Across the Atlant - Leg 1: Ft. Lauderdale to Bermuda
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+NordhavnRally 12/2/04 10:18 AM Page 84
Leg 1: Ft. Lauderdale to Bermuda
On May 16, a fleet of 18 trawler yachts set out on a record-breaking cruise
of a lifetime: an Atlantic crossing. The Nordhavn Atlantic Rally — the ulti-
mate boat owner’s rendezvous cruise — would take these trawler crews on
the buddy-boating adventure of a lifetime. In the second part of our series
on this incredible odyssey, rally organizer Jim Leishman of Pacific Asian
Enterprises in Dana Point, California shares his Leg 1 cruise experiences
aboard the Nordhavn trawler Atlantic Escort.
Across the Atlant
yachtphotography.com
By Jim Leishman
84 SEA / SEPTEMBER 2004
+NordhavnRally 12/2/04 10:19 AM Page 85
ic in 18 Trawlers Jim Raycroft photos
SEA / SEPTEMBER 2004 85
+NordhavnRally 12/2/04 10:19 AM Page 86
FT. LAUDERDALE • BERMUDA • AZORES • GIBRALTAR
1,100 N
M
NM June 19
1,800 - June 2
6
ne 1 0
9 - Ju
May 2
NM
900 2
ay 2
y 16- M
Ma
Jim Raycroft photos
Thousands of pre-cruise details had been in me. Along with the excitement that pre-
dealt with, as our departure date of May 16 cedes a long ocean voyage on a small boat,
drew near. Arriving in advance of the fleet the concern and realization that things can
at the Bahia Mar Hotel in Ft. Lauderdale, go wrong always serves to temper a buoy-
I fought the dread that was building with- ant mood.
n a single vessel — one that a 92-foot custom vessel designed by visiting the upper floors of the Bahia
O I’ve prepared and I am in
charge of, these pre-departure
jitters are minimal. But this time the
Ed Monk and built by McQueen in
the Pacific Northwest. We had 18 capa-
ble passage-makers with the range,
Mar Hotel and gazing seaward — hop-
ing for a break.
The wind blew through the mari-
voyage was different, and the poten- strength and stability to safely cross na and tore at our burgees and flags
tial for problems was exponentially the North Atlantic. as we went about the business of final
greater, with 18 vessels and crews — This was a fleet of motorized plea- provisioning, inspections and prepa-
every one of which I felt responsible sureboats embarking on a voyage ration of the vessels for departure. It
for. I found myself unable to sleep and never before attempted — and one was an intense week, with dozens of
noticed occasional flushes of that thousands of supporters and crit- seminars covering subjects from med-
adrenaline while thinking of the ics alike would be watching carefully. ical first aid to diesel mechanics.
unpleasant possibilities. The easterly trade winds had There were dinner parties, cock-
On the final roster of participants, been blowing hard for the entire tail parties and briefings. Film direc-
the fleet consisted of one Nordhavn month of May, creating 6- to 8-foot tor Bruce Kessler worked constant-
40, five Nordhavn 46s, one Nordhavn seas and an ocean of whitecaps off ly, conducting interviews and filming
47, two Nordhavn 50s, one Northern the beach at Ft. Lauderdale. It seemed the preparations and activities for
Marine 55, three Nordhavn 57s, one inevitable that our fleet would have his upcoming documentary of the
Krogen 58, three Nordhavn 62s and to endure a pounding. I found myself voyage.
86 SEA / SEPTEMBER 2004
+NordhavnRally 12/2/04 10:19 AM Page 87
Despite the hectic schedule, no one
could help but notice that strong and
relentless easterly wind.
Our schedule called for a May 16
departure of the fleet’s smaller boats
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(Division 1) followed by the larger
boats (Division 2) the following day.
We estimated an arrival in Bermuda
together on the morning of May 22.
For weeks, I had worried about a
delay in the Florida departure, because
accommodations in Bermuda at Royal took up a direct route for Bermuda. any vessel that might be delayed
Bermuda Yacht Club had been con- because of a temporary mechanical
fined to a narrow window. Numerous OFF WE GO problem to be able to speed up and
fleets of rally and racing sailboats Our Sunday morning departure rejoin the fleet.
