The bird has landed!

I'll try to post photos on Facebook!

Going to the finish line!

A nice guy Kevin from Kaneohe Yacht Club is taking us to the finish to see them come in. Deb and John are with us! Wish I could post a photo... We see a sail in the distance! -Janna, Talia, Savai, Amy & Sol

Day 11 Evening from Al - last night!

Going to bed in Hawaii now that I've received Al's last evening post. We will see them tomorrow! Here's Al: After a another picture postcard day with sunny skies and 10-20 ENE trades again, it looks like a squally stormy final night.  Already had two spinnaker changes and the sun hasn't set.  Alex fixed his variation on the Tuna surprise with lentils and sun-dried tomatoes.  I know I can't wait for a nice fresh salad, and okay maybe a pizza.  We are trying to push pretty hard for our last night.  We are going to three hour watches to keep everyone on their toes.  Hoping for a good night but will know come morning, Al

Day 11 morning from Al

Good morning, Down to one day and change.  As I commented on watch, this was the most pleasant night of sailing in now almost four transpac crossings.  Winds 8-18 knots, no squalls, stars galore, 3/4 moon for most of the night, then enough light from Venus to see the spinnaker clearly, Air temp 72 degrees (better than daytime for me), near perfection.  Jupiter? maybe above Venus in the east this morning.  Sunrise not till well after 8 because of the drop in latitude and no change of ship time since SF.  We are hoping the roll call positions will be to our liking but I am sure Elan is hoping for the same thing. We shall hear soon at our 1000 check in.  Only on board crisis are we most assuredly will run out of Via (starbucks instant coffee) this morning and the toilet seat is now duct taped to the toilet bowl.  No details needed.  Janna and family are in the air so this may get posted late. Hope there were no worries and thanks to J for all the work she has put in keeping you and us up to date.  Aloha, Al

Day 10 Evening from Al

Too peaceful, we need miles.  Winds most of the day were around 10 knots, hot and sticky as we traversed a little wrinkle in the trades that some in the fleet were speculating was the result of an upper level low.  We hope we haven't bled too many miles to the competition.  Still appears like a Sunday finish for team Kotuku.  Saw some more white tailed tropic birds and our first blue faced boobies.  Lots of all size flying fish, including one that flew through the foretriangle up and over the bow last night for the sharks entertainment.  They also a bright white flash that was reported by several of the boats at children's hour today.  Speculation ran from lightning, to exploding meteor and on to government testing.  No thunder heard, light was bright white not yellow that some likened to a camera flash although it would have to be some camera.  There is now a sign on the companionway that started as 2 days, 7 people , 100% focused.  It didn't take long for it to be messed with and now reads 2 days, 1 pickle, 7 people, 100% focused.  So the yodeling pickle (who has previously made the crossing to hawaii by sailboat) from the halfway party is no on the job.  Mr T is temporarily on the sidelines with battery issues, Sucka.  Here's hoping tonight is kind to us, Al.

Um. Al. I think that's blue FOOTED booby.
As our 3-year-old Savai would say, "It's toe-kuku!"

So, folks. Janna here again, and I believe this will be my last act of post support from Seattle. I'm packing for Hawaii! We fly out early tomorrow. I hope to post their Day 11 morning update from my layover in California, but who knows. With the time difference, they've been sending 'em later, so maybe I won't be able to post till I'm in the land of luaus. Too bad the tracker isn't more [insert your own expletive + adjective here]. (Not that I'm complaining. No. No.)

Also, I just wanted to say that I read and re-read these updates from Al. And I don't understand half the references either. I think that's why I find them so delightful.

Off to Hawaii! Keep on trackin'!

-Janna

Day 10 Morning from Al (and Eli)

Good Morning,  All in all that was probably one of the best nights of the trip.  Moderate winds, lots of stars, no squalls until the sharks sunrise watch when things got a little cross eyed.  The day dawned with the end of the squalls and we had the first visible sunrise in a long time.  The day should bring more of the same (fingers crossed).  446 miles to go at 0800 so looks like Sunday daylight finish at Kaneohe.  Starting to stack the boat for a 400 mile port tack reach.  Hoping all is well with you, Al


From Eli (clipped from a personal email to his fam since this is a party line): All is well out here, we've had some exciting sailing over the last few days! We've also seen more and more flying fish, LOTS of bright stars, and I'm learning all about squalls. They can be dramatic and usually provide a welcome, if still cool, fresh water shower.

Getting close

This came in after bedtime last night:
Saw our first White tailed Tropic bird late today, must be getting close to the islands.

