Fat Face Team Rider Dee Caffari is the first woman in history to sail solo and non-stop around the World against the prevailing winds and currents. Now, she is taking on one of the toughest Round the World races, the Vendee Globe, in her attempt to become the first woman in history to sail solo, non-stop around the World in both directions!

To read more about her adventure and to find out how she is getting on visit www.fatface.com/deecaffari

6th January

Only 10,000 miles to go!

Dee is still going strong as she approaches Cape Horn where she will turn left and head back home. With only 10,000 of 27,000 miles remaining Dee is in good spirits onboard, but has had some trouble with her main sail starting to breakdown,

"Another milestone passed today as I crossed to the north of Gate number 9.

That leaves just one more gate and Cape Horn left down here then Aviva and I can hand brake turn left and head north. I also broke through the 10000 miles to go barrier which is a nice incentive.

Aviva's mainsail still holds on and we have had words today. I asked nicely for her to stay strong as there is nothing I can do on a starboard gybe, so she can only have love and attention on the other gybe. The god news is gently gently, ever so gently I shook out the third reef as that is the worst place for the sail and now feel much happier that all the damaged area is flying because that keeps all the fibres in the right place. Now I just need to stick and patch a bit more and we will be good for another few days!

My monochrome grey Southern Ocean World also broke up today to reveal a hint of blue for about an hour. I was lucky enough to be doing a sail change at the time so I didn't miss it. I had almost forgotten what a blue sky looked like!"

Dee is currently lying 9th.

2nd January

Dee celebrates the festive season by moving up into the top 10!

While we were all enjoyong our Christmases at home with friends and family, Dee was still battling it against the elements in the Southern Ocean! After passing Cape Leeuwin, Dee was able to celebrate on Christmas eve by finding some of the goodies that her shore team had hidden on the boat for her.

A delighted Dee said:

“Somebody was smiling at me for today as the sun shone, the sky was blue even the sea was blue and a steady 20 knots allowed Christmas Day to be enjoyable down here. I gybed at midnight, stacked the boat then opened my presents and prepared my freeze-dried Christmas Dinner.”

22nd December

Dee braves fearsome winds and seas in the Southern Ocean

As Christmas approaches for the Vendée Globe fleet, the pace of the race has not let up. This week the race has delivered excitement, devastation, elation and anxiety in equal measure. Now in its sixth week, the race has unfortunately seen many skippers retire due to injuries, demastings and kit failure. Dee, however, continues to push on and brave the harsh conditions of the Southern Ocean.

Earlier in the week, Dee celebrated her Open 60 Aviva’s first birthday as she prepared to face some of the worst conditions of the race so far. In fact it is no exaggeration to say that the weather conditions the boats have experienced in this edition of the race have been much worse than competitors endured in the last two Vendée Globes. Knowing that both she and Aviva must remain in good condition for the duration of this marathon, Dee is constantly trading between pushing the boat hard and exercising caution to keep Aviva in one piece.

Dee’s focus then had to shift to survival mode as fearsome conditions producing gusts of 58 knots and huge seas swept over her on Tuesday night. Dee was forced to change sail as the mountainous waves crashed over her on the foredeck!

Dee is now lying in 12th Position

12th December 2008

Dee has been making steady progress in the Vendée Globe but at 48° south she is certainly starting to feel the cold. As the fleet make their way through the passage between Heard Island and the Kergeuelen Islands, the nervous tension is heightened by the need to be constantly vigilant for the appearance of icebergs. Icebergs are just one of the many perils of the Southern Ocean that Dee and the fleet will have to tackle on their way around the globe.

Dee reported back in her diary this week:

"Boy is it cold. This south westerly air flow comes from Antarctica and it is bitterly cold. My extremities are like icicles. I have piled the layers on now and look forward to running the generator as it adds a little heat. Today was exciting as was a new food bag day. I packed my food into ten day bags and to open a new bag is always a treat, as I can't help but eat my favourites first so the last few days are always the boring food. Now I am back to treats again."

