One of the attractions of the Volvo Ocean Race is that it never ceases to throw out the unexpected, but this can be both good and bad.
Leg 5 was no different and it started full of expectation. We were keen to put on a good showing, experience some close racing in conditions that we had hoped would put us on a par with the fleet and finally to enjoy some downwind sailing, something that has been rather scarce this race.
Sadly however, this was not to be and less than 24 hours into the race we found ourselves back in Auckland. Two weeks later, rather than rounding Cape Horn we found ourselves quietly motoring up the river into Puerto Montt, Chile. I had always had wanted to visit Patagonia but certainly hadn't expected to be doing it under these circumstances.
The Southern Ocean hadn't been kind to us. It was disappointing not being able to round Cape Horn for a third time, and no doubt more disappointing for Adil, Paul, Bubs and Nick who had hoped to round the mythical cape for the their first time but I don't think anyone would argue with the decision we had made.
Despite having made an impressive repair from what we could muster on board the time, our luck was well and truly over. Pounding through the ocean 2,000 miles from land is high tariff at the best of times, but with a bad forecast and a broken boat the stakes seemed a little too high. I think we all gave a collective sigh of relief when we got to the safety of shore of South America albeit on the opposite coast.
And so another unexpected experience started to unfold, beginning with getting the boat ready for shipping to Brazil. Our shore crew took all this in their stride. It would have been easy to moan about the long transfers and the multiple flights to get over the Andes to Itajai but it really has nothing on Cape Horn.
Looking on the bright side rarely had I enjoyed looking out the window of the airplane as much as I did as we flew from Santiago to Montevideo with the Andes and the impressive estuary of the River Plate to take in as the hardship of the Southern Ocean slowly slipped from my mind.
Time off in Itajai has been great fun. For the past week rather than thinking about boats, sails and performance I have been able to enjoy the beaches of Santa Catarina. Rather than surfing through the ocean wearing thermals, waterproofs, gloves and hats I have been surfing the waves off the beaches wearing board shorts and a rash vest. Leg 6 is now fast approaching though and my thoughts are now getting back on the job in hand. This coming week is going to be a busy one for everyone, especially the shore team which has plenty of work to do in a very short time.
Everyone will have to pull together to get the repair done and the boat back on the water in time for the in-port race but it will be a challenge that everyone will relish and can look back on with pride when the job is done. I for one will be very happy to be heading out onto the water again with another opportunity to put some more points on the board.
Hopefully we can get a good result and enjoy some good racing too. I have no doubt though that there will be some more unexpected stuff the crops up, I just hope this time it's of the good kind.