Since they can't send us a photo, here's one from the Internet. Land is close!

Day 9 Evening from Al

Splendid early evening meal of fresh caught baked mango mahi with rice, dining in the cockpit under tradewinds of 20 knots ENE, blue skies and puffy white clouds. We are hoping once again for an easy night but who knows.  Most of the rest of the day has been covered by earlier messages I think.  Be safe , I think Kotuku knows her way from here, having done the Transpac race early in her life.  Cheers, Al

Fish on! from Graeme and Nick

Hi Kotuku followers,


Janna here. Wanted to let you know that Graeme has been writing blog posts for a blog related to his work: Light My Fire. They're the folks who make sporks and other camping gear; Graeme's company is their US distributor. Good stuff! I haven't been double posting those updates here (for the most part) but thought this one was worth sharing directly. For other content, check out the Light My Fire adventure blog. Very cool.


Here's the latest update from Graeme:
We finally found the tradewinds.  Man, it was a tough road getting here.  We have had 3 straight squally nights, with high winds and confused seas.  Then we had a patch of light wind.  Then, this morning while I was driving the clouds seemed to organize themselves into marching marshmallow men and begin an orderly tromp toward Hawaii.  The water is very warm and very blue.  The wind is a steady 18 knots.  We moved up a spot in the standings and are currently 1st in our class and 6th overall.  And this afternoon we caught a beautiful Mahi Mahi, about 6kg (13lbs.)  She put up a good fight but was no match for our seasoned crew, and we are having ceviche for happy hour and baked mango mahi for dinner.  Care to join us?  We are living the dream out here.  I think about work occasionally, wonder if people are ready for the show in Salt Lake City.  I am sure they are, or that they will be.  In the meantime, we have a bit more work to do ourselves on Kotuku.  We have tough competition in our class just waiting for us to make a mistake.  And we would like to see if we could move up another place in the standings tomorrow.  Oh, we have a lot of fresh fish to eat too.  Better get to it then!


P.S.  Savai, you were right.  Green with tassels was the winner!  Big thanks to Kevin for providing the lure in the half way box, and to Savai for selecting it.  And will someone please tell us what happened to Ichiro...traded?  To who?  For what?

Mahi Mahi!

Nick here again. Looking forward to some good eating this afternoon with the big Mahi we caught. What a beautiful fish! We have all been busy these past few days with tricky conditions and many sail changes, but everyone is still as jovial as ever. I had a good view of the sunrise this morning from the top of the mast and lots of good surfing this afternoon. We are even doing quite well in the race standings, slowly picking our way through the overall standings while holding first in our class. What an adventure we are having. Life is good, hope all is well at home.

Day 9 Morning from Al

Well it was tale of two nights.  First until the 0200 shift change it was delightful, balmy 15-20, some stars then the bats left and the sharks took over.  Mother nature had something in store for the sharks.  Squalls, winds to 35, shifts but Alex was something for this duck to watch.  He assumed the Jedi master role and just kept Kotuku (mostly) on her feet and just motored forward on Lightspeed, doing steady burst of 12, 14 knots for minutes at a time.  Absolutely magnificent to watch.  The bats came back on at 0500 (we have shifted watches ahead one hour to try to keep a little sync with the daylight) and were prepped for their watch.  Mother Nature had other ideas.  About one hour into the watch a squall came through with winds over 35 and in a hurry to get the kite down things didn't quite go according to plan.  No harm, no foul in the end though other than a minor rope burn to Alex's hand.  We went along for almost an hour under main only through daybreak (still hit 16 knots) while we did some checking.  Sent Nick up the mast for a rig check with all the stress she has seen over the last few days we thought it would be prudent.  Eli did an adjustment to the steering pedestal which was making some unwanted noises and also causing concern.  We set the S4 and then changed to the A2 shortly thereafter as the winds continued to ease back to 15 knots.  600 miles to go, be safe, Al

Early morning watch from Al

While the rubber duck was up getting the latest weather gribs via the radio, I was talking with Graeme about how nice his children's artwork was and I was finally aware of how sophisticated Savai's drawing was.  I totally missed the significance of Tokuku's silver gray and rainbow wings.  It's the heavy air kites dummy, Doh!  We haven't seen any dolphins or whales lately but the probabilities should increase as we approach the islands a little closer.  Talia and Savai, we need your help with any fishing suggestions you have.  We seem totally inept.  What do you think the best colors are for catching a Mahi.  We have blue and white, red and white with feathers, green with some red and yellow tassels, grey white with silver specks or our homemade candy wrapper and red rag lures.  What should we use the most do you think?  Also, please remind your mom to bring another pair of shorts for your Dad along with two rolls of weather fax paper which should be in the garage (good luck with that search).  Ducky

