Diary of a world record

Monday 28th May
We've made good progress through the night. The sea is still following, allowing us to maintain an average of around 20 knots. The new air freshener sitting proudly next to the compass has 1239 marked in felt pen, signifying the number of miles from Horta to Lizard Point. Will it still smell as sweet by the time we arrive? It could be a case of "air today, gone tomorrow".

        Steve gets out of his bunk for a private moment outside, at which point the bow stuffs for the first time in ages. In ribbing circles, "stuffing" has much less to do with Bernard Matthews or sage and onion, and much more to do with following seas. "Stuffing" is what happens when the bow hits the back of a wave, at the very least generating sheets of impressive spray which can catch out the unwary on the aft deck. At worst, the boat can turn into a submarine for a few seconds, with green water coming all the way up the windscreen.

        We have a late breakfast of rolls and cheese, along with a coffee, while Alan phones for the weather forecast. It seems we're OK until Wednesday, when there's a stiff northerly for several days. So we should be OK to get to the Lizard and on to Falmouth, but we're probably going to be beaten to death on the way round to Cardiff on Saturday.

        The sun has been out all day, and Jan and Steve have been sunning themselves. We all treat ourselves to a sea water shower at the back of the boat. Basically just a hose pipe attached to a tube dipped into the sea, the speed of the boat forcing the water up the pipe.

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