I believe that my training run (white track) was close to the optimal one. 5.7 miles in 2:02 hours with 2.9 mph average speed; 10 mph wind from E-SE. The paddling accross the Guadelupe Bay to Foster Point was windy but quite smooth. I encountered some rough confused chop at the Victoria barge canal, however, all time I paddled comfortably against wind.

My race run (yellow track) was much slower: 5.8 miles, 3:45 hours with 1.6 mph average speed. Of course, the previous 250 miles of the race was the major factor affecting my performance and my perception of the conditions. However, the meteorology was somewhat different: a stronger 10-15 mph wind comming more from the south (SSE-SE) and the sea was much rougher. My plot would indicate that the meteorological conditions were similar during the entire safari with a clear diurnal cycle. Well, I am not sure how much the Seadrift station is representative for the entire bay crossing during the Safari.

This time, I didn't take a protection of the Foster Point but paddled straight across the Guadelupe bay against strong wind and waves. Probably, it was a mistake and it cost me a lot of energy. I stopped for a few minutes to rest at a small island before crossing the barge canal. The waves were much higher here, 3' or more. I wasn't sure how my boat would behave sideway to these waves, so I paddled at an angle to the wind.

I started loosing my hope that I ever reach Seadrift. I could hardly see the flagpole and people there. Finally, I decided that it was enough, I turned the boat and paddled straight to Seadrift taking waves from my right side or slightly from the stern. The boat performed very well. I didn't need to brace too much, I just leaned back and kept a low position (it happened to be consistent with my sitting comfort ...). So, at least, I made the last mile of the race in a good style in about 15 minutes.

The spray cover appeared to be reasonably tight during my bay crossing despite of the tons of water on my deck. I could remove any leakage by my foot pump. I never gathered enough water in my boat to use the electric pump.