We finally got in two runs yesterday in pretty mild conditions.

This still enabled us to hit just over 40 knots and average 38.8 for the 500 course. Whilst this doesn't set the world on fire... it did give us some idea of the current state of the boat after the last crash. With the data collected via the B+G instruments and PI RESEARCH logger-box we can dial VESTAS SAILROCKET in for speed.

From my perspective it was great to be back in the cockpit. 40 knots feels like a walk in the park now. The whole boat felt totally different and I can only put this down to the new full-face helmet which changes the whole sound of the boat from inside. I felt insulated and could hear things I didn't notice before. We did a second run but the average wind was somewhere around 15-16 knots so it didn't serve much purpose other than to give me some more time in the cockpit.

So last night we digested all the info and sent the condensed version back to the design team for a second opinion. Alex and I came down to do a double-check of the steering alignment and correct it based on yesterdays results. Everything looks pretty rock solid in which case I feel confident in giving the boat a good 'nudge' on the next run.

I'm pretty hungry for a big run now. I'm tired of living with the tension and uncertainty of what lies ahead of us. I know we can't just go out and hope it works but with each passing day the balance of forces in our decision making process changes. We have to be acutely aware of this.

I've had some ongoing dizziness after the crash which leads to bouts of vertigo when I swing my head around. I've done my homework on it. Yesterday I began to feel normal and carried out a few tests to double check. I couldn't instigate the vertigo so am happy that my own compass is getting re-aligned by itself.

Today is shaping up nicely. If the forecast pans out then we will focus once more on the nautical mile on our way up to the outright.

The high tides are now leaving us in the afternoon but we can't afford to miss good days. This means we will have to give the boat a hard time towing it out in the choppy water around the shallow spits and possible hitting the shallows at the end.

We are doing all we can. I know we WILL get our day... so I must stay on the case to make sure that we don't blow it when it comes.

(pure Africa... timing-huts as seen from back of container looking across lagoon and along 'speed-spot')

Cheers, Paul.

Firstly, congratulations are in order to two other speed sailing projects who have had success over the past couple of days. Firstly to Richard Jenkins for finally breaking the sailing land speed record on 'Greenbird'. Richard din't just sneak by the record but smashed it by 10 mph. You can check it out on www.greenbird.co.uk . Back when Richard launched his 'Windjet' water craft in Weymouth... we were just starting our first trials with Sailrocket. We had our containers side by side and have been friends ever since often offering congratulations or condolences where necessary. We understand each others joys and pains. Richard has done a brilliant job and has been a real jack of all trades in his project. England should be proud of his achievements and what he represents in this day and age.

Secondly... only by order of occurrence... the Macquarie Innovations team in Australia appear (still to be ratified) to have become the first boat to crack the 50 knot mark. Of course we wanted to be there first... but we weren't. These guys have been at it for 16 odd years now so once again, it's good to see the effort rewarded. It appears that they set the record in winds way above what they normally sail in i.e. 24 knots. They hit a peak speed of around 54.3 knots on their way to a 50.08 knot average over the 500 meters. Whilst this up's their previous 'C' class record it still leaves them just shy of the Outright record. One thing it does do is put the boats back ahead of the Windsurfers whilst also giving the new kids on the block, the kitesurfers, a real hurry up. The MI boys musn't have liked being beaten firstly by Hydroptere and then by us and have pulled out all the stops. It must have been a hell of a run. Well done to all of you from us... but be warned... we find this all very motivating!

We have been out on each of the last three days only to find the winds too strong. Today we sat out there on speed-spot all day as the wind gusted up to 30 knots. Only when the sun went down did we return.

We are on constant standby and desperately want to complete our 'check-out' runs to make sure that everything is OK before the big push. We don't want to do this in top-end conditions like we have been experienceing. Our day will come and in fact it looks like it might be sooner rather than later. The weeks forecast is looking pretty special. If things go well then we will push hard for some big runs ASAP. If we have a wipeout now then we will still have enough time to repair and come back for another shot in this record period. Of course the plan is not to have another wipeout but we need to plan for all eventuality.

We have been checking out all aspects of the boat and putting safeties on safeties. A couple of days ago, Nick Bubb spotted that the TRIMBLE timing gear on the boat wasn't recording the run data. We had a slight panic attempt as this is essential for our record attempts. These are expensive and hard to obtain pieces of kit. I'm happy to say that thanks to local support and support from OPTRON who supply our Trimble kit... within two days we now have not one but two systems ready to roll. We are actually better off than we were before!!! Ian Dutoit from OPTRON/TRIMBLE popped in today to help us configure the new units so we are ready once more for a ratified record run. Happy days.

Cheers, Paul

 Well...it's great to be back.

