Hulu Girl is a race boat, designed and built for maximum speed and efficiency in the down wind run from California to Hawaii. Her 52 foot hull is slender, narrow at the beam, allowing downwind speeds above 25 knots. She will carry as many as 15 sails when racing and the entire bow, a full third of the boat, is a dedicated sail and gear locker. The rest of the space below deck is sparse with navigation table, small kitchen, and two narrow birthes either side of the mast. The stern of the boat has a birth both Port and Starboard, that are each half equipment stoage and enough space along the hull for a single sleeping pad.

The round the clock watch schedule for the six of us, two hours on and three hours off, and two crew allways on at any one time, creates a continuous rotation of bodies and bunks with the four bunks on board. Six sets of foul weather gear, deck boots and life vests all dangle from hooks in the companion way leading to the cockpit. The large Pacific swells, strong winds and our Northern tack, close to both wind and waves, washes Hula Girld decks constantly. With all hatches sealed tight, and warm southetn Pacific temperatures as we begin our journey, below deck is always hot and humid from damp bodies and gear. 

Crew are an interesting mix of experience, age and temperament all packed in close quarters. We each rely on different methods to awake from our short and often disrupted sleep. We arrive on deck to relieve each other and then descend to any available bed. 

Hula Girl is the constant, swift and responsive making just under two hundred miles per day in whatever wind, wave and squals the Pacific throw at her. We are here for the ride, adjusting sails and bearing to maximize speed and heading to San Diego. 

Two days out of O’ahu seas have built and squalls, rain, high wind and wave batter boat and crew continuously. Full foul weather gear are required on deck and protect from rain and bow spray on every watch. While at the helm we each work to surf the backside of each wave and minimize the distance the bow drops into each trough. On deck this requires constant work on Hula Girls four foot wheel, below deck the bow slams and hull vibrates with each and every wave crest and trough and this becomes the constant drumbeat of the ocean and boat as we continue our journey North to the Pacific High and our turn east.