The ARC Race

The crew of Challenger 4 celebrate their arrival. Photo: WCC/Clare Pengelly

Crews and their families gather for the prize-giving in 2018. Photo WCC/Clare Pengelly

Near the start of the race. Photo: WCC/Clare Pengelly

Setting off in high hopes, to the rousing accompaniment of a Canaries band and choir, Rory and Susie McGrath (above) sailed out from Las Palmas harbour on 22 November 2015, to begin their first ARC aboard Dalliance, their Oyster 62’. With shouts of good luck from the neighbouring boats, the couple, whose previous sailing experience had not taken them beyond the English Channel and the Mediterranean, rapidly embarked on the steep learning curve of ocean sailing. This ranged from replacing the broken outhaul of the mainsail midocean to putting a dish full of chicken stew into a wildly swinging gimballed stove without throwing the muchanticipated dinner across the galley.

The greatest revelation for the couple and their crew, though, was the extraordinary diversity of ocean life. “On day six, Susie and I were up early for a watch. Over my shoulder there was a beautiful sunrise and over my right a spectacular lightning storm. It is an ocean of opposites,” says Rory. Dalliance was frequently accompanied Eyes on the prize

by pods of dolphin, vast silvery swordfish and shoals of flying fish at the bow.

With no land or other people in sight, life on the ocean was a moment for reflection. “The nights were beautiful - myriad stars with no light pollution to spoil it and just the wind blowing us onward - much as it must have done to Columbus’ ships centuries ago,” says Susie.

Though competing in the Cruising Division of the ARC, there was one prize that the Dalliance crew were eyeing - Rory wagered four bottles of wine with a rival boat as to who would finish first, and another four for the largest fish landed. After many thwarted attempts at fishing for supper, the crew caught a two-foot long electric green dorada with blue fins, but it slipped out of their grasp before it could hit the frying pan. Their rivals soon radioed to report having landed a 21kg swordfish, so that bet was lost, although fresh dorada did make it onto the dinner plates, much to the crew’s delight on day six.

On day 15, a euphoric Dalliance crew were anticipating waking up to the final stretch into Rodney Bay marina. “I was also looking forward to the solid ground, green slopes and bustling harbour of Saint Lucia as well as the prawns, crab and lobster in the Caribbean after the fresh fish and our fishing luck ran out by day 10,” said Susie.

Though their rivals crossed the finish line first, the achievement of having complete the profound challenge of sailing across the Atlantic was elation enough. Far from the technology and shortcuts of modern life, the planning, preparation, camaraderie and sheer endurance of it was joyful - to step into the unknown and then to arrive safely into harbour - an extraordinary accomplishment.

Dan and Em Bowers on board Skyelark of London

Dan Bowers is a full-time professional skipper, with over 200,000 nautical miles made under various keels, including 24 transatlantics, 2 transpacifics, multiple Caribbean circuits, several laps of the Mediterranean, and too many cross-channel trips to mention.

Dan’s wife Emily is a real water baby, there are few places that she hasn’t sailed with over 250,000 nautical miles covered! Very much at home at sea, she has sailed 26 transatlantics, crossed the pacific three times and taken part in the RORC round Britain and Ireland race - a fun challenge as skipper of an all-female crew. She has also spent many years on Global Challenge yachts, most notably sailing from the UK to Antarctica in 1999. People come for adventure

What made you decide to sign up for your first ARC? My first introduction to the ARC was back in 2000. I had just finished school and was taking a gap year. This involved doing some volunteer work for the Ocean Youth Trust and while I was there, I heard someone talking about doing a transatlantic sailing trip. This sounded like a great way to see the world and I was lucky enough to find someone willing to take responsibility for a green 18-year-old on his first big sailing adventure. We spent six months sailing from Scotland to the Caribbean on the ‘Atlantic circuit’ of which the ARC is the main event. Have you done it again? Fast forward to 2008 and my wife Em and I are back on the ARC. This was our first charter as we launched our adventure sailing business on Skyelark of London, offering pay-to-play spaces for yachties to experience ocean passages and adventure sailing trips (see skye51. com for more on this). 11 years, 10 ARCs and 2 World ARCS later, we are a familiar sight in Rodney Bay marina at the end of the ARC, and the amazing welcome and friendliness of the Saint Lucians never gets old.

