The Canada Ocean Racing team led by founder and skipper Scott Shawyer, and the team’s mentor, British offshore sailor Alex Thomson, have been in Lanzarote over the past two weeks preparing their IMOCA 60 ahead of the Royal Ocean Racing Club Transatlantic Race 2023.Â
The team will race the 3000-mile transatlantic race double-handed; joining Canadian Scott Shawyer is British sailor Alan Roberts.
The pair will cross the monohull start line off Lanzarote on Sunday the 8 January as the race starts at 09:10 EST (14:10 GMT). The first leg of the course will see the duo weave through the Canary Islands, down the coast of Lanzarote to a turning mark before turning right and leaving the island of Fuerteventura to port and they will then begin to cross the Atlantic.
The weather predicted for the race shows established trade winds and is set to make the sprint to the finish line in Grenada downwind and quick, with current routings set to see the first monohulls finishing within 8 days just a few hours short of the course record.
Canada Ocean Racing prepare for the Transatlantic Race 2023 – photo © Canada Ocean Racing
Skipper and team founder, Scott Shawyer, had the following to say ahead of the start. “The first race for us here at Canada Ocean Racing is a big milestone in our journey. Taking on the Royal Ocean Racing Club Transatlantic Race gives us a great starting benchmark. This will be my longest double-handed race ever. It feels like it has been a long time coming to the boat is ready I’m focused and ready for the job in hand.”
“For this race we have Alan Roberts and I onboard as co-skippers. Alan is a great sailor and brings a wealth of experience with him. We had the chance to do some offshore training together and we get on very well, which I think is important during these double-handed races. For the race we will also be joined by onboard reporter Richard Mardens, who will be sending back pictures and video to bring you all along on our journey.”
During the race Scott and Alan will be sending back daily videos and messages on social media to bring fans as close to the action as possible. To follow the team, head to the RORC Transatlantic Race tracker rorctransatlantic.rorc.org/tracking where the tracker updates every two hours as well as showing exclusive stories from onboard during the race.
Background
Scott Shawyer has trekked to the North Pole raising over $500,000 for various charities, and as an accomplished downhill ski racer is a member of the Canadian Masters Alpine Team.
Alex Thomson (the fastest Brit to sail solo, unassisted, non-stop around the world in the Vendée Globe) founded a company which specialises in the management of high-performance racing teams and yachts and now manages the Canada Ocean Racing campaign.
Canada Ocean Racing prepare for the Transatlantic Race 2023 – photo © Canada Ocean Racing
by Canada Ocean Racing
