This Thursday, March 30, 2017, MAPFRE - Spanish team engaged in the Volvo Ocean Race 2017-2018 - was training about seven nautical miles southwest of the island of Ons, Spain, near their main base. The VO 65 was sailing in about 25 knots of wind in four-metre-high waves when the mast broke below the first spreader bar.
There were no injuries and the team and boat were able to make their way back to the Sanxenxo base on their own. The broken mast is the same as the one used in the last Volvo Ocean Race in 2014-2015.
"There was a collision, then the rigging began to fall to starboard." said Pablo Arrarte, the supervisory captain of MAPFRE who was sailing as skipper of the vessel during this test period. "We were sailing comfortably on reaching with waves going in the same direction. And at one point, the mast broke without us knowing why. We'll have to analyze the data and the damaged parts in order to draw a conclusion." he added.
After checking that there was no collateral damage elsewhere on the boat, it took two hours of intense work to secure the boat and recover the broken parts of the mast and sails.
The team's emergency protocol was activated immediately and for safety reasons, Salvamento Marítimo [Maritime Rescue] was informed. They monitored the VO 65 and were informed that the crew had been able to secure the vessel and was returning to the base on their own.
For the past 36 hours, the MAPFRE crew and shore crew as well as the members of the Volvo Ocean Race have been analysing the reasons for the dismasting. This Sunday 2nd April, they will set off for Lisbon to begin repairs at the shipyard. They hope to be able to resume training on April 15th.
