The good news for the organisers and participants of this year's ARC had been on the cards for some time: Wanderlust is still attracting a huge number of sailors across the Atlantic. The Covid pandemic and the associated forced break, which long-distance sailors have also had to take in recent years, has not been able to change this.
The number of boats and crews that cast off yesterday with the ARC and also a fortnight ago as part of the ARC plus in Las Palmas is back at the high level of the pre-Corona years. The atmosphere among the sailors in the last few days before the joint start was also good as usual. It ranged from relaxed to excited.
Head south until the butter melts
The less good news is that the chances of a fast crossing are rather slim this year. The weather and the trade winds are not really playing ball yet. As a result, most crews will probably sail far to the south first and then turn westwards at around the Cape Verde Islands. Various lows are currently blocking the way on the northern route, which has usually been faster in recent years.
However, this did nothing to dampen yesterday's party atmosphere in the harbour of Las Palmas, which, as usual, prevailed during the departure parade of the participating boats, which lasted several hours. With a light southerly breeze of eight to ten knots, calm seas, bright sunshine and an air temperature of 28 degrees Celsius, the 156 yachts of the 38th Atlantic Rally for Cruisers gathered at the starting line at midday. They were seen off by a cheering crowd of spectators who had gathered on the piers on both sides of the harbour exit from the early hours of the morning to wave to the crews.
Then things got serious. The organising British World Cruising Club sent the boats across the line one after the other in three classes. The multihull and open divisions were the first to go at 12.30 local time. The Outremer "Piment Rouge" from France had the best timing, followed by three Excess 15s catamarans, all of which are crewed by berth charter crews from the Croatian More Sailing fleet.
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This was followed by another hot contender for the fastest passage, the Marsaudon ORC50 "Ti ana". From this multihull projectile, the "Calamity" is a second contender of the same type for the line honours.
The second group to start were the 13 boats in the IRC Racing Division. Marjolijn van Oordt's Swan 52-3 "Gaia" from the Netherlands was the first to cross the line. She was followed by the Latini 52 "Solano" and the Swan 90 "Berenice Cube".
Cruising sailors are the heart of the ARC
At 1 pm, the starting signal finally sounded for the traditionally largest field in the Cruising Division. This year's field comprised 91 boats. Despite the miles ahead of them, there was a fast start, which was won by the Farr 65r "Celeste of Solent" skippered by Svante Jacobsson. She was followed by the Hallberg-Rassy 57 "Saltair" and the Swan "Saida", the oldest boat at ARC 2023, built in 1973.
What is striking this year is the large number of multihulls: 42 catamarans and one trimaran are taking part. That is a new record. And this was also visually noticeable on the previous days. Whereas in previous years the multihulls were accommodated in a separate part of the harbour, this time the majority of them were moored on the jetties, which had always been reserved for monohull yachts.
Their sheer size alone was eye-catching and they towered many times over other boats, not only in terms of width, but also length and height. Sometimes you had to take a closer look to make out the many smaller cruising yachts that traditionally characterise the ARC among all the huge hulls.
This cruising division of monohulls is also the "heart of the ARC" according to the World Cruising Club. This year, the boats range from David Ceccarelli's Grand Soleil 34 "Lady Eleonora", which is only 10.1 metres long, to the 32-metre-long "Irelanda" from Alloy Yachts. In between, boats of all sizes and with years of construction from 1973 to 2023.
Around 900 sailors from 39 nations are taking part
They are crewed by around 900 sailors from 39 countries, aged between one and almost 90 years. Among them are many families, charter crews, old friends and even some hitchhikers at sea. The oldest sailor at the ARC, 89-year-old Joff Hutchinson, said: "I've been sailing for 82 years and have always wanted to cross the Atlantic. Now that my sons are retired, there's no better time."
The launch was preceded by two weeks of blue water seminars, socialising and safety inspections. The jetties were buzzing and humming with activity. The boats were equipped and provisioned right up to the last minute.
Before the start of ARC 2023: lots of energy in the air
"You can feel the energy in the air," said a crew member of the X-Yachts X4.6 "Ipanema". And as always, numerous family members, friends, supporters and locals lined the breakwaters of the marina yesterday, cheering, waving and shedding a few tears as the boats made their way to the starting line in front of Las Palmas harbour.
As they sailed towards the south of the island after the start, the wind picked up and shifted to the east. As the trade winds are currently being disrupted by lows in the north, the classic "sail south until the butter melts" route will be the most popular. However, this makes it unlikely that the ARC record of 8 days and 6 hours, set by George David on "Rambler 88" (USA) in 2016, will be beaten.
The destination: the green mountains of Saint Lucia
As soon as the Canary Islands are behind the sailors and the Cape Verde Islands have been passed, the green mountains of Saint Lucia should be the next land to come into view. The Pigeon Island National Park provides a fascinating tropical backdrop for the finish line. The majority of the fleet should cross it between 7 and 12 December. The grand finale of the ARC will then take place on 16 December in the IGY Rodney Bay Marina.
Many crews will spend time on the island afterwards. The Director of the Saint Lucia Tourism Authority, Thomas Leonce, already promoted his country in Las Palmas: "Saint Lucia has something for everyone: Sulphur springs, the Piton Mountains, our fantastic beaches and, of course, great parties." Others will set off to explore the neighbouring islands, to take part in the Caribbean regattas or to sail around the world with the World ARC starting from Saint Lucia in January.
World Cruising Club Managing Director, Paul Tetlow, said: "We are proud to play a small part in realising the dreams of so many sailors."
The ARC start day in the video summary:
The start in Re-Live:
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