I watched the storm fade about midday yesterday, and started checking all the weather sites, grab files, etc., and they all agreed that the winds and seas would be dying down in the evening, and by about 3am the wind would be 10 knots from the east- a nice beam reach. So I used the last bit of daylight to depart Salvador, and clear its busy shipping lanes and nearby reefs, and headed south.
As expected, the seas were still lumpy, but the winds were only 15, and things seemed to get better as time passed. I got those beam reaching winds before midnight, along with a bright half moon sparkling across the water, and it was lovely.
Then everything changed. The weather became variable , or changeable or what the heck now? Are you kidding me? , although that may not be the correct technical term. The wind started changing direction by 100 degrees every 15 minutes, and jumped from 10 knots to 30 knots without warning. And back again. And again. It made for kind of a long night, with not a moment to rest. And my good flashlight died (and was buried at sea), and then about 2:30am (of course) the jib car failed. Somehow the metal cheeks opened up enough to let the roller and pin out- but amazingly everything landed on deck, and I was able to retrieve them. It was far too heavy duty for me to repair aboard, but I was able to jury rig the wheel onto a loop, and shackle that to the car on the track.
This morning has been a bit more stable, but I am still seeing 15 knots SE, not 10 knots E, although I am making progress with it anyway. The updated weather says the better stuff is head of me. Yeah, sure, it is always just around the next corner.
I am happy to report warm sunshine, blue water, and no meteorite attacks. Happy Labor Day!
14.21S 38.53W 3545nm gone, 1760nm to go. 8am 9/5