Getting overtaken
Just completed a 50Nm sail with from Vigo to Porto with winds directly behind us. After trying to make progress with the main and spinnaker, we decided we would make more direct progress to our destination, albeit slower, by dropping the main sail.
With light 10kt breezes we had an 5-6kt easy sail, accompanied by dolphins who came to visit and play around the bow. We had previously encounteres Saorise, a Hanse 455 sailed by an Irish-German family, and they soon showed up on our AIS. They were four miles behind us, but were almost 1kt faster. Eventually we could see them with their secret weapon, a Blue Water Runner sail, essentially two spinnakers that can be flown goose-winged. With twice our sail area, for once we were not disappointed to be passed!