Day 8 Evening from Al

Things have settled down a bit.  We are back to chasing Lightspeed ( 3mi ahead )with the 1.5 oz kite, 730 miles to go, winds ENE 15-25 with gusts to 30, but not 35 thank you very much.  Eli fixed Awesome Tuna Deluxe wraps for dinner.  Graeme made Tabouli and hummous wraps for lunch.  Crew and skipper are all well after this mornings adventure.  Lots of time spent cleaning, drying, and straightening up aboard Kotuku.  Hoping for an uneventful restful evening, Al

The Price of Speed

Quick update to Al's last email.  Last night we were very conservative with our sailing, changing down from the kite to the poled out jib.  This morning as Al mentioned, we were rocking out to Led Zeppelin and the Presidents (Little Blue Dune Buggy) and absolutely flying.  One of those "moments we all live for".  Unfortunately the wind continued to build and with yours truly at the helm (absolutely ripping it, by the way) we got caught sideways and ended up damaging our spinnaker pole.  This slowed us down a bit, in case you noticed that on the tracker.  We switched to our other pole and waited for the wind to die down to a more normal 15-20 knots and then set the kite again.  Wind is lighter now, so I expect that our boatspeed will be a little down.  We also put a governor on the speedometer, because when one is leading the race one should not take unnecessary risks.  I expect this will mean that the Bats have locked down the top speed for the trip--19.6 knots.  Go Bats!  G BTW we think we have video of the aforementioned incident  Al

Day 8 Morning from Al

Right now (0830) Alex and Nick are driving in a downpour with 33 knots with the S4 and a PORT pole (yes our first jibe) pointed at the finish line doing 9-12 knots boatspeed with Led Zeppelin cranked on the stereo and Emily cooking oatmeal for breakfast.  Life is good once again! Crew morale took a little sag when we decided to go to the poled out jib late last night.  I believe it was the right thing to do even though Lightspeed passed us back again.  We are just going to have to chase them down again.  I think Kotuku and crew is up to the task.   Thanks for all the comments, Al

Day 7 Evening from Al

After all the celebrating this morning it looks like another wild ride tonight, winds are shifty and gusting up to 35 knots, way different than forecast.  We are flying the S4 right now, but the call was just made to drop it and go wing on wing with the heavy one jib.  We will wait and see what the wind does later this morning.  Sorry for the late posting, I will send an update in the morning, Al A note from Janna: Sorry for the confusion with Day 7 post titles. I mistook all the halfway merriment for an official update, and Al's email didn't come through till after my bedtime (which is actually pretty late these days). Also, sorry about double posts, poor formatting, etc. Mobile technology is amazing...just not perfect. (Then again maybe it's that wine I'm drinking until that late bedtime. :)

Halfway, baby! from Graeme

Wow, what a day.  Spent the night doing terrifying drops off of large waves in the pitch blackness of a cloudy, squally night with winds 25-35 knots.  Definitely some hero driving, Alex being the real hero of the day.  He put together three straight hours of surfs, cliff jumps, and non-stop acts of boat preservation.  Al and I got the rest of it done until it got light, but the whole crew battled the night through trimming and grinding frantically just to keep the boat from rounding up or rolling down as we flew through the darkness.  We were exhausted by the time the sun finally showed up.  But we were past the halfway point, and still in first place.  Matt then served up smoked salmon benedict and we opened the half way boxes.  A civilized ending to an otherwise brutal night. And what fun were they!  We played the wonderful CD prepared by Talia and Savai (and sung beautifully, it brought a tear to my eye!)  We fired off the poppers and the Canadian breath spray.  We admired the bacon salt, hung the aloha sign, the Hafway Kotuku picture with the smiling sun, and the Coconut air freshener in the head.  Then we ate the smoked herring, read our mail (Emily isn't sure what to do about the utility bill!) and generally had a great party which I later bragged about on the radio to the fleet during the evening check-in.  The image of Emily driving with the white boa streaming behind her in 25 knots of breeze will stick with me awhile.  Thank you so much friends and family for all the thoughtful gifts!  Not sure what do do with the reindeer, but we taped it to the steering pedestal with the Smile bracelet around its neck.  On Dasher, to Kaneohe!  

