Erica

700nm
 by Erica

Day 14 – Under 700nm to go

700nm to go

700nm to go and Roast Lamb.  This has to be my favourite roast, I hope you managed to cook it without any mishaps…..

Day 14

Hi everyone,

We are now under 700nm to ST L. Today has been quiet with just one gybe to check gear etc.

We have watched films, drunk beer and sun bathed. Had the company of some dolphins for circa 45 mins, which was nice. Have seen one other yacht today. Apparently we are 3rd in our class and hope to maintain or improve this! SP

My watch took me up until 9am this morning, so I went off to bed and slept until midday when my watch started again. I think it’s the first time I have done that and felt fantastic as a result!

Lunch was potato salad with a selection of cold meats and warm baguettes. Skipper asked for the mayonnaise on the potato salad to have some grain mustard in it, so I duly obliged and I have to say it adds quite a bit to the flavour. Dinner was tuna steaks with basmati rice and a cranberry sauce, which I thought might be a little festive now that we are after all into December. Tomorrow is our roast day and we plan to have roast leg of lamb with all the usual bits! It’s hard to believe that it’s been a week since we last had our roast pork, each day just seems to merge into the last but we are certainly eating well!

I promised to mention the vacuum packing and the advantages it has not just over the food but in other areas as well. It is worth mentioning that Adam Gray my colleague and Michelin starred chef, who will also be presenting with me at the London Boat Show 2012 is a specialist in this field. He will have many more tips I’m sure but a few that I have found most useful, are the fact that you can store food in portion controlled bags, which helps reduce wastage and keeps liquids sealed in and not running around the bottom of the fridge. Fresh food that looks like it is about to turn can then be cooked, vacuum packed again and then kept for longer still! The speed marinating that can be achieved with the GN Espace vacuum containers is an obvious one too and the fact that all sorts of pre-prepared meals can be stored in this way. In fact there is so much to write about on the subject and how it helps on such a trip, we may have to give over a whole session at London 2012 just to cover it! Other areas though are equally varied, for example if you want to keeps tools and emergency items secure and free from salt water contamination, or paper charts dry etc, the options are endless.

700nm

It often strikes me that racing crews if not already, should take advantage of such ideas, certainly for their food on board. I know from what I have read that they mainly favour the dried food option, which these days can be quite tasty I’m told, but I still wonder if that is the right one for moral? If not continuous, they often have legs at sea, twice that of the one that we will have crossing here and moral has got to be a fundamental issue with keeping those crews in the best possible racing shape both physically and mentally. Fresh food, if it can be made available, would I suggest go along way to helping in this regard. Cooking is a 24 hour issue too and having to race on the edge of each point of sail, must make life in the galley a significant challenge. We need to be talking more to the organisers and participants of such events, to see where we can suggest such additions and alternatives and certainly possible changes/improvements to their existing galley design and equipment. JK 

700nm

Main Image: Roast Lamb courtesy of Acme’s Photostream

Other Images:  GN Espace Vacuum Storage.

 

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home
 by Erica

Day 13 and thoughts turn to home.

Home Thoughts

Thoughts turn to home on Day 13

Hi Everyone

Busy night last night with squalls, so everyone has had a restful day today. The full English got put back to lunch and we duly sat down to the ‘works’ at 3pm after the ARC radio net reports.

This evening we had a simple supper of cheese and biscuits with some slices of apple. I think everyone is hoping for a quiet night tonight and some sleep! Tomorrow I will do report on how the vacuum packing has gone so far, certainly we are in no danger of running out of fresh food and have found that it also has many other uses for life on board!

As we get into the last 4 or 5 days of the crossing, I find my thoughts turning increasingly to life at home. I have been thinking a great deal about my family and friends and can’t wait to see everyone. Our little girl Isabella who is 4, nearly 5 is starring as Mary in her school Christmas play early next week and as I will still be out here having this wonderful experience, shall sadly miss it. I am so proud of her, she is such a little star and will be brilliant, of that I have no doubt! Hopefully there will be plenty of video taken, so shall look forward to seeing all of that on my return! JK

home

The first of the fleet is arriving in St Lucia now so visit the World Cruising Club site to catch up with the news.

For more details on the vacuum storage system, Julian has mentioned visit GN Espace

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squalls
 by Erica

Day 11 Again! – Squalls

Squalls on Day 11

Day 11 again, maybe this is due to crossing time zones or the squalls!

Hi everyone

Great day sailing with some good boat speed. Also experienced our first squalls – which I find quite intimidating as they come very quickly with big increases in wind and more challengingly wind direction. We have radar on during the night so we can spot them ahead.

Casamara is going really well – the design and build quality really shine through on a trip like this.

