Published on: 24/10/2017 Updated on: 20/02/2025
Two premieres in one great and mythical sailing event: for the first year MAFRA is supporting the Navy 's boat at the MiniTransat 2017 and it is the first time that a private company becomes a sponsor of one of the Italian protagonists in this exciting challenge between man and open sea. The uniqueness of this regatta consists in an "extreme" nautical competition, which tests the participants in solitary.
On October 1, in the French waters of LaRochelle, 84 sailors from fifteen countries showed up on the starting line, sailing solo in a boat of only 6.50 meters, over 4,000 nautical miles across the Atlantic to the Caribbean, specifically Le Marin, Martinique. Among them, Andrea Pendibene, a Navy athlete, piloted the Pegaso ITA 883 boat with the technical support of MAFRA products.
Everything was perfectly ready for the start date, in terms of reliability, sail strength, equipment efficiency and electronics, thanks also to the contribution of MAFRA's specific cleaning and maintenance products. Maximum sailing preparation is crucial in an extreme event such as this, which puts a strain on individual athletes competing solo. They traveled not only in complete autonomy and self-sufficiency in terms of clothing supplies, galley (no refrigerator), medicines and medicaments, but they were also completely disconnected with the world: in fact, there is no cartographic gps on board, let alone other satellite systems, except for the vhf with 20-mile range.
In other words, the athletes had to refresh their memories with astronomical calculations through the use of the sextant. There is no such thing as a team here; if you mismanage your strength, you have to deal only and exclusively with yourself. Aunique adventure in the sailing scene, to be experienced mile after mile, conceived in 1977 byEnglishman Bob Salmon: the Transat 6.50 was born as a response to the financial and ultra-technological gigantism of transoceanic regattas of boats with hyperbolic costs that left little room for the human component and individual skills.
It is even said, but perhaps it is just legend, that for the first edition of the regatta Bob Salmon wanted to subject the boats to a curious test to assess endurance: a crane would lift the boat up to 4 meters above sea level and then drop it into the water; if it was unscathed after the jump, it could face even the highest waves in the Atlantic.
Enjoy some of the photos from the trip he took and stay connected with us for more news!
