It is the 10th day of the Vendée Globe Race and Alex Thomson on HUGO BOSS is the first to cross the Equator. He is in the lead by 70 nautical miles. At the back of the pack is Fabrice Amedeo, 1760 miles behind the leader.
Yesterday, Jérémie Beyou on CHARAL, restarted the race from France after completing major repairs. He is 2839 miles behind. It will be a long lonely trip for him.
Only 21,000 nautical miles to go for the leader.
Just saying…
Seven days ago 33 high tech sailboats began the Vendée Globe Around the World Sailing Race. Already the lead boats are off the coast of Africa sailing in good winds and warm weather. Englishman Alex Thomson on HUGO BOSS is in the lead making speeds of over 20 knots. He sailed over 380 nautical miles in 24 hours. Chasing him in second place is Frenchman Jean Le Cam on YES WE CAM.
Late in the week the boats made it through a pretty serious storm. The Japanese boat tore its mainsail and the skipper is trying to make repairs to it now. With warmer weather the sailors are getting some sun, enjoying a good meal, showering, and making repairs to the gear as needed. With the wind behind them live is easier. One skipper reported that he slept for seven hours last night. That’s the beauty of a good autopilot.
Jérémie Beyou on CHARAL is back in Les Sables d’Olonne surveying the serious damage to his boat and decoding if it can be fixed fast enough to rejoin the race. He is a week behind the fleet so it’s unlikely he will restart.
Here is an interesting article about a husband and wife who are competing in this race.
One week of sailing. One week of adventure. Only 22,400 nautical miles to go.
Just saying…
White Spot have been hyping their new BRISKET BURGER and last week I had a chance to try one. I love brisket and I love burgers. What could be the downside?
Well, the price for starters. $18.99 for a burger and some fries is a little steep even if it’s great. The Brisket Burger was good but not any better than a White Spot Legendary. My advice. Give it a pass. If you really want brisket try the Texas BBQ truck on the Coombs Highway or Smokin George’s BBQ joint on Mostar Road in Nanaimo.
Just saying…
And they are off! On Sunday, 33 skippers including 6 women started the 2020 Vendée Globe AROUND THE WORLD sailing race. Singlehanded. No stops allowed. 24,000 nautical miles. The boats left the French Coastal town of Les Sables d’Olonne under light winds. By late afternoon the lead boat, CHARAL with skipper Jeremie Beyou, was making 27 knots followed by Charlie Dalin on APIVIA in second with Briton Alex Thomson gradually winding up the potent HUGO BOSS in third.
Quite a start for a race expected to take 2 1/2 months. Already one boat had to return to port for rigging repair while another crossed the start line early and received a 5 hour penalty.
These are very high tech high speed 60 foot racing sleds capable of running at 30 knots for several hours. It will be an amazing test of equipment and skippers.
You can follow the race on the Vendée Globe App or at
https://www.sail-world.com/news/
Just saying.
On Monday, November 8, the 2020 edition of the VENDEE GLOBE Around The World sailing race begins from the French town of Les Sables d’Olonne. This race is the Holy Grail of Solo Sailors. 33 boats are registered for the race that will sail down the Atlantic, around the Cape of Good Hope, across the Southern Ocean passing south of Australia, rounding Cape Horn, then climbing up the Atlantic back to France. The course is 40,000 kilometres and will take the fastest boats about 75 days to complete.
The current record dates back to 2016-17 and is held by the Breton Armel Le Céac’h, who completed the 24,000 nautical miles (over 44,400 kilometres) in 74 days, 3 hours, 35 minutes and 46 seconds, after an interminable battle with the Brit Alex Thomson, who secured the second spot.
Most of the skippers are French but there are four Brits, one Italian, one Swiss, one Japanese, one German, one Fin, and one Spaniard. 6 of the sailors are women
The boats are high tech sailing machines, 60 feet long, weighing 9 tones, and capable of maintaining 30 Knot speeds for extended periods of time.
Single handed! No Stops! This race is Epic. If you are interested in following the race you can download the VENDEE GLOBE 2020 App from the App Store for free. I will post regular updates on this Blog which interested parties may enjoy. Here is one of the boats.
https://www.vendeeglobe.org/en
Our good friend Paul is a Fish & Chips aficionado. In fact, a few summers ago in our boating days he rated all the boat accessible Fish & Chip joints around the Gulf Islands. He considered quality of the fish, the batter, the chips, tarter sauce and cole slaw. He knows good Fish & Chips, so when he recommended The SHIP AND SHORE RESTAURANT in Deep Bay, I knew we had to try it.
Today was a beautiful warm sunny September day, perfect for the 35 minute drive from FRENCH CREEK to DEEP BAY on the old Island Highway.
We had made a reservation and were promptly seated on the patio overlooking the marina. We didn’t need to peruse the menu as we knew what to order. One piece Halibut & Chips for my favourite girl and two piece Cod & Chips for me. Was it good? Absolutely. Very crispy batter, good fries and tasty coleslaw.
The service was very efficient and very friendly too.
If you love Fish & Chips, you must try the Ship & Shore. Check out their menu here.
