Sarah Mercedes - From Graham

Our epic first journey in Sarah Mercedes is complete. It is hard to believe that it was less than three months ago that we left a positively autumnal Finland and now we are here in the warm Caribbean sunshine, nine stops in seven countries and 6500 miles later.It has been the most fantastic experience. Challenging and enjoyable in equal measure. Needless to say it has been the people who have made the trip so memorable. A special thanks goes to Martin and Sam who did an excellent job on the trip from Finland to the Canaries making sure that both the boat and crew were ready for the transatlantic journey that was to follow. Our friends at Nautor have also been very supportive in sorting out the teething problems that come with any new boat.As for the crew that sailed across the Atlantic,. read more...

Sarah Mercedes - From Trusted Pete

Heard from the foredeck:Common phrases from the (war) front: You've just gone off watch but....All hands on deck!!!Can it be fixed?Try pulling the blue rope the other way.. What if you "just" pull harder on the blue rope.. Ocean racing attracts a certain kind of person. Six people being confined in less than 50ft of permanently moving, often violently moving, wet living and cooking quarters, with no more than 6 hours absolute maximum sleep in the equivalent comfort of sleeping in a tumble dryer drum. Not many people would see that as a hobby or an even remotely enjoyable past-time to choose.So you step on an ARC boat knowing you're already amongst kindred spirits. What a team! No matter how bad things got, how little sleep, how mentally drained, our humour saved the day in many dark. read more...

Sarah Mercedes - From The Haff

Madness.The idea of putting oneself into a (relatively) tiny vessel and embarking on a journey across an expanse of water that has separated continents for millennia might seem like an act of unnecessary recklessness.Yet it is there.And like mountains that need to be climbed or depths that need to be dived, through this we must also forge a path.Just because.The experience did not disappoint.Despite the potential for clashes of personality when cramming people, most of whom are unknown to each other, into a space smaller than a Bocce court, the crew worked in synchronicity (most of the time) to get the job done. Not just done, but exceedingly well done.Thanks to the man behind the curtain (the all knowing and all powerful wizard of clouds) our course blazed a path that few dared. read more...

Sarah Mercedes - From Stephen

We will forever cherish the memories and immortal moments of SM ARC21. We quickly became a team melded by an unbreakable sense of humour - for which the tough conditions and breakages were no match. Our competence ratcheted with every mile for a slick mast saving response to a catastrophic rig failure at the last. This and a podium finish gave us much to be proud of. But the real prize came in richer currencies: comerarderie adventure, friendship and fun.My thanks to Graham, Sarah, Sam, The Haff, Trusty Pete and Rob for a treasure trove of memories which include but far exceed - spaghetti night/is that a squirrel/roll up the jib…. read more...

Sarah Mercedes - Day 21

4 days after arrival, and the final blog is finally constructed. Limping across the finish line gave an unparalleled feling of relief. To round off the whole journey, I have collected some quite poetic pieces from the rest of the crew to give more than just one perspective of our epic adventure.. read more...