Day 0 Position 28:70.72N 015:25.49W Preparations in Las Palmas Marina
Gwenhyfar's Travels
Peter
Mon 25 Nov 2019 13:06
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The crew are now preparing Gwenhyfar for her Atlantic
passage. Trips to the supermarket- trips to the chandlery- safety
checks and rig checks kept us all very busy for several previous days, but
now the final day was approaching.
Last night we had our departing meal of fresh fish at a
local and traditional Canary Islands restaurant in the old town - washed
down with local white wine. This morning we had slightly foggy heads! (Something
to do with the quantity of wine?) At 11 a.m. we slipped our lines and
motored out of the harbour. Local brass bands and loud hooters and crowds of
waving spectators made the occasion very special for us all.
We were all pleased to finally let our lines go and head
out to the start line of the ARC - Racing division. The start was
organised by the Spanish Navy and they blew their Maroon gun to signal the start
of our race at 12.15pm. We positioned Gwenhyfar to start on a
starboard tack (nice and conservatively). Once we had cleared the line and found
a clear track we gybed and hoisted the heavy spinnaker and the mizzen. Several
press boats liked the look of Gwenhyfar and we had lots of photographs taken.
Everyone was in high spirits as our speed gradually built and we raced south at
10 knots. It was sunny and breezy a perfect start!
Gwenhyfar
Out
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