How to get some 'me time' at sea

The GGR has been a riveting slow burner of a race

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Liz Wardley, Volvo Ocean Race legend, famously quipped she was just getting some ‘me time’ while suspended 30-odd metres above the deck at the top of the mast on a VO65 at sea. My guess is she probably had some other stuff to do while she was there, but the quote stuck with me. At the start of every season I get to have some ‘me time’ on Skylax for a thorough rig check. The ends of each terminal are examined for loose or deformed strands, and each spreader end checked for wear.

Once up the mast I replace the wind transducer, the tricolour and the radar reflector which were removed for the winter. Once in place we check everything is working as it should and replace any failed bulbs on any other lights. Apart from reducing wear on the transducer bearings (ours is now nearly 20 years old), a winter down below keeps the lamp lenses and plastic housings out of UV light. The effect of UV on plastic, even modern polymers, shouldn’t be underestimated, especially under the Mediterranean sun.