Sailing schoolboy Mike Perham, 16, should be in Cape Town by the weekend where he is hoping to meet up with the other teenage circumnavigator, Zac Sunderland.

Here is his latest log:

‘Today’s been another interesting one, to say the least. I spent much of it sailing upwind, skirting below the high-pressure system. With a sea state coming from the perfect angle I’ve actually been able to semi-surf upwind, which is something I’ve never ever done before. Coming down a wave upwind at thirteen knots is indeed a rare experience and one I shan’t forget in a hurry.

It looks like the wind will drop off tomorrow morning before picking up again and veering round to give me a great push towards to Cape Town.

I’ve been um-ing and er-ing all day once again, wondering if I’ve got the right ballast set-up at the moment. Sometimes Totallymoney.com is totally underpowered, but as soon as the wind picks up by a mere 4knots or so, we’re bordering on the overpowered. I’ll continue to mull that one over.

In the meantime, here’s an update on my rudder problem. The main cause for concern is that there’s a little bit of movement inside the top rudder bearing. This causes the stock to move about very slightly and make some interesting noises. I’ve consulted with my shore team and we’re agreed that it’s a fairly simple job of replacing the bearing. This is something that needs to be done on land, hence my stop in Cape Town. The last thing I want to do is carry on into the Southern Ocean and have to listen to the bearing slowly wear away.”