KEY POINTS:
"We have run out of stories," moans Craig Monk.
"We need new material. We might have to start rotating the crew if this goes on much longer," the BMW Oracle Racing grinder and sailing manager said.
After three days of no racing in Valencia, life is becoming a tad boring for those on shore and on board.
After heading out to their designated race course, the 11 teams usually set up awnings to protect themselves from the sun and settle in for the long wait ... a wait which for each of the past three days has lasted five hours.
"Everybody deals with this waiting in different ways," said Oracle navigator Peter Isler. "Mostly the old sea stories come out. Yesterday, we spent a lot of time talking about classic offshore races, like the Sydney to Hobart."
Stretched out on sailbags down in the hull to escape the sun, New Zealander Phil Jameson and several other crew members talked about round-the-world yacht racing.
They also discussed the non-payment of crew fines - "punishments" for offences such as wearing clothes from rival teams, not wearing bicycle helmets to and from work, being late for the chase boat and so on.
"The fines range from one euro to a million euro, depending on the offence," said Jameson. "But we are having a problem with non-payment. The bad debts are listed on the board in the crew room. We have considered imposing fines for [non-payment] ... Maybe we will have to engage a debt-collection agency."
Oracle operations manager Laurent Esquier said the weather was a great leveller. "You must take it in your stride. If you are a sailor, you have seen it all before."
The grinders need to maintain their food intake so they keep a food box on board and eat.
For the first two days, Oracle at least had the diversion of models German Tatjana Patitz and Spaniard Laura Ponte on board as "18th man" guests.
"The grinders don't pay much attention to that," quipped Monk. "We might miss out on the food."
On the Team New Zealand boat, strategist Ray Davies said many jokes had been told and, as on the Oracle boat, past round-the-world exploits relived.
"A couple of characters on board, Matthew Mason and Barry McKay, have some good old stories from the past and they keep us entertained."