Halfway, baby! From Graeme

Wow, what a day.  Spent the night doing terrifying drops off of large waves in the pitch blackness of a cloudy, squally night with winds 25-35 knots.  Definitely some hero driving, Alex being the real hero of the day.  He put together three straight hours of surfs, cliff jumps, and non-stop acts of boat preservation.  Al and I got the rest of it done until it got light, but the whole crew battled the night through trimming and grinding frantically just to keep the boat from rounding up or rolling down as we flew through the darkness.  We were exhausted by the time the sun finally showed up.  But we were past the halfway point, and still in first place.  Matt then served up smoked salmon benedict and we opened the half way boxes.  A civilized ending to an otherwise brutal night. And what fun were they!  We played the wonderful CD prepared by Talia and Savai (and sung beautifully, it brought a tear to my eye!)  We fired off the poppers and the Canadian breath spray.  We admired the bacon salt, hung the aloha sign, the Hafway Kotuku picture with the smiling sun, and the Coconut air freshener in the head.  Then we ate the smoked herring, read our mail (Emily isn't sure what to do about the utility bill!) and generally had a great party which I later bragged about on the radio to the fleet during the evening check-in.  The image of Emily driving with the white boa streaming behind her in 25 knots of breeze will stick with me awhile.  Thank you so much friends and family for all the thoughtful gifts!  Not sure what do do with the reindeer, but we taped it to the steering pedestal with the Smile bracelet around its neck.  On Dasher, to Kaneohe!  

Halfway news

All right the decorations are up, the sole is swept and wiped down, the head is refreshed with its own wash down, disinfectant and coconut air freshener.  Emily in her white feather boa (we hope that is who it was for)is baking cookies (I thought this was a race boat)and we are ready for the last 950 miles.  We have a reindeer taped to the pedestal with with smile banner around her neck.  One of kind color drawings by Talia and Savai on the bulkheads, an Aloha banner from the mast to the portside lockers.  We had poppers and rocket poppers and squirt guns and a beachball.  Got candy and crackers and smoked herring.  A yodeling pickle (yes) and Mr T.  But best of all those special notes, wishes, good luck charms from friends, family and lovers. (Thanks Lou, love, Al) That is some bird, cheers from Kotuku. Flash, late this afternoon Graeme set the new speed record of 18.0 knots (true) and he said okay we are taking down the sails now while he is ahead (not true).  We spent all last night and today under the S4 heavy 1.5 oz. kite in winds from 20-30 knots plus.  A little bit more than forecast but Kotuku is trucking along.  Al

Day 7 Morning HALFWAY from Al (and the whole crew)

Yeah, we are more than halfway to Kaneohe.  After a stressful and somewhat stormy night, with winds over 30 knots, no stars and no moon we finally passed Lightspeed after they took their spinnaker down for awhile.  Thanks to an ironman performance by Alex, who drove for 3 hours straight, we were able to make it to our halfway party.  Matt fashioned up quite a feast of Eggs Kotuku (poached fresh eggs on homemade biscuits with smoked salmon and hollandaise sauce)  Then into the halfway gifts which were accompanied by the sweet sounds of the Esarey girls singing the Kotuku song (to the tune of You are my Sunshine) You are Kotuku, our one Kotuku You make us happy on windy days You'll always know, crew How much we love you 'cause we'll cheer for you everyday The other night, crew, on the computer We were tracking you across We lost connection And your direction And we feared that you were lost. But in the morning, wifi was working And you were sailing very fast From San Francisco To Hawaii closer to first than last (we hope!) [repeat chorus] I need to get this posted so that you all know we are safe and sound.  The rest of the gifts will be explained further in some later postings but to all of you, thanks from the whole crew, Graeme, Eli, Matt, Alex, Emily, Nick and Al

A note from Eli

To Blog, From Eli:  Have had another wonderful day out here with what I'm told are more typical conditions.   More wind is the highlight and we've been in a friendly drag race with Lightspeed for most of the day.  We had our first squid on deck this morning, a little guy who was quickly repatriated he or she got too ripe.  We also had flying fish, which actually fly better than I remember.   I've been enjoying learning to drive the boat better, especially under enough breeze to make her power through the lumpy waves we've been having.   Lighter winds are more of a challenge and feel like I'm weaving and bobbling around madly.   No fish caught today but we keep trying after the triumph of our Bonito Poke yesterday.  Tomorrow we expect to reach the half way point around mid day and there's talk of some kind of special meal.   I've also decided it might be a good occasion to bathe, and I think a few others may join suit.   The danger is that we'll be reacquainted with what it is to be clean and have to endure the transition phase to grimy again.  We continue to eat like kings.    Today's Happy Hour was smoked oysters and cheese on crackers, and dinner was a pretty durn good veggie chili.