In the Brest to Las Palmas de Gran Canaria race held last August by the Sail Training Association I was skipper and navigator of the 7-ton yawl Artica II of the Italian Navy (which incidentally obtained the best corrected time of all three classes). From the navigational point of view the race offered no particular difficulty because although long—1400 miles—we were on a reach most of the time, a condition that makes the navigator's job much easier. It might in any case be interesting to those who are keen on ocean racing, to hear about some of the dodges (certainly not new to them) used on board Artica II:

(a) A gnomon pin (about two inches long) had been welded in the centre of the compass rose: when the Sun was low and the boat sufficiently steady the shadow of this needle enabled us to have very good compass checks.