would be arriving at the yacht club was one I’ll never forget. Our Division Even our smallest vessel, Uno Mas,
in June. A significant delay in our 1 crews threw off their lines, and the a Nordhavn 40, can run at 8 knots,
arrival could find us without accom- Division 2 fleet of 11 Nordhavns left so a one-hour delay could be made
modations and the need for alternate the Bahia Mar the next day. up in seven hours of catch-up. The
berthing. We began our voyage seaward, escort vessel would never leave a boat
We anticipated that nothing else where we would rendezvous for heli- behind — but once a problem vessel
could compare to Royal Bermuda YC copter photos of the rally’s departure. was under way again, the escort ves-
for our fleet — and this is where we The seas were rough, but they seemed sel could accompany it back to the
wanted to be. Fortunately, our weath- to have settled down a bit from the fleet.
er forecaster — Walt Hack of New previous weeks of constant 25-knot On our first two days, we enjoyed
Jersey — confirmed that despite ini- trade winds. a good push from the Gulf Stream —
tially rough seas, conditions would On this leg of approximately 1,000
BERMUDA-BOUND — Prior to leaving Ft.
improve as we worked our way north. nautical miles, the target speed for our Lauderdale on Leg 1 of the Nordhavn Atlantic
He recommended an on-time depar- Division 2 fleet was 7 knots. At this Rally, the 18 participating crews (top) participated
in various briefings on the voyage. Because of all
ture, but routed us a bit to the north, pace, we would arrive in Bermuda on the preparation that went into this passage-mak-
to avoid the worst of the easterlies — the following Saturday. ing adventure, Leg 1 of the Nordhavn Atlantic
Rally concluded in Bermuda at Royal Bermuda
adding about 60 miles to our voyage All of the boats are capable of cruis- Yacht Club (bottom) without any major problems
before we turned more to the east and ing faster than this, but we wanted along the way.
SEA / SEPTEMBER 2004 87
+NordhavnRally 12/2/04 10:20 AM Page 88
and we made our way to the north a light and variable and the sea was bridle attached to a large “D” ring,
knot or two faster than our target almost perfectly flat. We elected to mounted on their stem slightly above
speed. If we got ahead of schedule, launch the Caribe — and we spent a the waterline. Attached to their “D”
we could always slow down — but dur- glorious day providing shuttle service ring was a nylon line — shackled
ing the early part of the voyage, we from boat to boat for any crew who below and with a shackle on top —
were happy to get a bit ahead. wished to pay social visits — and, for which would receive our tow line.
The first 48 hours of any voyage those interested, there was the oppor- This method would ensure that our
is a time of adjustment. Almost tunity to ride a surfboard or planing tow line could be easily attached by
everyone moves a little slower and is tube behind the speeding Caribe. a crewmember, that chafing gear
affected to some degree by seasick- These breathtaking rides were 500 would not be required at the bow roller
ness, particularly if the sea is rough. miles off the East Coast of the United or deck and that the towing load would
By the second day, we were on a States — in water that was miles deep. be low and on the strongest piece of
direct course for Bermuda. Conditions hardware possible.
were improving and were forecast to LENDING A HAND With director Bruce Kessler’s cam-
get even better. We received a call from the crew eras rolling, we began the process of
By midweek, the wind and seas had of Four Across, a Nordhavn 50, and approaching Four Across and throw-
died down — and we had fully adjust- learned that they had burst a water ing them a “monkey fist” knot
ed to the motion of the waves and our line and had lost some of their fresh attached to a small tag line. This, in
watch schedules. Thanks to Dr. Kevin water. They were able to fix the leak itself, took numerous tries.
Ware’s wife, Kari, our crew was well — but they soon found out that their Finally, after receiving the tag line,
fed and happy. water-maker, too, had a leak, and a the crew pulled the tow line aboard.
new part would be required to return After a lot of fiddling around, it was
LAUNCH TIME it to operation. attached and paid out — and, final-
On the third day out aboard Since Atlantic Escort had made ly, Four Across was taken under tow.
Atlantic Escort, we elected to launch provisions to tow and to transfer both We then passed them a 400-foot length
the Achilles inflatable dinghy that we water and fuel, we elected to try the of garden hose and proceeded to trans-
stowed on top of the tie rods that dis- repair during this day’s calm sea con- fer about 300 gallons of fresh water.
tribute the load of our emergency tow- ditions. The procedure involved tak- I took some great photos of the pro-
ing bit at the transom. ing the receiving vessel under tow cedure and snapped a few shots of the
For serious open-ocean towing, we using our normal towing gear. younger crewmembers waterskiing
equipped Atlantic Escort with a large We were equipped with a 400-foot past, with the towing and watering pro-
towing bit, placed well forward of our length of 1-inch nylon tow line — and cess in the foreground. After a few
rudder post (a must to maintain direc- each fleet vessel carried a single line hours of running time, our Village
tional control). The tie rods were
removable — but while installed, they
interfered with the use of the cock-
pit area.
