Pilar Pasanau takes the start of the VI Gran Prix del Atlántico
Pilar Pasanau
© Juan Luis Moreno
Five days of delay for the start due to a storm in the area, but the fleet has finally set off today from Puerto Sherry, in the Southern Spanish region of Cadiz and are en route to Santo Domingo, passing Marina Rubicon on the Spanish island of Lanzarote. On board Iberdac-GAES Solidaria, Pilar Pasanau is the only solo female sailor in this regatta. A spectacular start with some 18 knots of NE breeze.
On this Thursday morning at 10:30 local time in Puerto Sherry, Spain, the start signal was given by race organisers for the VI Gran Prix del Atlántico. This was finally possible, after a five day delay, thanks to the fact that the violent storm that had been battering the area of Cadiz has retreated, allowing the fleet to set off with reasonably safe sailing conditions.
The first solo transatlantic regatta for Pilar Pasanau
Barcelona’s Pilar Pasanau took the start of the Atlantic Grand Prix this morning aboard her Sun Fast 36 Iberdac- GAES Solidaria. Following a tough transit from Barcelona to Cadiz, Pilar gave her final thoughts before the race start: “After 11 days sailing from Barcelona to Cadiz, stopping off at each port between depressions and the tricky headwinds, I managed to reach Puerto Sherry. I’ve really maximised these five days of postponement to carry out repairs from the difficult journey from Barcelona to Cadiz. Now Iberdac- GAES Solidaria is race-ready. I’ve really concentrated hard on the boat over the last few days and studied the forecasts to formulate some tactics, as well as arranging everything in the boat interior, so that it’s all to hand when I need it”.
Pilar made an excellent and speedy start, despite the hangover of swell left from the storm of previous days. In the first leg of the race Iberdac- GAES Solidaria positioned herself among the top entries.
Tough course to the Dominican Republic
3,800 miles separate the fleet at Puerto Sherry form the Marina Sansouci in Santo Domingo, with a passage through the Marina Rubicon in Lanzarote, where the yachts must pass a mark.
Weather conditions indicate that Iberdac-GAES Solidaria will be able to reap the benefit of northerly winds for the first few days racing, meaning a speedy passage to the Canaries of maybe four to five days.