We are now under 1000nm and bets have started on ETA in St Lucia.  So will now hand over to Julian for gastro news. SP

We have had a good day today food wise despite me feeling a little weary.  I am sleeping in the forepeak and we have had some big swells and squalls the last few nights and sleeping has been very tough to say the least!

Breakfast continues to be of a healthy light variety, although the boys have tonight put in a request for a full English, so that will be my first job in the morning!

Lunch today was pasta with smoked salmon and herbs in a white wine and cream sauce and proved to be very popular, as even the skipper asked for more! Dinner tonight was one of my old favourites, Beef in Guinness! It doesn’t take long to do and is really one of those dishes that warms the heart. I sweated off some onions in a pan with some olive oil, a little garlic and then added some sauté potatoes left over from last night. Having got Tim to dice some carrots and some celery for me, all that went in too for a sauté, along with the usual seasoning. I then transferred all this along with some chopped mushrooms to one of our GN Espace casserole dishes with the liquid sealable lid. I then diced some stewing beef and coated it in flour. Using a little olive oil, I sautéed all this in the same pan as before until the edges of the beef turned brown and then added it to the casserole dish with all the rest of the ingredients. Pour over a bottle of Guinness, a splash or two of red wine, a little Worcestershire sauce, season again to taste and once the lid is firmly in place, put into the oven rack and allow to cook. Once ready, I served it with some potatoes and a little butter. This time they all asked for more! Luckily I had prepared plenty, as it so often tastes even better the following day. If you would like to see any recipes such as the Beef in Guinness, you can find a selection on our website at www.gn-espace.com

I promised to mention a little more about the integrated system that we have for the galley and I have to say that doing this trip has only made me wonder even more how people cope without it! In even light sea conditions the boat rocks and in an Atlantic swell or similar, it rocks a great deal! Preparing and cooking food in such conditions is not for the faint hearted! Sure you can just opt for the pot noodle, but why should you have to? This system ensures that everything stays where you put it, similar to a jig saw puzzle, all the bits fit together to complete the picture. The gastronorm containers that we use are the building blocks of the system and fit with not only the GN Espace cookers but the Waterstation sinks, fridge/freezer, under floor fridge/freezers/larder and cupboard storage etc.

squalls

All different sizes of gastronorm container fit in the same way with all the individual bits of kit by orientating them one way or the other. Like an A4 piece of paper, it can be scaled up or down depending on your requirements. The Waterstation sinks double the surface area of the galley as you can work on multi levels, so you can prepare food more easily and even more importantly your cooked/hot food stays firmly held in it’s built in fiddle when you need to serve it. Essentially you can take your dish/dishes of whatever gastronorm size you want straight from storage to your Waterstation sink for preparation, all held firmly in place, then into your oven to cook, again where the shelf design hold all dishes firmly in place, so there is no likelihood of having it slide out onto your toes. Once cooked it goes safely back to the Waterstation sink again for serving. The same dishes can be used for storage. cooking and serving and consequently greatly reduce any resulting washing up!. This description may give you an over view of the system and how it works, although it is really only the beginning, as you can go on adding bits like central serving stations in both the saloon and cockpit tables and so on, The central serving station is a wonderful addition if entertaining guests on board and a feature I know some of the larger major boat builders are choosing to opt for, as it allows for both a hot and chilled facility. I suppose in essence you can have as much or as little of the system as you like, the cookers are unrivalled in the marine market as a stand alone item, but when you add the other aspects of the system to them, then you truly transform the galley into some where you can comfortably go and work in all sea conditions. I hope one day soon, someone comes up with a similarly clever system for those who have to go up the mast in such conditions! JK 

squalls

in Events
 by Erica

Day 10 – Casamara Spa Day!

Spa Day

Day 10 and the well-fed crew of Casamara decide on a Spa Day…….

Hi Everyone,

Well we achieved half way and rather than celebrate with a big meal as the rest of the fleet appear to have done (we have a big meal everyday) my crew decided to treat the skipper to a SPA DAY.  This involved filling the hot tub behind the wheel (A discovery 55 unique feature) and being treated to a MANICURE AND PEDICURE (with industrial nail files) tomatoes over the eyes and a facial.  See picture below.

spa

On the sailing front we are now on to mark three of the whisper pole set up devised by Iain and Charlie, which seems to be working well.  We have gybed once and now on a course of 297 degrees.  We have seen no other yachts but heard from Island Wanderer.

The only other information to report is that the crew have now discovered that I use the forward heads under cover for a particular procedure!!!! Charlie and I are on watch from 12 -3am – last night was relatively windy up to 28 knots so hoping for a quieter watch! Apparently it was very bumpy for those trying to sleep – sorry. SP

Hi everyone, yes Skippers Day today to celebrate the half way mark.  He has had lots of pampering during the spa day, as you can see! (and well deserved too)!  The crew had decided, that due to his outstanding leadership so far, it was the least we could do and his great sense of humour and huge sense of fun, has allowed us to post the attached!

