IMMINENT ARRIVALS
22nd January 2003

01:00 local time: The wind has died. Tim kent reports that he can see the fire and appreciates the beacon, but says that it was not necessary. He has had enough of soot! He is 10 miles from the finish doing 10 knots. He should finish within the hour.

22:00 local time: The wind is howling and rain is imminent. Tim Kent is 34 miles from the finish sailing at 10 knots. His ETA is 01:00 local time. Kent is being guided by a serious fire on Mount Maunganui, the scenic mount that marks the entrance to Tauranga harbor. Fire fighters have the blaze under control. Images are in the gallery. Refresh your browser for the latest ETA.

Original story: There is good wind in the forecast for the three yachts sailing down the coast to the finish in Tauranga. The New Zealand met service is saying 20-25 knots from the northwest for the night which will mean that Tim Kent on Everest Horizontal will come rocketing in. The latest ETA is for Tim to cross the finish line around midnight local time. It has not all been smooth sailing in the last 24 hours as indicated in his log received earlier today. "Last night was my chance to park up for eight hours - an average of about two and a half knots for eight hours," he wrote. "It did provide a slightly easier opportunity for napping, but we are on the coast and shipping is an issue, so I did not get a lot of sleep. I'm a bit groggy as I wait for the sun to show up and encourage me to stay awake. We are about 130 miles from the finish at the moment. The wind is fluky; a hour ago we were reaching with the Code Zero and right now we are almost hard on the wind with the genoa. Soon we will be passing the Hauraki Gulf where the Louis Vuitton Cup was raced and the America's Cup will soon be contested. Then just a bit further south to the Bay Of Plenty and Tauranga. I'm looking forward to the finish, but the transitions are a bit...odd. I have not laid eyes on another human being since ten days before Christmas and I am going to be overrun with people as soon as I hit the shore. It's fun and overwhelming, cold beer and laughs, then all you want is a shower and a bed. In spite of taking a couple of cockpit baths, I am dirty everywhere from all this boat dirt. It'll take more than one shower to clean up this sailor."

Derek Hatfield should also be enjoying the fast finish and he sent an email and image earlier in the day. "Yesterday was one of the toughest sailing days that I have had in a long time," he wrote. "The high-pressure system slammed the door shut just as I arrived at the North Island and I spent a frustrating day attempting to sail downwind in 3-4 knots of breeze, which was constantly changing directions. The Windex at the top of the mast is gone and the wind instrument at the top of the mast picked yesterday to finally pack it in. Without any wind instruments at all, it's very difficult to optimize the correct angles to be sailing. The frustration and stress level increased as the day went on. I got more tired and Kojiro got closer. I finally rounded North Cape after a full day of light air downwind sailing. I think I only traveled 28 miles in that time. The high continues today as I sail down the coast, doing about 5 knots. Tim has done a great job getting around North Cape and is well on his way down to the finish. I am trying everything in the book to make up some of the lost time."

Stay tuned – we will give you better updates as both Tim and Derek get closer and will bring you photos from their finish as soon as they cross the line.

--- Brian Hancock great.cirlce@verizon.net

Source: Around Alone Official Site