Reservations are recommended. Call 250.757.8399
Just saying…
Who doesn’t like a great hamburger? I love burgers and there are lots of choices in the PARKSVILLE Qualicum Beach area. Of course most Restaurants and Pubs have them as do the big chain Burger Joints. Some are good, some not so good.
Today, finally I tried PAPA’S BURGERS in PARKSVILLE. Went to their drive thru window and ordered a Deluxe Cheeseburger. $9. The young lady said, park out back and they did.
Cooked from scratch apparently and it showed. Perfectly cooked beef, with Cheese, Lettuce, Tomato, Red onion, & Pickle all contained within a very nice bun. It was absolutely delicious. Like a home made burger.
Papa’s does 11 kinds of burgers including Vegan (yikes). They also serve up Home Cut Fries, Hot Dogs, Chicken Strips, and Fish & Chips, both Halibut and Cod. If you are thirsty a variety of soft drinks are offered along with MILK SHAKES!
Craving a great Burger? You must give PaPa’s a try. You will find them at 487 E. Island Highway in PARKSVILLE just across the road from Tim Horton’s. Open Tuesday thru Saturday! They have a few tables so you can eat in or
drive thru or take out.
You can order ahead at 250-586-3743. Check out the menu here:
https://papasburgersparksville.com
Great Burgers!
Just saying…
As the world reopens as the pandemic subsides, the Pub Lunch is back. The Shady Rest Pub in Qualicum Beach has been open for a couple of weeks and seems to be thriving. We are still waiting for the Lantzville Pub, which is undergoing renovations. Might be open by July 20.
Today I met my old friend, Beast, at the Rocking Horse Pub on Northwest Bay Road. Our server told us they had been very busy since reopening. As per the new rules, the tables are well spaced to ensure correct social distancing and the garden patio is open too.
They seem to be offering the full menu and always have daily specials. One of today’s was a Ham & Cheese on Rye served with Salad, Fries, or soup. We opted for the special and it was a good choice. Really good sandwich.
Sunday nights is Traditional ROAST BEEF Dinner and Friday nights they serve up PRIME RIB dinner. Call for a reservation for those nights.
If you’ve not been to the Rocking Horse, please give it a try. Traditional British Pub atmosphere in a country setting. Lots of free parking. They do a Wednesday night Open Mike Music night weekly and often have stand up Comedy. Check the website, rockinghorsepub.ca
Just Saying…
What a great time of year for foodies. We are so fortunate to have an abundance of fresh fruit and vegetables in our stores, markets & farms
Among our favourites are sweet Onions. There are still Vidalia onions from Georgia in the stores. Bought some this morning. And soon there should WALLA WALLA SWEETS from Washington. There are fresh Bing cherries from the Okanagan and today I picked up the first RAINIER cherries. They were developed in 1952 at Washington State University and are a cross between Bings and Van varieties. So sweet and so delicious.
We have been enjoying Corn on the cob. Corn is from California and it’s pretty good but it won’t be long and much better local corn from Silver Meadows Farm will be available. Can’t wait. Grilled right on the BBQ is how we like it. Seems to bring out the sweetness.
And tomatoes are starting to have some flavour too. The multi coloured grape tomatoes are great on a skewer on the BBQ or sautéd in a touch of oil in a pan. So good.
By the way the Beef hamburger patties at Silver Meadows farm are excellent and we tried their own Bacon this week. Worth a trip to Errington for that pork deliciousness.
Qualicum Foods had a big supply of Lamb Shanks last week so I picked up a couple and will turn them into OSSO BUCCO soon. Will serve it with creamy polenta, a food I’ve never cooked before. Should be good.
Great food to take our minds of the virus. Happy cooking!
Just saying…
Since it was such a beautiful sunny day I decided to take my favourite girl for a drive. Roof open, we cruised through PARKSVILLE, down to Schooner Cove, through Lantzville ending up at NESVOG’s Meats to pick up some of their great MAUI RIBS. perfect for the BBQ this weekend. Haven’t tried them? Very close to the famous Azeka’s ribs in Maui.
Heading home on 19A, we were feeling a little peckish so wheeled into the WHITE SPOT at Woodgrove Centre. They are open for dining in and are well prepared. It appeared that one out of every three tables/booths are in service to ensure social distancing. The staff are all wearing clear plastic face masks. No vinegar or Ketchup bottles, no pepper and salt shakers. Other wise it’s pretty normal.The dining room, bar and patio are all open.
The food is the same White Spot fare I have been enjoying frequently since 1952 when I was treated at the South Granville location in Vancouver. I opted for a a Monty Mushroom Burger while my favourite girl ordered Fish & Chips. She loved it but it was two pieces of fish so yours truly commandeered piece #2. Tasty as always. It was our first White Spot food in 2020. Dining out is back, but it’s still a little different.
Lots of other restaurants are open. Cuckoos in Coombs, Ricki’s in PARKSVILLE, Black Bird Schnitzel House in Qualicum. On June 28 the Rocking Horse Pub is opening and the Lantzville Pub is shooting for July 1.
Just saying…
MURPH..Just Saying. 