Over the last 48 hours we have been keeping a really close eye on the weather window which we hoped would be suitable for Charlie to launch into. We were targeting a patch of light winds offering Charlie a 48 hour period to get off the coastline of Japan and into the Kuroshio current.

However, in the last couple of days the weather models have converged on a forecast which has the weather systems moving a little faster than forecasted earlier in the week and so instead of 48 hours Charlie would have only had 24 hours to get off the coast before being pushed back by NE winds of up to 20kts which are too strong for him to row into. There is also a strong storm forecast to arrive in about a week with sustained winds up to 40kt, gusting winds of more than 50kts and peak waves exceeding 27ft. Moreover after this storm has passed there will be a reliable period of following wind providing Charlie with a great opportunity to get underway. We can't choose the weather for Charlie for the whole of the row but we can choose what he has to face in the first week or so.

Delaying removes the risk of being pushed back before making it to the current, removes the risks posed by this storm arriving in a week and gives Charlie another few days of tinker time to get everything onboard perfect before heading off. 

- Chris