Placement

16th-21st December, 1999

I wish I could say that I like Plymouth in the rain, but I don't! Having arrived for the placement sail that cold December evening, Will, the skipper, gave us such an 'oh so friendly' briefing about what lay ahead of us in the following few days. It sounded good. Where he cheated was by not telling us that at six o'clock the next morning, the generator would roar into life and we would be summoned unceremoniously from our bunks with "Up you get guys, put running gear on and meet up top in ten minutes."

Needless to say, the wind was howling and it was pouring with rain as we did our warm-up exercises and then trotted off in pairs up towards the Ho - picture right. My muddy hands, stomach and back got to know it well!




		King Will and his court

IT'S CHRISTMAS! - Note the crown on King Will's head! It was his very last training sail before Christmas and his last also as Senior Skipper - cause for celebration indeed!

OPEN THE DOOR! - The most memorable moment of the sail had to be when my watch, in the early hours of one dark, cold morning, were busy dozing in our bunks. The dreaded cry went out - 'Man overboard!' I rolled out of my bunk on autopilot and speedily put on boots, foulies, lifejacket and harness. In my mind, I guessed it was an exercise, but how could anyone be sure? It could have been one of the crew in the water. Meanwhile, from the bunk above me, I heard the frantic cries of "Open the door!" In his confusion, my cabin-mate, Deon, having gone to sleep with his head where his feet had been the night before, was desperately trying to exit his bunk through the side of the yacht!


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