New Mark Set For Third Year In a Row.
IT’S a new record for VO65 1’s all male team on board “Brunel” the first yacht to cross the finish line in the 2015 Atlantic Rally for Cruisers. It took Team Brunel 8 days 7 hours 39 minutes and 30 seconds to make the voyage from Gran Canaria to St. Lucia..
Captain GerdjanPoortmanwho spoke to members of the media present upon arrival at the Island Global Yachting Rodney Bay Marina, said: “It was absolutely fantastic! We just came back with this boat sailing around the world and started in Lazaro. We pulled out the big sails and we started screaming down the ways. We haven’t stopped since we saw St. Lucia this afternoon. It’s been full speed; it’s been a fantastic experience. Of course we’re used to sailing like this, but we had four professionals and 10 amateur crew with us, all very fanatic people that helped our team.”
In terms of the record set his response was: “Oh, it’s great! It’s great! It’s a race boat and I know ARC is supposed to be a race for touring boats. And you have to have the right conditions. It was challenging, it was a tough record to beat.
“For us as sailors the weather was great; we always had big, nice surfing waves, nice angles; so we were great. But we had to put life jackets on, hook ourselves to the decks, and be careful not to get washed over the deck, it was quite extreme”.
Minister for Tourism, Lorne Theophilus on Tuesday morning officially welcomed ‘Brunel’ to St. Lucia, the first boat to cross the finish line. The 30th edition of the transatlantic for cruisers which started from Las Palmas de Gran Caria on Sunday November 22 has yet again seen a new record set for the third consecutive year.
In addressing the gathering present for the brief ceremony, Theophilus said, “It is my distinct pleasure to welcome you on behalf of the government and more so the people of Saint Lucia to what was a warm Saint Lucia when you got in but, based upon the activities that will be here during the week will become a very hot Saint Lucia within a rather short space of time”.
About the ARC, Theophilus said: “Some 26 years a bold decision was made to move from what was a good destination to what is the best destination for the completion of the ARC. And this partnership has continued for 26 years and we see no reason why this partnership should not continue. It is not just the support you get from the government of St. Lucia. You can see the corporate sponsors who are here present and who continue to support this event over the past 26 years. They have continued to show they have the faith and confidence in this event and the love for this partnership. During the course of this week, we will see a much wider embrace by the people of Saint Lucia who enjoy this activity which has become a major calendar event for the government and the people of Saint Lucia”.
