Greetings all,

Saturday (today) is shaping up beautifully. The forecast is for 22 knots and it already looks like we are going to get it. The sky is clear and the wind is already present from the right direction. The container is buzzing as everyone takes care of their various fields. We are trying to get onto the course as soon as the tide will allow us.

VESTAS SAILROCKET sit's patiently outside like a race horse in its stable before the big event... oblivious to the events that are about to unfold and all the hopes and aspirations of those fussing over it. It will simply do the best that it can under the circumstances.

It's pretty exciting this official record stuff. You feel so much closer to your dreams every day. This is the fun part of the project.

I wrote a pretty long update on yesterday below.

To watch the live-feed today... hit this link www.sailrocket.com/livefeed.php

Fingers crossed and thumbs held.

Let's start the haul.

Cheers, Paul and the team.

Hi all,

Yesterday turned into a great day for our full dress-rehearsal for what is to come. We equipped VESTAS SAILROCKET in close enough to full speed mode. The only thing really missing was the new MARLOW rigging which still hasn't arrived... oh and the onboard camera.

It looks like the inland rains have finally eased enough to allow the windy Walvis Bay we know and love to return. It only takes a day or two here for it to go from 'It's never going to blow'... to 'It's never going to stop blowing'.

It was only predicted to reach 15 knots yesterday and it seemed that it was only going to struggle up to that at best. We got the boat fully prepped as I wanted to do a full dress rehearsal on the course to make sure that the TRIMBLE GPS was working as it should from its position on the boat... and to get all the team familiar with the new procedures associated with all the new 'add-ons' and 'take-offs'. The wind was building nicely as we made for the water. Helena took WSSRC commissioner Mike Ellison over to 'speed-spot' so he could take some tide measurements. It was going to be good for him to get an idea of exactly where we are sailing and where the fast bits of the run might be. Mike has seen them all. He has been commissioner for Yellow Pages, Long-shot, Hydroptere, the windsurfers in the trench and recently the first 50 knot sailors on kiteboards earlier this year. There isn't much that Mike doesn't know about speed sailing and it's a pleasure to have him here to watch over us.

Helena was going to be off RIB driving duties and in charge of still photography and manning the new 'live-update' section on the website. from where she sits in the timing hut half way down the course she can see and hear (via VHF) everything that goes on during a run. Directly after the run I can relay my top speed and best 20 second average as this should give a good idea of my 500 meter run. The beauty of VESTAS SAILROCKET is that it tracks incredibly straight even when hit by substantial gusts. This means that typically my peaks... and GPS 500 m results... should be relatively close to the final projected (500m point to point) results.

It was with great joy that we crossed the lagoon with VESTAS SAILROCKET on this fine day. It was a couple of days and one year ago that we battled our way over here and pulled off that amazing run 24... our first 40 knot run. That was the run that turned the project around. It was that run that meant this day could be. That was a special day, the equal of any to come. Although we were just crossing the lagoon with our boat as we had so many times before, I felt a new sense of arrival. Up ahead in the distance the WSSRC commissioner was walking up the remote beach after taking tide measurements, in a new little clear canopy on the bow of VESTAS SAILROCKET sat a complex GPS timing system and beside me in the support RIB were the well practiced team. Helena who has been through it all with me, George who has worked like a champ and been a real strength over the past three months... he even gave up the 'kings cup' to stay for this. Brad, a great mate of mine from years back who came out with us originally... and had to come back to watch us make the final push, Hiskia, a true Namibian from Ruundu in the north. We grabbed Hiskia from a £1.60 per day ATM security job 22 months ago and he has been with us for every run ever since... and new for today was Les. Formally a Swakopmund local whom we know from the Yacht club, he has moved to Walvis... like today... so we grabbed him to help with the launching seeing Helena was going to have her hands full.

We dropped Helena off at the timing hut to begin the live-feed whilst the rest of us made for the top of the course. We started right at the top today to make the most of every meter. The wind was looking lovely and far exceeding our expectations. We were getting gusts over 20 knots which made it perfect for a good shakedown. It took quite a while to 'clean the bird'  but we will quickly get faster. VESTAS SAILROCKET looked brilliant and I was itching to sail her. The team departed to leave Les and I up the top of the course. Les was struggling a bit to hold the boat as she surged around. Height and mass is an advantage when holding this boat and whilst Les has all the strength, he's not a big guy. The boat can be pretty intimidating the first time and sometimes I forget this. We were standing out a little deeper to make sure that the main foil wasn't scratching on the bottom so this wasn't helping.

Les managed to get me off safely and we were off for our first run of the attempt. the wind was good... but not brilliant. I estimated around an 18-18.5 knot average. This means gusts over 20 and lulls to 16. I made an early turn onto the course so as to get in flat water. VESTAS SAILROCKET picked up nicely and we were off. She quickly accelerated up to 40 knots and everything felt fine. I started with the wing at 15 degrees and pulled the main flap in to match. I then pulled the wing into around 12-13 degrees and once again, the flap came in to match. The steering was nice and light, very gentle and progresive. The new control system was working brilliantly. This was the breakthrough design of the project. It was an effortless run and everything worked great. We peaked at around 42.8 knots and averaged an easy 40.8. The wind was 17-19 knots throughout the run.

It was great to know that the 'live-feed' was going out and that other members of the team, friends, family and supporters from all over the world could be with us on this isolated beach in Africa. We will aim to improve on this. Who knows... maybe even live audio direct off the boat!

We only needed to do one run to test the systems so we took the whole show back to the Yacht Club.

No records today but that wasn't the point... that's for tomorrow. The forecast for the next three days is looking pretty epic. I think we are going to start filling the record swag in the next few days. Mike seemed impressed how easily we doubled wind speed. Realistically, todays run was still near on 10 knots off the outright record but that isn't a big concern. We're in great fighting shape and giving it our absolute best shot. It's a real pleasure to be here now.

Cheers, Paul.

Follow the link below for live updates from Walvis Bay. Vestas Sailrocket is on top of the course just setting the anchor to do a first WSSRC run.

www.sailrocket.com/livefeed.php

We have had some 'out of character' weather here in Walvis bay which has resulted in very light winds. We've even had rain! Of course there is nothing we can do about it so we just figure that each day allows us another one of preperation. I spent another day on the foil package working down through the different grades of sandpaper. I filled and faired all the planing surfaces and sharpened their trailling edges. I can only assume that it helps.

We have set up a base station over at the speed-hut and will endeavour to send a live feed off the course on big days. You should be able to get feedback almost direct off the boat as I go down the course. Helena will be doing this from the timing hut using a generator, laptop and 3G modem... as well as taking photo's... and sorting through GPS data between runs as we tow VESTAS SAILROCKET back up the course.

At this stage it is looking like the weekend is going to be windy... but that depends on the rain in land. I have faith in this spot. It does this. It sometimes feels like it is never going to be windy again... and then it comes... and feels like it is never going to stop. This is why we have to appreciate the windless days. Preperation time is a bonus.

Cheers, Paul.