“I really don’t really want to see any ice because I saw enough last time round to last a lifetime. It is clearly marked but I don’t want go anywhere near it! It’s so hard to see anything when you are going at this speed and you can’t go on deck for any length of time because it’s so wet and cold. It’s the so called little ones – the growlers that are less than 50 metres, which I reckon are still pretty big – that are the dangerous ones but you can’t have a strategy for icebergs. You just have to be vigilant. There is no point in sitting on deck for 24 hours a day – you can’t see in the dark.”

Dee is currently lying 15th.

1st December 2008

After a week spent crashing, banging and mending, Dee was relieved to finally experience some light airs on Sunday so that she could start preparing her Open 60 yacht Aviva for entry into the Southern Ocean.

As well as ensuring her yacht is in the best possible condition to withstand the conditions down south, Dee must also make sure that she is healthy and physically prepared. The violent motion that the fleet have been experiencing over the last week has resulted in Dee spending a great deal of time kneeling down for stability, or crawling around on her knees. It is this continuous activity that has caused her left knee to become swollen.

Dr Spike Briggs is on hand to offer medial advice over the phone. Some of the strongest antibiotics in the onboard medical kit have been prescribed, coupled with a recommendation that she rest and elevate the knee as much as possible - easier said than done on a high powered sailing boat bouncing off the waves! Fortunately the weather conditions abated and yesterday she was able to rest amid relatively flat waters.

In an extract from her diary, Dee says:

‘Ideally I need to rest, elevate and ice the knee but we need to be realistic in this environment. The good thing about sailing downwind is it’s easier to live on your feet and not your knees and I had chance today in the lighter airs to rest my leg. What a good patient I am!’

For any sportsman the risk of injury is dreaded, but with safety always a top priority in solo offshore racing, all injuries have the potential to escalate rapidly and have a major impact.

‘This is the type of thing that blood poisoning comes from. If it is blood poisoning then I can’t go on because if is spreads then it’s a massive risk.’

21st November 2008

This week has been tough for Dee as she and Aviva have battled to keep up with the leading pack in their second week of racing in the Vendée Globe. After a few days up with the front runners Dee admits she went for short term gain over a long term race strategy.

The winds have been light in the Doldrums but Dee’s keeping up the pace with the leaders:

“I was expecting to have stopped by now but I’m cashing in while I can. All I have seen are a couple of small black clouds and a little rain but so far nothing to wash the deck with. It looks quite clear ahead though I’m sure it will come and get us at some point. I’m really happy with my progress. I’ve had three days of making good progress - keeping pace with the guys I’m with and closing the gap with the guys ahead. It is hard work because you are watching the position reports constantly. You have to keep pushing all the time so you don’t put off sail changes and do them later. You do them right now. The next three days until we come out the other side, you just have to keep your fingers crossed for what you have and use it where you can.”

Dee is currently lying 15th.

17th November 2008

The weather gets better

After the excitement of last week with strong winds and big seas, life onboard has begun to settle down a bit for Dee. However, light and inconsistent winds have been frustrating with many sail changes and changes in direction to keep the pace on. The fleet of solo skippers is beginning to spread out a bit more but Dee is still on the heals of the leading boats and is currently lying 15th overall.

Dee has also had the opportunity to take some time for herself and is hoping that some Fat Face luck will help her on her way:

“Taking notice of myself, I took the slow progress as an opportunity to do my weekly chores and then treat myself with a shower and hair wash. The chores were quick and the bucket of water over the head trick was wonderful. I am now sporting board shorts and a bikini top as base layer and thermals were a little over the top. It is great to feel the warmth of the sun again and my Fat Face boardies were developed in collaboration with Bryony Shaw and she won an Olympic Medal so I am hoping the luck can rub off on me as I get Aviva moving again.”

11th November 2008

Dee Caffari begins her round the world sailing adventure!

Fat Face Team Rider Dee Caffari made a fantastic start to her round the World Vendee Globe sailing race. The 30 boats were wished well by thousands of spectators who lined the shores of Les Sables D’Olonne. Dee and the other sailors have had a rough time of it since though with extremely strong winds and massive waves to contend with! Eight of the competitors have turned around and gone home due to damaged boats, but Dee has been holding a strong position amongst the fleet and is currently lying 13th.