Why Rally?

This is one of those life events that as a sailor you don't want to miss; I had never done an offshore trip of this magnitude until 2007. Just after dawn on November 13th we sighted Tortola ... the first land in 9 days. After I patted Beckoning's bow thanking her for giving us a safe ride, I turned and looked aft at my crew. We had done it!!!! We had prepared for and successfully sailed across 1500 miles of open ocean and arrived safely at our destination. Christopher Columbus has nothing on us...I now know how he felt when sighting land.

Jim Wohlleber, Beckoning

Participants in our rallies, join us for many reasons. Often, the Caribbean 1500 is a "must do" event and the achievement of a sailing ambition. Within the fleet, there are those skippers and crew members who say that they are 'doing the 1500' in order to pit themselves against whatever elements are thrown at them. They are tackling what is, for many, a life-changing experience and expect to come out of it safer, stronger, better people and with new and lifelong friendships forged.

When we ask our event participants why they choose to join a rally, they tell us:

• We got enormous support from the people we met. You meet a lot of people. You end up getting to know each other much more quickly than you would in the normal course of events. When you do something like this, when your lives could literally depend on each other, then the bond is different.

• Having experienced crew from the Volunteer Crew Registry on board was probably the best decision we made about this trip. We had two old friends with us too, but the experienced crew offered support where our friends were not able to do so.

• Sailing, in general, is a huge leveler and brings many people together who under normal circumstances would never have met or become friends. And, the rally, with its nightly social events, creates a huge sense of camaraderie that I have rarely witnessed in other parts of my life.

• At sea, we had support from the other boats. We had a problem on board that we discussed in one of the SSB chat hours. In response, one boat emailed us after the crew had a brain storming session and came up with suggestions.  Another called on the Sat phone to check on us. Yet another told us via the SSB that they planned to stay close to us for the remainder of the journey.

• The rally organizers were very organized and freely gave of their time and knowledge. The inspectors were very helpful and helped us understand what was really important to add and fix before we left the dock. The briefings and weather updates were to-the-point and exactly what we needed to know.

• There were so many experts available to help us get ready --- both experienced passage-makers who were part of the rally with us  and professional riggers, sail makers, electronics people ---- all were right there on the dock and ready to lend a hand.
• Our friends and family at home loved to go on the web site and follow our progress by watching the positions that were sent by satellite transponder from each boat six times a day.
• We liked the competition and thought the Awards Ceremony was great! Everyone got a plaque.  The racers were recognized based on how they placed in their division.  The cruisers were congratulated for their successful passage completion. And the best fisherman was honored.
• The rally costs something, but you really get your money’s worth.  In addition to what you get for just signing up, you also get sponsor freebees and discounts on dockage, hotels, equipment, and other stuff.  The Port Supply pricing from West Marine was particularly helpful. There is even a discount if you have signed up for the rally and want to go to one of the seminars earlier in the year.