All aboard for the largest transocean sailing event in the world!

The build-up to this year’s Atlantic Rally for Cruisers (ARC), organised by the World Cruising Club, is reaching fever pitch as the starting date of Sunday, November 23, draws nearer.

Since the birth of this great sailing occasion 22 years ago, thousands of cruising enthusiasts have thrilled to the challenge of crossing the Atlantic from Las Palmas, on Gran Canaria to Rodney Bay, on St Lucia, one of the most beautiful islands in the West Indies.

A total of 225 yachts will take part in this year’s 2,700-mile journey on the northeast trade wind route, enjoying a nautical adventure that lasts between two and three weeks. As Andrew Bishop, director of the World Cruising Club says: “The ARC is special - and for many cruising sailors it is the must-do event on their sailing calendar. For others, it provides the inspiration they need to help them achieve their ambitions to set off on long-distance cruising.”

It all began in 1986 when world sailor Jimmy Cornell set out to get the annual trek of yachts across the Atlantic collected into one group sailing together in company. The ARC is now the holder of the Guinness Book Of Records title of the world’s largest transocean event of sailing yachts ever to sail the Atlantic in company. The record was set in 1999 when 238 yachts arrived in St. Lucia from the Canaries.

In the inaugural crossing, a fleet of 200 boats crossed together for a landfall in Barbados, the original Caribbean destination. This initial number was followed in 1987 by a much smaller fleet but the event’s popularity boomed and it soon became clear that Barbados could not cope with the arrival and management of such large numbers of yachts and crew.

So it was switched to St Lucia, which had recently seen the development of new marina facilities in Rodney Bay, was downwind of Barbados and had already received scores of yachts from the ARC fleets, who continued after their crossing to sail among the islands of the Caribbean.

The ARC is open to cruising monohulls with a minimum length of 27ft to 85ft and cruising catamarans from 27ft to 60 ft. The competitive side of the event is controlled by the Racing Division, under the auspices of the Royal Ocean Racing Club.

Conceived as a friendly race for cruising yachts to make the Atlantic crossing both safer and more enjoyable, crews must carry a range of safety equipment including a life raft, emergency radio beacon and VHF radio.