Central Lechera Asturiana, Merediz and Palacio's entry for the Sailing Tour of Spain
Juan Merediz and Fran Palacio
© María Muiña
The IMOCA Open 60 “Central Lechera Asturiana” will be Juan Merediz and Fran Palacio's yacht for the Sailing Tour of Spain 2010. With a base set up in Sanxenxo (Pontevedra), “Central Lechera Asturiana” will set off at the start of June for the port of Hondarribia (Guipuzkoa), the start port of the Sailing Tour of Spain. The 1,730 mile (3,204 km) course with stopovers in Santander, Gijón, Sanxenxo, Calpe, Palma de Mallorca and Barcelona will kick off on 12th June.
The stopover in the city of Gijón, forecasted for 14th June will be particularly special for the project from the region of Asturias, a homecoming for “Central Lechera Asturiana”, which means 'Asturian Central Dairy'.
At least five crew
For the first edition of the Sailing Tour of Spain sailed on IMOCA Open 60 boats, “Central Lechera Asturiana” will compete with a minimum of five crew onboard.
The skippers will be Gijón's Juan Merediz and Fran Palacio who'll be sailing their first IMOCA Open 60 competition. Juan Merediz (Gijón, 1969) has experience in the national cruising and dinghy circuits. In ocean sailing, the Asturian has completed a Mini-Transat in 1997 and gained a second place in the rookie rankings of the Solitaire du Figaro. He also has five Iberian Tours and a victory in the Atlantic Grand Prix, both overall and in his class, under his belt.
Fran Palacio (Gijón, 1983) started off in dinghy sailing to become the runner-up in the European Youth Snipe Championships in 2001. From there he moved up the classes, gaining two world silver medals in the ORC 670 category with “Turismo de Madrid” as well as taking part in the International GP42 Circuit in 2008 with the same entry.
The core team of “Central Lechera Asturiana” for the Sailing Tour of Spain” will also include Galicia's Juan Pinacho (Vigo, 1977) and Pilar Casares (A Coruña, 1975), whilst the remaining crew members will vary from leg to leg.
Central Lechera Asturiana
Central Lechera Asturiana is an IMOCA Open 60 yacht, designed at Owen Clarke Design and built at New Zealand's Southern Ocean Marine shipyard and launched in 2003.
The Spanish entry from Asturias will compete with the ESP-23 sail number and the yacht's track record already boasts a win in the Transat 2004, bronze in the Vendée Globe 2005 and fourth place in the Barcelona World Race 2007-2008.