I have a night off tonight, because Simon and Charlie are cooking, so am sitting chatting looking forward to our party night supper.  I did do the cake though today as promised and that will be our desert. I will let you know Fi (my wife) what the boys think, but it’s looking good so far!

For lunch we finished off the Dorado fillets that we had left over from yesterday and I poached them in white wine, with lemon and parsley (delicious) accompanied by a mixed leaf salad.

So back to the half way mark spa party and look forward to regaling you with (some of) the inevitable stories tomorrow! JK

For details on the galley solutions visit GN Espace

Image: A land-based Spa Day! Courtesy of ex_magician’s Photostream

spa

 

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 by Erica

Day 9 – Gybing

Gybing

Day 9 – Gybing already!

Hi everyone,

Beautiful morning spent lazing around.  This afternoon it was a bit cloudy and we took the pole down to check for wear and tear and then gybed.  This evening the wind has picked up and we are up to 20 plus knots.

We have participated in the SSB net, which allows us to share experiences and wind tactics. (Nigel the net controller is a bit of a legend on Casamara!) Our SSB appeared to work well today as we have problems with the net hearing us.

We have seen no other yachts, just sea and more sea. We have finished our first twenty litre wine box and on to the next. We expect to be half way tomorrow lunch time (GMT)

I am just about to go on watch and it is very dark. The moon hardly appears and sets very early. SP

gybing

Food wise, it’s been fish and more fish just recently!  As soon as Tim, our resident comic (and believe me he is funny) puts his line in the water, he comes up with something!  We have attached a photo (above left) of his most recent conquest, although he is not one of the two in the shot, out of sheer modesty! It is in fact our charismatic skipper Simon and technical wizard Iain.

The Dorado was filleted and in the pan within minutes despite the gybing. It was done with a little butter and herbs with the skin on, it doesn’t require de-scaling and the skin is in fact one of the tastiest bits.

We are all feeling replete and pretty healthy.   Supper tonight was Tortellini pasta with chorizo sausage and pesto sauce, a favorite of Paul’s, along with a little white wine!

Tomorrow is my preferred watch day, it gives me 6 daylight hours off, so I will have time to bake a cake and make some soup.  I have my beautiful wife to thank for the cake recipe I plan to do tomorrow, as she regularly does the cakes in our house and having regaled the boys about how good they are, they are all now eager to see if I too can pull it off!

We are approaching half way and the food stocks are holding up very well indeed.  We will have no problems at all with the fresh food diet we have planned for ourselves during the crossing, thanks to the vacuum packing and rotation of stock with the fridge/freezer, it all seems to be working nicely to plan.

I will talk a little more over the next few days about the integrated system my business partner Ralph originally came up with for the yacht’s galley, which started our company GN Espace five years ago.  It truly does revolutionise the way you can cater and cook whilst afloat and if interested in good food and especially safety in the galley, it is a must in my opinion for any off shore experience! JK 

I have just one question….when SP says they expect to be half way by lunchtime, does this refer to the voyage or second winebox?!

gybing

Image: Crescent Moon courtesy of El coleccionista de instantes Photostream

 

 

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in the groove
 by Erica

ARC Race Casamara are in the groove – Day 8

In the Groove

Day 8 (not sure where Day 7 went!) and the Crew seem to be having a blast and getting in the groove!

Hi everyone,

Today has been another blue sky sailing day with great trade winds.  We have sailed nearly 1200 nm in a week and no engine.  We replaced the broken main sail batten which required a piece being hack sawed off and reconnected with a new connector.  We are running with main sail, solent and poled out genoa and have been experimenting with fine tuning to reduce rolling and wear and tear. We nearly lost the block on the end of the whisper pole but recovered it just in time.  We have now had three Dorado fish on board and they are getting bigger and bigger.  We are all having showers and Iain keeps washing his smalls at an alarming rate.  Iain is doing lots of sextant sights and I have had a go as well but boy is it difficult!  Crew spirit is high and the music has been blaring out and we are getting in the groove.  I am now going off watch now and to bed! SP

 Food wise today, we planned for a Sunday roast, so started out with cereals, fresh fruit and some delicious yoghurt for breakfast. Lunch was indeed roast pork with all the trimmings, accompanied with roast potatoes (of course) and some fine beans and fresh broccoli!  We sat down to enjoy it at around 2.30pm GMT and spend the next three hours talking life stories whilst it all went down.

The members of our crew are all so diverse in their life experiences and fascinating when they get going.  The feeling of camaraderie and shared adventure that we collectively feel, is making for a truly wonderful experience!

