Aviva

Hello,

Here is a nice picture of my lucky red socks "breathing" some fresh air under the full moon, after having been subjected to 48 hours non-stop inside ‘Le Chameau’ boots in the stormy weather!

Yes - I admit that I did not remove my boots or oilskins for 48 hours. It was too full-on to take the risk as I needed to be ready to go on deck at any moment.

150 000 visitors have been on the pontoon to get up close and personal with the boats and teams as they prepare for the race start in less than two weeks. Despite the skippers being given free time this week, visitors are still queuing to get a glimpse of the machines and wander the race village stands of sponsors and local retailers. It is awesome and the fact that people were waiting about two hours to get on the pontoon is amazing. The start of the half term holidays has had great weather and the event has stirred as much excitement in mums and dads as it has the children.

With just a month to go to the start line we knew we had some jobs still to be ticked off the list. Each edition of the Vendée Globe has taught us what possible hazards there are for the yacht and skipper alike. Joff, our project manager has the knowledge of talking Conrad Humphries through his rudder change on Hellomoto, after he sustained damage to his rudder in the last race. Aviva and I are planning on carrying a spare rudder but I was keen to practise this maneuver before departure, as quite frankly the thought of the job worried me.

As the last few days of being based in the UK tick away, final preparations are being done in great detail.

The guys have worked hard on the boat and with the British weather showing a kinder side have had no hold ups and the boat is already back in the water getting ready for some more sailing.
Without a boat to sail I have been busy with media commitments both in France and the UK, with the most impressive sight being just yesterday where we managed to get all the British skippers in this year's Vendee Globe together in one place. That is no mean feat I can assure you.

How fickle the weather can be but how grateful are we for some long awaited sunshine. I had almost forgotten what the sun looked like! The agreeable weather is fantastic news for the PSP Southampton Boat Show which opened on Friday with Mike Golding bringing the victorious Olympic sailors to the show onboard ECOVER. It was a great opportunity to see some famous faces and the ten day event looks set to be a great success as it celebrates its 40th year.

Another fabulous Cowes week comes to an end and many smiling guests of Aviva have had an enjoyable experience. They have sailed onboard the Open 60 and seen a little of what Cowes Week is all about. The sun came out on occasion and the wind was plenty to sail with.