Alex Pella out to put new around Spain sailing challenge on the sporting map
by Vuelta Espana 25 Sep 2023 11:17 BST
Renowned Spanish ocean racer Alex Pella and his crew aboard the MaxiCat Victoria have set out to launch the Vuelta a España Sailing Record, a new annual challenge trophy course around the Iberian peninsula racing between Bilbao and Barcelona.
- Vuelta a España set to become an annual challenge
- Spanish circumnavigation only the first step towards the round the world Elcano Oceanic Trophy project
- MaxiCat Victoria ready to set new reference time
Pella's team had been on standby in the northeastern port city of Bilbao with the 33.5m multihull awaiting the right weather before embarking on the Vuelta a España, a 1,500-nautical mile race against time.
The attempt is also the first step for Pella and his crew as they prepare for another new challenge, the round-the-world Elcano Oceanic Trophy in 2025 that celebrates the completion of the first ever circumnavigation of the Earth by the Spanish captain Juan Sebastian Elcano just over 500 years ago in 1522.
The green light for the Vuelta a España attempt came on Saturday afternoon when the impressive multihull yacht got off to a flying start under the iconic Bizkaia suspension bridge heading west through the Bay of Biscay towards Cape Finisterre at 18.24 in the evening.
"The Vuelta a España combines the harshness of the Bay of Biscay, the mythical passage of Finisterre, the coast of Portugal, the complicated Strait of Gibraltar and the perpetually unpredictable Mediterranean Sea in a 1,500nm course that will challenge any sailor," said Pella. "Plus the start and finish lines in the ports of Bilbao or Barcelona are truly spectacular."
Alongside Pella aboard Victoria — named after Elcano's historic ship — are French sailing legend Lalou Roucayrol, and the young Spanish sailors Alejandro Cantero and Alberto Muñoz.
Roucayrol said: "It is an honour to be part of this project. Spain has produced some great seafarers, both now and back in the 1500s, and Alex Pella is one of the best. This challenge promises to become a classic!"
The recently announced Vuelta a España Trophy challenge can be sailed in either direction between the timing lines at the wind farm in the port of Bilbao and the W 'Sail' hotel in Barcelona, and in any qualifying yacht, with a perpetual annual trophy awarded to the fastest challenger in any calendar year.
The current record was set by the López-Doriga brothers in 2006 aboard the yacht Arte y Naturaleza — Art and Nature — in a time of 12 days and 13 hours, a target time that Pella aspires to halve aboard Victoria,formerly Club Med and Maiden 2.
Created by OpenSea, with the close engagement of the Real Club Náutico de Barcelona and the Real Club Marítimo del Abra - Real Sporting Club in Bilbao, the Vuelta a España Trophy aims to highlight the challenge that sailing around the Iberian Peninsula presents, and to set a new record for international crews to take on.
"It is a Trophy with enormous potential, with a view to becoming a benchmark event for international teams and especially for the French fleet of large ocean-going multihulls," added Pella, who is an honorary member of the RCNB, his destination on this inaugural voyage.
"At the Real Club Náutico de Barcelona we are very excited about Alex's challenge to beat the non-stop round Spain record and set a new absolute record between Bilbao and Barcelona," said Jordi Puig of the Real Club Náutico de Barcelona.
"The experience of Alex and his team, together with a legendary and updated round the world yacht, will set a benchmark for future challenges on this route. A long route, not exempt of difficulties, starting and finishing in two important cities of the Spanish coast, represented by two clubs united by a great history and nautical tradition."
The sentiment was echoed at the other end of the route by Manu Sendagorta, President of the Real Club Marítimo del Abra - Real Sporting Club: "It is fantastic to launch this new Ocean Trophy with Alex Pella and the Real Club Náutico de Barcelona. In such a special year for us, celebrating our 125th Anniversary, to be the starting point for the challenge of such a prestigious sailor as Alex Pella with the MaxiCat Victoria is enormously satisfying. We wish him great success in his challenges, both in the circumnavigation of the peninsula and in his preparation for the Elcano Oceanic Trophy in 2025."
The Vuelta a España Trophy itself — which is likely to come with a cash prize from a sponsor — has been designed and produced by the renowned Basque artist Aitor Ruiz de Egino. The 14kgs piece, made of cast aluminium, represents a sailboat with two letters B meeting — Bilbao and Barcelona — and will be kept by the club that has been the finishing line of the best time in each year.
Pella and Victoria will also be looking at new record attempts set to be announced in 2024 before the Elcano Oceanic Trophy voyage in early 2025.
Follow the progress on the tracker