2014 ATLANTIC ODYSSEY: A VERY NICE FINALE

We’ve said it time and again: a rally is not a race! Especially when, like the Atlantic Odyssey, it was created by Jimmy Cornell with the emphasis on conviviality.

However, for this third edition, 35 boats started from Lanzarote, in the Canaries, heading for Martinique - 2750 miles for the sailors from the 17 different nationalities represented to cover. Note that nearly half of the boats (15) were family crews with children, which didn’t stop them giving it their all.

At the finish, this atypical rally’s friendly spirit was once again demonstrated, as the first two boats to complete the crossing, Mahe 3 and The Larrikin, decided to cross the finish line together. Mahe 3, the Italian German Frers 53 belonging to Francesco Scuderi, was the first of the monohulls, next to the Australian The Larrikin, Gordon and Louise Coates’ Fountaine Pajot Hélia 44 catamaran, the first multihull to finish this Odyssey.

Eighteen days after the start from Lanzarote, the crew members seemed to be in good shape, and received a warm welcome in Martinique.

As in the 2013 edition, three drifting buoys were released in the Atlantic, to automatically send weather and oceanographic data for the scientific project carried out in partnership with UNESCO-Ioc.