Atlantic Rally for Cruisers or ARC Race

The ARC race

The ARC race is one of the biggest trans-ocean yacht races in the world.  Starting this year in November from Las Palmas Gran Canaria and using the North-East trade winds, over 200 yachts will travel the 2700 nautical mile route to finish in St Lucia about 3 weeks later.

 Dates:

25 November 2012

24 November 2013

The Race

The race is open to anyone that has had a minimum of 500nm cruising experience.   Also the Skipper an one other crew member need to have undertaken a minimum level of training and the boat needs to have certain safety and communication equipment on board.  The World Cruising Club organise a series of seminars and training courses to help prepare the entrants for the rally.  It also helps if you are slightly unhinged!  It is an annual event and very popular.

Arc Race Entries

Entries are taken from October in the year before the race with the deadline for entries being 1st April in the year of the race.  However, it is advised to book as soon as possible.  Register with the ARC Race website to receive notification when the entry list opens.

ARC Race

To get a flavour of the race, Lovesail was lucky enough to post a daily diary from the crew of Casamara, a Discovery 55 which  took part in the race.  To read the entries just see here or look under Sailing and Boating Events and then Racing at the top of this page.

Here is a excerpt: Day 15 – Civilization as we know it and the skipper is chilled; so this blog, my first, is from Charlie – the new boy on the block. Until I arrived in Las Palmas I had not met any of the crew – it was a leap of faith and one that I have no regrets. Day 15, week 2 and my god what an experience it has all been. We have just eaten the most fabulous Sunday Lunch thanks to skipper Simon, with more than a little help from our talented Julian. Roast lamb (laced with knobs of garlic), roast potatoes, cauliflower, leeks in a white sauce and gravy; and this was all consumed with hardly a movement from Casamara. She was bowling along at 7.5 knots on the most delicious broad reach, stable, powerful and purposeful. For we are up against it. The weather is changing. For 14 days we have enjoyed the trade winds which, to quote the book, in November are “almost guaranteed to blow at 15 – 20 knots”‘ … until now. We are 450 nm from St Lucia but the winds are forecast to turn light and fluky 

For more information visit the World Cruising Club website where you can also follow the fleet as they cross the Atlantic.

Image Rogue Nublo, Gran Canaria courtesy of maccanti’s Photostream