The fact that VESTAS SAILROCKET now sits outside this here container 100% ready for another assault on the Walvis Bay Speed sailing course bears testimony to the effort put in by the team since the violent crash 13 days ago.

Nick and Alex hard at it...

I still shudder when I look at the video as it all happened in an instant. I will show you all the video one day... but first we will focus on the job at hand. Here's a sneak pic from the onboard camera at the instant when things went pear shaped.

You can just make out the slack back beam stay arcing out to the left of the roll-bar. This means the beam is coming back. I've already gone to full lock on the steering and the boat is skidding sideways. We are still doing 45 knots and are about to pull -3.5G's forward and 3.2G's sideways as the whole show comes to a thumping halt in less than a second. I remember this bit.

A week or so ago I committed the project to our third and final WSSRC ratified record period. As far as I can see... this will be it. We have until just after the middle of April to achieve our goal. It's the culmination of nearly 10 years work. This boat has done a brilliant job in getting this far. I can't think of another boat that has had a more tortured life and has still been capable of coming out number 1. She carries many scars from battle and what a battle it's been. I think that on the last run she felt it was time that I took some of the damage... just so I know what it feels like!

Despite getting knocked about pretty hard on the last run, I can't wait to get back into the cockpit. I feel I owe it to the boat. The last crash had nothing to do with the boat or the concept. It was more a case of using the wrong system in the wrong place and not changing it because... it worked before. This combined with good ol' chafe of the dormant back-up strop is what brought it all to a grinding halt. The blame for this lies squarely on my shoulders. I can clearly recall each instant where that crash unfolded in the month leading up to it. It was a culmination of a number of little things as all great things are. Well at least the right person paid the penalty.

This time when I go out I will be wearing a full-face helmet, a HANS (Head and neck support) brace and a harness to keep me back in the confines of the roll-bar. The harness won't let me go forward... but will allow me to fall out if inverted. Before the last two crashes I would have said this was all over the top for a sailing boat... but I've been over the top now!!!

Thankfully the wind has returned to the Skeleton Coast. It's the Walvis bay we remember again. Today looks great as does the rest of the week. We will go out and spend a day just doing check-out runs to make sure everything is as it should be. If things check out then we will put the hammers down shortly after. Every day is still full of possibility and I'm quitely amazed that we are still in shape to finish the job.

It's been one hell of a ride and the good news is that it it's only going to get faster.

Never give up.

Cheers, Paul.

Hi all... one slightly beaten up Sailrocket jockey here.

Firstly, thanks to all those near and far who have sent their regards. It's always appreciated.

Obviously the last couple of days have been pretty strange from my perspective. One moment I'm going 47+ knots with the glorious Walvis Bay 'speed-spot' stretched out before me and ready for the taking... the next I'm on a hospital Gurney sort of aware that I'm asking the same question over and over... "what happened"?

I won't go into too much detail here until we are certain of all the factors. I went straight back to the container once out of hospital and had a look at all the onboard and shore footage of the incident. It appears that a lashing on the stay that holds the main beam forward failed and the beam swung aft. The huge side loads on the main foil then levered the hull to beam frame out of the heavy carbon forks which they attach to on the beam and allowed the main hull to rotate as if it was attached to an industrial lathe. The free inboard end of the beam then shot back towards the cockpit. It was all over in milliseconds...

I do recall jamming the control full aft as she began to roundup... but that was it and now I know why.

Poor VESTAS SAILROCKET has been extensively damaged in altogether new and creative ways. Never mind... we've been here before. We probably have the best boat building team we have had on site and now it's their time to shine.

I have just spoken to Malcolm for the first time and he was noticably shaken. It's normal for the designer to feel a heavy burden when they know someone has been dealt a hard blow by one of their creations. I assured him that as far as I know it was a small component failure (always is) and that we should push on until we have all the information needed to make an honest and sound decision.

The team have been great as have the locals. It's such a pleasure to have good people around you when stuff like this goes down.

So there we are. Down but not out. We were just entering the mile course and were already hitting 47.4 knots without the main wing flap in. I wanted to bag two records in one. From the PI RESEARCH data we accelerated from 30-40 knots in 2 seconds even. But this isn't a game of 'nearlies'... we were obviously flatly denied and hence will have to try a bit harder.

It's all very annoying but then I guess I have to be thankful too. It could always be worse. We are entering a punishing stage of the game as can be seen by the outcomes of two of our top-end attempts. You have to expect some rough play in an endeavour like this but you can't just charge forward on bravado and witty remarks. It will be understanding and team work that push us forward. As long as the pieces add up then I will go on as determined as ever... this time with a bigger helmet!

I will, as always, let you all know exactly what we discover in the coming days... and how we plan to deal with it.

Cheers, Paul.