What are your Saint Lucia highlights? We consider the island to be a second home as we have spent so many winters there and made great friends. We love the mountains whether it’s the Pitons, Mount Gymie or the lookout at Pigeon Island and we can often be found kiting at Cas-en-Bas, shopping at the Gros Islet fish co-op or tucking into a roti. What were the most unexpected aspects of the crossing? We have introduced over a hundred crews to sailing the Atlantic, and I think the most unexpected part of the crossing is the crew bonding. People come for the adventure, the sense of remoteness, isolation, nature and time to reflect. They expect a bit of hardship and to prove themselves on a challenge, but even so you would think throwing eight ‘strangers’ into a small boat, depriving them of sleep and life’s luxuries sounds like a plan for extreme reality TV. But the reality is shared experience and the time for simple conversations deepen those connections of like-minded people, and the surprise for many is that they form very good friendships. Our ARC crews regularly have reunions so they can reminisce about their life enhancing adventure. The sense of accomplishment as you cross the finish line, and of course the Lucian rum punch.

Are there any tips you would give to first-timers? If we have any advice for first timers it’s to get the crew right. Whether they are lifelong friends or strangers, you need to spend time together beforehand and time on a boat. Your drinking buddy or squash friend that you socialise with every week, is not necessarily someone you want to camp with for a month. Sailing experience isn’t essential – a good captain can teach that, but you can’t change personalities. For us one of the nicest aspects is the crew bonding, but it’s not so good if you get it wrong. Make time to do some research. The organisers - World Cruising Club - put an amazing amount of information into their rally handbook, as well as putting on seminars and question panels on the ground in Las Palmas and beforehand in the UK. They have seen everything before and the more you use this resource and plan ahead, the smoother and more enjoyable the crossing. This is what makes the ARC a success, and so different from doing it on your own.

Main Photo: The infinity pool at Cap Maison

The vagaries of the wind mean that the arrival of the cruisers from their 2,700 nautical mile adventure can be a little difficult to predict with any accuracy. As a result, the families of many skippers and owners spend a few days in a hotel waiting for their other halves to arrive. Of course, many of those who have crossed the Atlantic can’t wait to get on dry land and these stunning properties have plenty of appeal.

Cap Maison Cap Maison has a feel of a private hacienda – think squat whitewash buildings with tiled roofs - rather than a standard hotel. There is no formal check-in and guests greet general manager Ross Stevenson as he tours the property as if he is a close family member or friend, which effectively he is.

The property sits on a clifftop on the island’s north west coast and sits in immaculately tended tropical gardens. The garden rooms are modest but the ocean view suites have their own hot tubs or pools, some on their own roof terraces.

The Naked Fisherman, the resort’s beachside restaurant on Smuggler’s Cove, gets its name from the habit of local fishermen to go skinny-dipping here before the resort opened. There is a slim chance of seeing that now but the food is reason enough to come here. Up on the hillside, Cliff at Cap is a more formal affair under the steady head of executive chef Craig Jones

who mixes classical French training and Saint Lucian inspiration. Jones says, “I dream about food the smells, taste, textures; that is how dishes come to me.”

American visitors may recognise Cap Maison from episodes of The Bachelor. www.capmaison.com

Ladera Ladera, which means hillside in Spanish, is one of a clutch of hotels that look out onto Saint Lucia’s most famous landmarks, the Piton mountains.

The thing you notice immediately when you walk into the rooms here – and arguably the hotel’s main attraction – is that one of the walls is missing. This would be seen as a disadvantage