We had been sailing for 9 hours when Eric decided that we needed to put a tack in to get us around a headland that was about 5 miles in front of us. He started the engine to help a bit and then had a bit of trouble getting the foresail in (it was a roller foresail and a halyard had got caught in the sail, making it impossible to furl completely.) I went up front to help (by holding the halyard out of the way) and we got the job done.
At this point Eric said to me that there was a problem - I thought he said that the rudder was broken - which would have been a teency-weency problem. However, he actually said that some rubber had gone. The connecting hose of the sea-water cooling system had perished and broken in two. We had no engine.
Now, on its own, on a sailing boat with favourable winds, the engine isn't the most important thing. However, if the wind changes, or you want to maneuver in port, or charge the batteries or anything else goes wrong - it is kind of critical. We instantly agreed to make for the nearest port - which was about four miles due downwind of us - Puerto Cortes.
The natives were getting more than restless.
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