We are sailing in great sunshine but expect it not to last as a low pressure system is developing between us and the coast. The positive side of this low pressure system is that we will be sailing downwind almost through to the end of the trip. We are expecting 35+ knots of wind tonight with some rain squalls and possible thunder and lightening. We have just under 500 miles to go and I have been monitoring the ice situation in the Gulf of St. Lawrence, it seems there is plenty of ice left from the long winter and late Spring thaw. With a carbon hull on the boat it’s very fragile and susceptible to sharp objects in the water, I have decided to make a stop in Halifax for a week or so to give the ice a chance to clear.

BOATsmart! Canada, one of our biggest boating safety partners, is looking for candidates for Promotional Team Leaders and Team Reps summer job positions. This is a great opportunity to travel, spend time on the water, work in a small team, practice your marketing and promotional skills and get paid.

The Summer work term is from May 14 through September 15. There are still a number of positions to be filled, so be sure to apply today.

More details on the job and qualifications can be found in the careers section of their website.

It’s official. Spirit of Canada Qualified for Vendee Globe 2008

Canadian single-handed sailor Derek Hatfield is officially qualified to enter the Vendee Globe 2008 - a singlehanded non-stop race around the world.

Just before Christmas, Hatfield completed the Transat Ecover B2B, the single-handed transatlantic race from Brazil to France that is a qualifier for the Vendee Globe. It was also a great chance to shake down his racing machine, the Canadian-built Open 60, Spirit of Canada. Then just last week, all the documentation and official medical training was completed and filed with the Vendee Globe organizers and the official race number; #15 was issued by the organizers.

“I am very proud to finally finish the qualifications for the Vendee Globe 2008. It has been a lot of hard work getting this far but with the support that we receive from so many Canadians, we will be on the start line this November.” said Hatfield. On November 8, 2008, Hatfield, 56, will be the only Canadian in the race competing. He and the Spirit of Canada will be the first Canadian team to attempt the race.

Certainly there are always legends made during the Vendee Globe, started in 1989 by famed French sailor Philippe Jeantot. It is a single-handed yacht race held every four years and is non-stop around the world, starting in les Sables d’Olonne France, rounding Cape of Good Hope at the tip of Africa, entering the Indian Ocean, then the Southern Ocean, dancing around icebergs, rounding Cape Horn, finishing back in France.

The number of participants is capped at 30 and represents the world’s elite sailors. It is the pinnacle of a sailor’s career to enter and finish the Vendee. The sailors must show they are able to enter the Vendee by completing a single-handed race such as the Transat Ecover B2B. Sailors must also demonstrate that their boats are up to the task, by completing a test to determine if their boats can be righted after capsizing and the boats must also meet a series of design specifications.

Hatfield is currently sailing from France to Canada to allow for more training, fine-tuning and repairs following the grueling race that saw two other boats dismasted in their attempt to qualify for the Vendee.

Now Hatfield’s biggest challenge is to raise more money and awareness about his campaign in Canada. The former Mountie has so far managed to raise funds through corporate donations and his “Around Together”
campaign that offers to put a name on the boat along for a small donation. He’s raised $1,600,000 and put over 5200 crew names on the hull through the Around Together campaign but needs to double that in the next few months before he leaves as well as additional corporate sponsorship. His budget for the race is about $3.5 million and he has borrowed money as well to pursue the goal. For the Vendee, that’s a shoestring budget as his competitors will have at least twice that for their campaigns.

“The countdown to the Vendee Globe is now on and the next six months will go by very quickly,” said Hatfield. “We have a number of hurdles ahead of us; mostly of the financial kind; but as one skipper recently told me in Brazil, If the Vendee Globe was easy, then everyone would be doing it.’”

Hatfield though is confident such hurdles will be overtaken and he will not give up until Spirit of Canada reaches the finish in France in the spring of 2009.

eCYBERMISSION is a web-based science, math and technology competition for 6th through 9th grade teams. Teams compete for regional and national awards while working to solve problems in their community.

A group of four 6th grade kids going to school in Manahawkin, New Jersey have created entered as team SINK or SWIM. They are looking at voluntary use of lifejackets by boaters in New Jersey to learn why some people do, and some people don’t, wear lifejackets when they are out on the water.

They have been going to marinas, gas docks, yacht clubs, boat shows, fishing tournaments and US Coast Guard Auxiliary boating classes with their questionnaire to poll boaters. They are going to soon host an in-water event to let people experience life jackets in water and we’re providing them with some lifejackets and a prize.

They are very close to reaching their 1000 responses goal. If you would like to take their survey visit www.lifejacketsurvey.org.

The Annual Sardine Fest in Richmond, BC was the backdrop for the 1st Fish Safe Immersion Suit Race put on by Fish Safe BC. With an audience of over 100 eagerly waiting for the competition to begin, Fish Safe Coordinator, Gina Johansen explained what the BC Fishing Industry is doing to improve safety on board and at this event focusing on the dangers of coldwater immersion. She helped the audience to appreciate that the fish they buy at the dock, grocery store or that was prepared by one of the famous chefs at the Fest was caught by local fishermen who traveled many miles by boat and they have to be prepared to deal with the unexpected so that they can “Come Home Safely” to their families.

The immersion or survival suit race promoted the use of and speed necessary to don a suit in case of an emergency at sea. Crewman Casey Boynton won the fishermen’s heat with a record time of 20 seconds from removal of the suit from its stowage bag to fully zipped up. Other fishermen competing to win a new top of the line Ocean Commander Immersion Suit donated by Mustang Survival, included skippers Glenn Budden, Paul Bevandick and Stuart MacDonald who all recorded times well under the recommended standard 1 minute. Glenn and Paul are also Fish Safe Education Facilitators and advocate for safety on board.