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Daily report, August
23rd
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No windscreens on the
glasses
Position at 15H15 (Paris) :
11° 24 S / 92° 45 W
For more than 48 hours, Raphaëla
is trying to navigate and advance in the rough open sea that
is perturbed by incessant heavy showers with wind rising to
30-35 knots.
The day before yesterday, the
sky was already not very encouraging – you must understand
that the choice one makes of the type of sail is a strategic
moment of the day- one must always pray that the chosen sail
is the suitable one during the entire day ! And precisely
yesterday morning after having scrutinized the condition of
the sea and the sky, Raphaëla rigs her 6,7 m_ sail. But
it was too large, so you can imagine the sequence of events
from there onwards- Raphaëla had to rig, put the sail
away, take another one (5,7 m_) and rig once again in a sea
that gave no respite. But once again her choice of sail was
too large. At the time it must have been noon or 13h so she
put the cover on and let the surf board drift. When the sea
does not invite you to navigate, the solution is not to force
the wave: patience is required (quality that Raphaëla
is cultivating daily)- and it is necessary to resign oneself
to waiting for that small sign that will indicate that a window
is opening.
One must not forget what it
is like to navigate with 550 kgunder one’s feet, this
signifies that whenever there is a lift, the surfboard reacts
with delay due to its inertia. During this lapse of time,
the body takes everything in – this is a very tough
physically- it is necessary to resist and take down the harness
as fast as possible to avoid being thrown off the board…
« In addition to this, I don’t have any windscreens
on my glasses, so when it rains I don’t see anything
any more! ».
As a result, Raphaëla
made herself snug and comfortable in her little nest, but
it is getting very hot, particularly during the day so she
half opens the bubble in order too evacuate the humidity.
The next wave comes in and floods the board…Then you
have to sponge the whole thing, attempt to remove the traces
of mist- Raphaëla remains serene, she is experienced-
she has won, she has lost, this is not the first time this
happens… not to worry, we continue. Finally it rained
all day, the sky did not not invite her to dry her duvet and
clothes- she will see later what she will do.
The day of the 22nd looks difficult:
the sky is threatening, and Raphaëla is somber. I advise
her to wait, to observe, to let the windsurfer go as it drifts
madly (3,5 knots). And then around 10H30 the black clouds
go away, the sun comes out with a wind of 20 knots…
Raphaëla rigs and it becomes a pleasure to navigate with
her 5,7 m_ until 4pm when the rain starts manifesting itself
again. By now, it is tea time so she puts things away and
prepares tea and biscuits. « And regularly, I take Annie’s
elixir (a friend from Pénestin), it does me a lot of
good», this is Bach’s flower that is highly recommended
in situations of high stress. There was a large wind swell
all day, “this is not bad in fact because when I rise
above the wave, I dominate the situation and my viewpoint
is exceptional”! ». You see Raphaëla can
also laugh…
Last night was quite agitated
as well, the board went down under the effect of a breaker
wave but the angel gardian was there, the orange float above
the half mast that reestablished the situation. Raphaëla
was happy because the objects did not move to much on the
board.
When this happened, Raphaëla
was just returning from the front post, « once in a
while I have to go up there », and she received a free
shower, luckily the temperature of the water is almost 23°
C. Now that her vest is watered down, « another thing
to dry »…We urge Raphaëla toile low, she
is still drifting at a speed of 2,4 knots. Her sister Claire
gives a live relaxation session, Claire is a specialist, Raphaëla
listens attentively, she is learning how to control her breathing.
She resolved the problem of
urinating at night, do you remember? A peanut container does
the trick and she has not lost the lid yet…
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