Celebrating 40 Years of the ARC
In 2025, the Atlantic Rally for Cruisers will host its 40th edition. Boats will depart from Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, bound for St. Lucia in the Caribbean.
It’s projected that when the 2025 rally concludes in St. Lucia, more than 8,000 boats and 40,000 sailors will have sailed the Atlantic with the support of the ARC.
To celebrate this achievement, there are discounts available now for all boat entries smaller than 40 feet and for any boats or skippers who participated in the inaugural rally in 1986. In addition, a portion of every entry fee will be donated to the newly formed World Cruising Positive Impact Fund.
“Forty years is a landmark anniversary” Paul Tetlow, World Cruising Club managing director, stated in a press release. “Supporting local organizations on our route has always been a part of the rally, from the ARC Forest in Gran Canaria to supporting local sailing in St. Lucia, and our new Positive Impact Fund will enable us to reach more charities and communities in the countries we visit.”
Sailors who prefer to contribute hands-on donations of time can plant trees in the mountains above Las Palmas, working with Fundacion Foresta. So far, 3,770 trees have been planted in what has become known as the “ARC Forest,” helping to capture carbon and improve rainfall retention.
Sailor Jimmy Cornell devised the ARC four decades ago to be a fun event for true cruising enthusiasts. The rally has always been intended to increase safety and enhance participants’ confidence on board, as well.
The first rally, in November 1986, attracted 209 yachts from 24 countries. Nobody could have foreseen just how much the event would grow throughout the years. Today, late November is known as “ARC season” in Las Palmas—and a sister event, ARC+, has been added from Las Palmas to Mindelo in Cape Verde and then on to Grenada.
To date, 7,656 yachts have crossed the Atlantic with the ARC and ARC+, sailing a combined total of more than 22 million nautical miles. The course record is eight days, six hours, 29 minutes and 15 seconds, set by George David’s Rambler 88 in 2016.
Have any boats already entered this autumn’s rally? Oh, yes. More than 160 boats are entered for ARC 2024, while ARC+ 2024 has 103 entries. ARC 2024 boats range in size from a Hallberg Rassy 352 to a Wally Yachts 83.
Where to learn more: click over to worldcruising.com
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