Feeling proud!!

We've spent the last few days testing sails and masts trying to decide on a suit for the Games. It's been pretty exciting to have a Union Jack flying in front of the boat ( a first for both of us). Its been very light but sailable and we seem to be making progress.
Some of the other nations are organising a mini regatta starting tomorrow for the 49ers. I think we might go and join in, see how we're matching up.

Little Miss Pipedream

Having spent the last few days working hard to get her ready for her premier launch, we rode down to the club in torrential rain. Not the sort of conditions we would have liked to launch her.
Anyway sure enough by the time we were ready to push off the clouds parted and the rain stopped. As most of you know we always name our boats after girls in songs and so with a can of TsingTsao Beer we named her 'Little Miss Pipedream' (A song by the Wombats).
The breeze held up for the duration of our sail and she seemed to be pretty good. Big thanks to Simon Hiscocks for helping prepare her back in the UK.
We now have a week of practise in her to make sure she is the one but things look promising.

First days in China

Hi folks,
Just got to China yesterday. We're here for two weeks training with our training partners John Pink and Rick Peacock. The days prior to our arrival have been pretty wet or so the rest of the team’s training out here have told us. It sounds like we have got pretty lucky so far as although the wind has been light its stayed dry and been about as comfortable as it gets here!
For the first few days our time will mainly be spent working on the new boat preparing her for her premier launch. We've been re-doing the slot gaskets on the hull and rudder stock so we're crossing fingers that they go off and finish well.
As many of you might have heard there is a major problem with seaweed over here. On the way from the airport we saw that the Chinese have closed off a lane on the highway so the weed lorries can get through. When we got to the coast the operation we can see is just massive! There are fishing boats as far as the eye can see (which isn't very far admittedly given the visibility!) all hauling nets pulling out the weed. This is then being brought ashore and taken away in the lorries. They also have the army involved moving the stuff by hand. (See pic).
We got on the water today and it was pretty good. The weed wasn't too big an issue, just a few calculated swerves needed to avoid the worst of it and the wind was around 8kts.
Hopefully launch the new boat in a couple of days given good fortune and wind.