Atlantic Rally for Cruisers - the parties have begun

5:20 AM Fri 20 Nov 2009 GMT

'Flying high for 2009' .

When you put 1,100 excited sailors together, adrenaline running high as they are just about to cross the Atlantic, you're bound to get some hilarity.

But when the organisers of the rally, because that's what it is, put on non-stop parties for two weeks prior, it only encourages them!

'I know what they are doing,' said one giggling novice-sailor participant about the organisers of the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC) while she balanced yet another glass of champagne in her hand, 'they are trying to make us forget what we are about to DO !'

Among the 1100 sailors taking part in this year's ARC Rally are 31 children, the youngest of which will celebrate his first birthday en route. The yachts come in all sizes and the skippers in all ages. The largest yacht is 34 metres, the smallest just 8.67metres. The oldest skipper is an Argentinian, at 83 years, and the youngest is a Pole, at 24 years.

So with a very typical festival atmosphere, the majority of the ARC fleet is now gathered in Las Palmas in the Canary Islands for the annual rally, and for what promises to be a spectacular start on Sunday November 22nd.

The marina is packed to the gills and is bustling with activity and colour as over 200 yachts display their courtesy and national flags. The skippers and crews are make their final preparations with last-minute rigging and equipment checks being done and the pontoons are full to bursting with boxes of provisions.

ARC hilarity - .. .

But it's not all parties...

After the official opening ceremony last Sunday, which included the flag ceremony with sailors from 32 nations marching with their national flags, practical seminars and workshops have taken over as the norm for the crews during the day. These have included 'Sea Safety Day' with helicopter, liferaft and flare demonstrations.

ARC Parade - .. .

It's only after the serious daytime preparations are finished that there's much fun to be had with nightly happy hours, crew suppers and parties to attend! A special effort is made every year for the 'party of the week' - a fancy dress party - and the display of creativity for costumes is often astounding.

Weather predictions are good...for the start

With a predicted Force 3-4 north easterly breeze, it should be a picture-perfect start. Watched by many spectators, ashore and afloat, the yachts taking part in the Racing Divisions under the auspices of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's Racing, will set off at 1250, closely followed by the bulk of the fleet as the gun is fired from the deck of the Port Authority committee boat Medes.

The ARC's very own meterologist, Chris Tibbs, is hedging his bets as to whether the yachts are likely to have a fast or slow crossing this year: 'We are expecting Force 3-4 north easterly conditions, mostly sunny with moderate trade winds predicted for the first few days. There is likely to be a fairly large acceleration zone as the yachts get down to the south of Gran Canaria, but the weather patterns in the Atlantic are not very well established yet, so it is difficult to say, at this stage, whether this will be a fast or a slow crossing.'

For the very first time, some of the yachts in the ARC will carry Yellowbrick satellite tracking devices, providing automatic position reports uploading to the Event website every six hours via the Iridium Network.

The passage of around 2,700nm is expected to take most yachts 18-21 days before they reach Rodney Bay Marina on the island St Lucia in the Caribbean.

by Sail-World Cruising