crash into anything or anyone on the start line (thanks to Jason...
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Path to become famous, step 1

I feel like a celebrity already! https://rolexsydneyhobart.com/ news/2021/pre-race/jen-and- jason-find-perfect-blend-on- flat-white/  
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Did You Miss Me?

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 Did you miss me? Well, here I am. It's been a while indeed. Since my last post I've manage to: learn how to use 3 component epoxy to seal the leaking screws. To be honest while fixing some leaks I seem to introduce others. More to learn so stay tuned for more war stories and picture. go out sailing! Everyone survived and now I have some lovely pictures of Flat While and a 3mins horror movie showing me docking. Shall I create a Youtube channel?   get us on the Sydney to Gold Coast race list. I think I'm going to get drunk when I submit the last document required - the CYCA document list is just endless... attend the "Advanced Race Navigation" course. Yes, the one Will Oxley runs. Want to know about the Impostor Syndrome? Ask me how.  call a marine electrician to fix the broken stern light. A charming guy came just to find out I'm an idiot and "it is not the switch you are looking for"(c).  get my AIS VHF antenna broken. Well, it wasn't me, it was...
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Where is my parachute???

 "there is a nationwide shortage of flares currently and we cannot supply the red parachute flares at all" said the supplier. When the red parachute flares is the last missing item on my Cat1 checklist (well, I'm using 2017-2021 one as the new one has not been published). That's going to be interesting. #cat1
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Anxiety, my friend

When I bough Flat White I was ready to spend money (for "boat" stands for "Bring Over Another Thousand"). I was ready to explore the unknown: numerous stainless steel types, hundreds of various epoxy resins, millions of lubricants. I was even ready to face the horror of leaving the marina and coming back in.   What I did not expect is waking up in my bed, hearing the wind (40, gusting 55 ) and getting very anxious: "how is she doing down there? Did I set up all springs correctly? I should have doubled the lines at least". #anxiety #Messing_about_in_boats
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What could possibly go wrong?

In the last 24 hours: I got stung by a bee while working on a boat.  Well, one could argue that I shouldn't be working barefoot and if I do, I shouldn't be stepping on a bee. While my foot is now developing a drastic change in shape and colour, the situation is much worse for the poor dead bee. Learnt a very important lesson: if your spinnaker pole has fiberglass patches, don't go up the mast in shirts and t-shirt. If you do, don't hug the pole on your way up and down. If you do hug the pole - enjoy the aftertaste...
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What have I done?

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Please meet Flat White,  née    Red Jacket, a beautiful Radford 12.2 . She is really gorgeous, isn't she? The fact that I own a boat is slowly sinking in, leaving me me uncomfortably excited and unbelievably horrified at the same time. What have I done? How could I manage? What if...and then my imagination runs wild - from docking incidents and broaches to dismasting in the middle of the ocean. Well, I guess we'll see how it goes. So stay tuned - there will be a lot of posts here, that I can promise for sure.
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