The Rambler 88 soared into the IGY Rodney Bay Marina on Monday afternoon at record speed crossing the finish line eight days, six hours, twenty nine minutes and fifteen seconds after leaving Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain.
It is the first in the two hundred and fifty strong fleet to make the twenty seven hundred nautical mile trans-Atlantic trek. What makes the victory even more remarkable is that the Rambler 88 has beat out the contenders in the Arc plus who left Las Palma’s well before the ARC.
A small contingent of media and officials from the Saint Lucia Tourist Board sailed out of the IGY Rodney Bay Marina to catch the dramatic moment and welcome the eighteen member Rambler 88 crew to St Lucia.
Last year’s record which stood at eight days, seven hours, thirty eight minutes and forty five seconds was broken by one hour, nine minutes and thirty seconds. The second yacht to finish in the ARC is expected to reach St Lucia on Tuesday at 1pm.