In a matter of 16 days the Croatian four-man crew aboard the speed yacht Mowgli made its way across the finish line, at the IGY Rodney Bay Marina, on Tuesday – as the first winner in the inaugural ARC January.
On arrival, at the IGY Rodney Bay, they were heartily greeted by a local contingent of tourism officials and other agency and corporate partners.
World Cruising Club’s (WCC) representative, Andrew Pickersgill spoke on the concept of this inaugural sailing event, describing it as, “a rally designed to accommodate those with the desire to cross the 3,000 nautical miles from the Canaries to the Caribbean with the more settled January winds.”
Speaking at Tuesday’s welcome function, IGY Rodney Bay Marina, Sean Devaux, said they were pleased to welcome the first crew of yachters to local shores and look forward to providing them and the other participants with a warm and courteous reception during their stay here.
“Having worked with WCC and everybody else, the stakeholders, ministry of tourism, and ministry of health, …and what we can put together and what we have put on for the ARC, I knew that the ARC January will be just as successful considering that they’ve already opened up registration for 2023, with boats signing up,” declared Devaux.
He asserted that there is no doubting the competence of the IGY Rodney Bay Marina to accommodate the yachters, and this “is testament to what we continue to do here.”
Director of the St Lucia Tourism Authority [SLTA], Thomas Leonce, delivered a lively banter as he invited the sailors to patronize the St Lucian hospitality, explore the scenery and make their time ashore a memorable and enjoyable one.
Leonce described the 16-day Atlantic crossing by the Mowgli yachters as a very challenging feat to be accomplished and a remarkable achievement.
He acknowledged Saint Lucia’s continued partnership with WCC. “I recognize the World Cruising Club for choosing St Lucia for the past three decades …and I hope that ARC January will be with us for the next three decades plus, as has, ARC November and other ARC events held here,” said Leonce.
Tourism Minister Dr. Ernest Hilaire noted that Saint Lucia has had a long and illustrious history with the WCC in hosting global sailing events, annually.
“Our long history with the ARC …is testimony to the relationship that we’ve built with the organizers,” he said. “And it is a partnership where we understand each other, we work well with each other and the ARC has served St Lucia very well.”
Hilaire was optimistic that, “the ARC January, I’m sure will serve St Lucia even better.” He acknowledged the “fascinating achievement” of the sailors and urged the visitors to take in the sights and scenery across the island “and… you will find in St Lucia a seduction that you will want to come back over and over again.”
Looking ahead towards the progression of this latest event, he said: “We really hope that the event will grow and be just as big as the ARC itself.”
Referring to the economic challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, he said, “these are not easy times …due to the challenges that we face in the world and to continue with the successes that we’ve had both in December and January, says a lot about the commitment of the organizers to make this a successful event.”
Slaven Fischr skipper of the Mowgli told the Voice Sports that though it was an adventurous journey sometimes fraught with danger on the high seas, they managed to navigate safely to shore. He took on the journey in the company of his son and two friends who all share a passion for sailing.
Along the journey, the closest competitor to the Mowgli, a catamaran, underwent some technical difficulties and was forced to pull out of the race, leaving the Mowgli crew with a wide distance advantage over the remaining boats.
Fischr, 65, recalls that he always had a burning desire to embark on the Atlantic crossing from the age of six years since his father was an avid sailor who took the young Slaven on boating trips with him.
“It has been six decades that I have been longing to do the crossing, but you have priorities … about seven years ago when my son quit sailing with me, I thought that I would have to find a “sexier” boat,” he chuckled.
He disclosed that the Mowgli has a rich history and its past owners have included some well-known personalities.
Fischr said that the crew worked in sync with each other and allowed each person to take on their respective responsibilities and roles to bring about this success.
“Mowgli put us together, so we are very close working for about three and a half years,” he said.
The Croatian skipper describes the Mowgli as a “fantastic boat, it’s a first-generation class yachting, it’s very stiff and it’s not as competitive as the latest generation of class sporting …but still it’s fast, our average speed was 9.3 all-time and our top speed was around 80 knots.”