Our 9-foot Achilles, with a 5 hp
Honda outboard, is the rig we chose
to deploy in water that was too rough
and dangerous to launch our larger
14-foot Caribe rigid inflatable boat
from the upper boat deck.
The launch went off without a hitch
— and it took a matter of seconds,
with three guys simply sliding the
inflatable off the stern. My son and
crewmember, James Leishman, along
with first mate Justin Zumwalt,
motored over to our Division 2 escort
boat Autumn Wind. There, they
picked up my other son, Eric
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Leishman, along with emergency
medical technician Mike Ronquio, for
a visit aboard Atlantic Escort.
This proved to be only the first of
many mid-ocean tender launches.
By the following day, the wind was
88 SEA / SEPTEMBER 2004
BERMUDA
+NordhavnRally 12/2/04 10:20 AM Page 89
Marine water-maker had our tanks
topped off again.
We were elated at how well our
system had worked, but we wondered
how the procedure would be in
rougher seas. We discussed and debat-
ed how we could improve our tech-
nique and wondered if we’d have to
do it again under less-than-perfect
conditions.
It had been a perfect day — and
to cap it all off, we dined on fresh dora-
do (or mahi mahi, if you prefer). yachtphotography.com
Caught earlier in the day, the fish was
expertly filleted by crewmember and
expert angler Scott Shane, marinat-
ed in apricot juice, then cooked to
perfection.
Despite our constant effort, the
fishing was not very productive on this If we could not reach each other HELPING HAND — When one of the participating
boats, Four Across, had a leak in its water-maker,
first leg. Catching just three or four by SSB radio, a satellite phone call Atlantic Escort took the boat under tow and
dorado in the 15- to 20-pound range was made five minutes before the transferred some fresh water to its crew to sus-
was a disappointment, as we trolled hour. However, most of the time, the tain them until its water-maker could be
repaired.
almost the entire way. SSB worked fine.
We would discuss positions, speed cipline, we kept it up throughout the
ROLL CALL and the status of the fleet — and we’d voyage.
Twice a day — at 08:00 hours and share any problems and unusual expe- For most of the trip, each vessel
at 20:00 hours — we conducted roll riences. Then, at the top of the hour in my division was captured on our
call. At 15 minutes before the hour, twice a day, each vessel would be Furuno NavNet radar ARP system.
the Division 1 and Division 2 fleets called on VHF radio and would be From this, I could make a note of each
would begin a single sideband (SSB) asked for their position, speed, sta- boat’s speed and course. Even a slight
radio schedule beginning with a 4 MHz tus and information about any prob- course change was instantly revealed
frequency and then a 6 MHz channel. lems that might have occurred. by the predictor line running off the
They would also report their fuel front of each target.
situation — simply the miles they esti- Each night after roll call, as dark-
mated they would be able to travel ness settled in, I’d slow Atlantic Escort
on their remaining fuel, at the speed to the rear of the fleet so I could see
and fuel burn rate of the past 24 hours. and count the stern lights ahead.
Then we’d know if we had, say, 800 By Friday morning — our fifth day
miles remaining to reach our desti- at sea — the Division 1 boats were
nation and a boat reported it could closing up from the rear, and we were
only go 900 to 1,000 miles, we might within VHF radio range. Our plotter
have a problem. was showing an arrival at Bermuda’s
Additionally, during these roll Five Fathom Hole at sunup. By mid-
calls, I would give the weather report, night, the Division 1 boats were in
which usually came in each afternoon visual range, having to slow down
from our forecaster. I received this slightly and not pass us up.
report via e-mail, and some of the In tight formation and with flags
other boats in our fleet received it, flying, our fleet of 18 boats proceed-
too (by request) — but for those that ed from Five Fathom Hole to
did not, it would be read aloud on VHF Hamilton, Bermuda — and by 10 a.m.,
radio, and any questions or comments our fleet was safely docked at Royal
that came up would be fielded at that Bermuda Yacht Club.
WHAT A TRIP — Once in Hamilton, Bermuda, time.
crewmembers from the 18 boats had the
chance to explore the city, even having the
As it turned out, the position Next month in Sea Magazine, we’ll
opportunity to do things such as watching a reporting within the division was a follow along as the Atlantic Rally fleet
parade (left) and taking a carriage ride (right bit silly, as we had each other in visu- embarks on Leg 2, from Bermuda to
top). En route to Bermuda, some crewmem-
bers participated in watersports behind an al range all the time — but, for dis- the Azores.
inflatable boat.
SEA /SEPTEMBER 2004 89You can also read
