It was a race against the clock for the Spirit of Bermuda’s B watch. Awoken at 23:40 on Friday, May 9th, they climbed into their foul weather gear, grabbed their cups of coffee and safety harnesses and reported for their final watch during the first leg of the Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge. They had over 40 nautical miles to tick off so that they could cross the finish line on their watch.
The wind was blowing from the northeast and the Spirit had been moving along at about 9.5 knots at 210°. They knew that they needed to get another five percent of hull speed out of the Spirit in order to accomplish their goal. Upon adjusting the trim of the outer jib and the main sail, the Spirit’s speed surged a bit.
Taking turns at bow watch, the team was accompanied by a clear sky, full moon and porpoises dancing in the bow wake. At 29 nautical miles out, they spotted the flashing light of the Roque Bermeo lighthouse off the starboard bow. Anticipation and excitement grew. The Spirit powered through the waves and started to overtake the low-lying clouds ahead of her.
At 0300 Vershon Simmons, one of the Spirit’s best helmsmen, took the helm. The breeze was on and Simmons, who has logged thousands of miles aboard the Spirit of Bermuda, did is best to keep her performing to her targets. As the B watch’s witching hour came to a close and the finish line grew closer, Tenerife’s mountainous coastline could be distinguished from under the clouds. Hands were called on deck and all celebrated as Simmons steered The Spirit of Bermuda across the finish line at 0357.
When asked what it felt like to be a Bermudian steering the Spirit of Bermuda across the finish line in the first leg of the Tall Ships Atlantic Challenge 2009, the 16 year old said, “AWESOME.”
After crossing the finish line, Captain Jack Morton instructed the crew to strike the outer jib and the main sail and the Spirit headed for the cover of Roque Bermejo at the northeast tip of Tenerife.
The Spirit of Bermuda’s Crew: Captain Jack Morton, Johnnie O’Keefe, Colin Kinsella, Michael Byron, Matt Slover, Michael Scott, Daniel Keenan, Ruth Lynch-O’Kelly, Nova Ewers, Lynn Fitzpatrick, Denzel Todd, Warren ‘Shakir’ Foggo, Robbie Edwards, David Goulbourne, Cam Joseph, Vershon Simmons, Yannick Beauregard, Lawson Williams, Liz Chang, Jan-Michael Robinson, Mickey Berkeley.