Service Fails When We Need It Most - Tom in the World's!

Tom Ramshaw, our son, qualifies Canada for the 2020 Olympics!!

We have become spoiled with internet access since arriving in Europe.  A SIM card with a rich amount of data and some prudence allows us access to all the needed sites to stay in touch with friends, family, business and world news.  So it came as a shock after anchoring and tying lines ashore yesterday to find that we didn’t have service.  Okay, we can do without it for a day or days at a time but this was no ordinary day.

Our son, Tom Ramshaw, was sailing in the Finn World Championships in Aarhus, Denmark. And this was not an ordinary regatta.  For the first time, countries were able to qualify for the 2020 olympics.  In Tom’s fleet the top eight countries would get a position for their nation in Japan.  All the top sailors in the world were competing.  And Tom was doing incredibly well.  Last we saw he was fourth!!! So exciting.  The fleet had raced six of ten races over three days.  Then there was a day off and then a day when they all sat out on the water and waited for wind that never arrived.  We were hoping that wind would cooperate and two of the last four remaining races would be run.  The suspense was giving us butterflies.

So when we couldn’t get service we debated how best to get the results - we could use our tracking system to text our daughter for updates limited to 160 characters, we could move anchorages - I could go into why this was not a welcome thought but it is another story - or we could find a path and walk to a bar on the other side of the island.  We wanted to see the full results so we decided to tramp.  

We got ashore, and the phone dinged.  Em had texted, “Did you know that Tom is in first????”.  Holy shit!  We didn’t have enough service to text back.  Off we went at high speed, 1 km to the closest bar, albeit along a very lovely forest path that we didn’t have eyes for until the way back.

Satisfaction - a beer and the full results but after only one race of the two scheduled.  We let Em know that we needed updates for the second race.  She let us know at about 11 p.m. that Tom was second overall after the 2nd race of the day!!  Wow!

We have moved today to an anchorage with full service.  So far no results! I’m checking every hour. We’re sitting, waiting while Tom battles it out too far away.  Soooo exciting!!!

Update:  Tom now sits in 5th (in the world) going into the medal race tomorrow and has qualified Canada for the Tokyo Olymplics!  So proud of him!!  

We need to find a bar with good internet to watch the medal race.  Can’t wait!!  Sail fast, my boy!! xo

Final Update:  We found a great restaurant in Hvar, Croatia, and watched the medal race with anxious excitement.  Tom came 6th in the race which put him 5th in the overall in the World Championships. Amazing!  Fantastic! Awesome!!  We are so proud of him!