Sailing Magazine
By Richard Crockett
The iconic Cape to Rio race, now coming up to the 18th event spanning a period of 54 years, has been launched to the media in grand style.
Starting on 27 December this year, this classic race spans 3600 nautical miles of the South Atlantic ocean between its starting point in Cape Town and the finish in Rio de Janeiro.
The Royal Cape Yacht Club sailing team hosted a magnificent function where the Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis, spoke and where Alexforbes were announced as the headline sponsors.
More importantly though was the announcement of a separate sponsorship by Alexforbes of an all woman crew from the RCYC Sailing Academy. The young crew ranges from ages 21 to 26 and is already engaged in a comprehensive training programme, designed to develop essential teamwork, boat handling, and navigation skills in preparation for this race.
This is not the first time an all woman crew has competed in this dash across the South Atlantic, as way back in 1971 an all-woman crew competed aboard ‘Sprinter’, the smallest boat in the race, and others have done likewise since then.
One hopes that by following the third-placed RCYC Sailing Academy team aboard ‘Alexforbes Archangel’, skippered by Sibusiso Sizatu in the last race, these women aboard ‘Alexforbes Angel Wings’ will be well prepared and competitive enough to finish as well as, or better than, their male rivals.
They are being coached by Sibusiso Sizatu who has an interesting perspective of the team. “Preparing the next crew for the race is incredibly special to me. My journey in sailing has been transformative, opening doors I never imagined possible. I want to share that experience with the new generation, helping them navigate the challenges and triumphs of ocean racing. This adventure is not just about the race; it’s about building character, fostering lifelong skills and creating experiences that can change lives. I’m excited to guide them as they embark on this incredible journey.”
I do hope that the crew of ‘Alexforbes Angel Wings’ will be taken seriously and their mission embraced positively. Sadly I have already read a few negative comments about them on social media. Let’s be positive and urge them on in every step they take in this incredible journey they are committing to.
The highlight of the launch, for me anyway, was the really cool audio visual presentation made by Adrian Kuttel, the overall winner of the last race. He not only spoke exceptionally well, but also gave a very good live video report each day on what he was experiencing out there.
Now just imagine if every single yacht in the race had AV equipment aboard for the crew to make similar presentations each day? All cobbled together after the race into a lengthy video production would be awesome to say the least, and would bring life at sea into perspective for the landlubbers who always follow the race so avidly.
The BIG question though is whether there is a sponsor out there willing to put AV equipment aboard every boat for the forthcoming race?
FOLLOW THE RACE HERE: cape2riorace.com
