MARCO ANNOUNCES NEW CREW MEMBER

I cannot believe it has been over three weeks since we arrived to Cape Town, time seems to have dissipated like the clouds that blow over Table Mountain when the Southeaster blows hard in Town. Repairs to the boat were finally completed just a few days ago, the food supplies replenished and the boat chec…ked over for signs of wear and breakages. Tomorrow we’ll finally set off for one of the two dreaded Southern Ocean legs, apprehension always lingers at the back of your mind but this is what we came to experience.
As previously announced I will race with a new co-skipper for this second leg, Hugo Ramón has quickly become a friend here in Cape Town, we worked together on all boat preparations which gave us a good chance to get to know each other and we are looking forwad to setting off, both first timers in the great South.
Hugo followed the classic path to pro-racing via Optimists and Lasers before, aged 18, he began specialising in solo sailing, entering and winning the 500-mile, single-handed Mare Nostrum Race in the Mediterranean. Aged 20, Ramón was the youngest sailor in the 2005 Mini Transat and, a year later, he was made Spain’s Sailor of the Year before entering the 2007 and 2009 Mini Transats, making him the only Spanish sailor with three, single-handed transatlantic races to his credit. Ramón also won the Mini Barcelona in 2008 and 2010 and in 2011 he has won some important J80 races sailing with Spain’s 1992 Olympic Finn gold medallist, José María Vander Ploeg.
Hugo gave a display of his talent during leg one when sailing with Conrad Colman aboard Cessna Citation, they took the prize for the best 24 hours run with a staggering 326 nautical miles, over a knot faster than our best run at 301 miles.