Having tested all the GN Espace equipment in the factory numerous times, especially the marine cooker, I knew I had good equipment on board to be able to turn out so good meals and I have been extremely impressed with it’s performance at all levels.  The gas consumption is extremely economical as expected and doing a roast is, along with other more complicated dishes effortless!  Truly does deliver home from home cooking capabilities on board. JK 

So Julian’s Tahitian lure must have done the trick!

If you have just joined us please look back over the previous posts to catch up with Casamara’s sailing adventures during the ARC Race.  To see their position please use the World Cruising Club’s Fleet Viewer

in the groove

Image: Sextant courtesy of El Bibliomata’s Photostream

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a fish
 by Erica

Day 6 – A fish as last for Casamara’s Crew

 A Fish, a fish, my kingdom for a fish!

A fish at last for Casamara’s crew to feast upon.

Hi everyone,

As you can see from our track we are now going west having come South to avoid the wind hole.  We will be on this tack for circa 1700nm having done over a 1000nm is just 6 days.

After the challenges of the genoa shackle and mast climbing yesterday we have had a quiet day sitting in the sun and chilling out – this is after all trade wind sailing!

Tim caught a fish, our first fish a small Dorado – a good looking fish and we will have this for supper! yummee.

We are going to try the parasailor tomorrow!

Simon P

Hi everyone, just taking a break from making bread and nursing a few bruises to update you on the menu, which today, since we have not had to do the Casamara mast impression on the Cirque De Soleil is back on track! We treated ourselves to a full English breakfast today with lots of orange juice and filter coffee, followed by a lunch of tomato,onion and avocado salad with balsamic, warm baguettes, cheese and assorted pate’s. I have filleted the fish, a Dorado Tim caught earlier on a hand line and following a consensus of the best way to taste such fresh line caught Atlantic fish, will simply pan cook that tonight in a little butter on the hob and serve with a squeeze of fresh lemon! My mouth is watering just writing about it. Before I get back to my bread making though, I should just add that we have now lost three, maybe 4 lures, with another big strike again on the rod around lunchtime, taking not only the weights and lure but this time most of the line as well!. There are some big fish out there that’s for sure!  Tomorrow we will change tactics again and go for our secret weapon, which is a beast of a lure, make up of all sorts of home made things and secured to a piece of rope, an old idea taught to me by a small Tahitian lad about twenty years ago, it worked back then in the Pacific, so will see what the Atlantic’s inhabitants make of it. JK 

No end to Julian’s talent huh?!

Image: A Fish, A Dorado (I hope this is the kind of Dorado you caught, much nicer looking than the other one I found on google which was grey and boring!)

a fish

To see the track that Casamara is following use the Fleet Viewer

And to see the specialised galley oven used to pan fry the Dorado visit GN Espace

 

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mast
 by Erica

Day 5 – ARC Race heroes up the mast

Up the mast

Great excitement on Day 5, with mast shenanigans…

Hi Everyone,

Well we were going fine and Charlie and I were on watch commenting on how much fun this was when suddenly the genoa ended up in the water – pitch dark.   All hands on deck and we dragged the sail back on board, The Selden swivel shackle had failed (!!!!!!!!!). We waited until light and discussed a plan. The furler head was up the mast and we needed to get a line on it to haul it down.   First volunteer was Charlie who made a valiant effort.   Second volunteer was Paul who went for a mash and grab.   Third time lucky was Julian who with a different technique was a hero and got a line connected.  Charlie Paul and Julian are true heroes and I am lucky to have them on board.  This was a major task with 15 knots of wind and rolling seas.  Then we were able to pull the furler head down and haul the genoa back up and get underway.

Then the batteries got hot and would not accept the generator charge so we had to take the lids off and allow fresh air circulation.  We now have fully charged batteries!

 So we are all tired and will have early dinners! SP

Julian will now update you on gastro issues:

Well we had all kinds of plans today from baking fresh bread to catching enormous fish, but all seemed to go out of the window sometime slightly before the sun got up!

We ending up having bacon and beans in a sandwich for breakfast and little more than cheese and biscuits for lunch.  For slightly lucky but equally unnecessary reasons as detailed above, I have found myself with an evening off, so am looking forward to what will no doubt be a fantastic supper! from my fellow comrades.

 Despite this brief but equally challenging interlude, we will be back with a full culinary report as from tomorrow! and more news on our fishing tales and overdue successes! JK

What a hero Julian is turning out to be, cooking gastronomic delights on board and scaling masts!  One question though….were they Heinz Beans?!

mast

ARC Race progress can be seen at Fleet Viewer

Visit GN Espace to see the galley equipment Julian is using to cook up his bacon and bean sandwiches!

Image: “There’s bean a murder!” courtesy of robbophoto’s Photostream

 

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