We’re proud to announce that Balance Catamarans is a founding partner of the Blue Water Partnership, a new initiative from the well-known and respected World Cruising Club. We announced the news at the Cannes Yachting Festival, on the deck of one of our catamarans at sunset. Despite the way too cool setting, the announcement was serious business.
Why?
Because we build catamarans designed for all types of adventures including serious offshore cruising. At this writing, more than 100 Balance catamarans are sailing around the globe. Stop and take a moment to think about what that means. It is glorious. Nature surrounds you with all its passion, excitement, volatility, calm, and wonder when you are sailing.
Offshore sailors write and talk with us about the adventures they have had and the friends they have made along the way from multiple cultures. Joining a rally of like-minded sailors expands your horizons too, both culturally, socially, and intellectually as the wonders of nature are witnessed through the eyes of others and the gift is the sharing with newfound friends.
But this partnership allows Balance Catamaran sailors to not only join these rallies with the full knowledge that there is support along the way – for every step really, including preparation – and that can make the decision to join a lot easier and clearer for many offshore sailors. But also, to help new sailors prepare for the next adventure whether it’s a rally or a crossing after taking ownership of their new Balance.
That is why we did this – to offer a path to all our sailors to adventure (and hopefully fun and friends!) that is well structured, organized and supported. That provides peace of mind. A huge benefit for Balance sailors seeking to connect with other sailors to gain from their experience and pointers. The Balance community offers many resources, of course, but now that world has grown a bit bigger with the new connection with Blue Water sailors. Sailors on all types of craft. Hailing from ports around the world are part of this community of like-minded adventurers.
Support Start to Finish
The Blue Water Partnership brings the World Cruising Club together with the builders of blue water-ready yachts. The goal is simple: better-prepared owners and a better experience at every stage of boat ownership and with every adventure.
That support starts early. It offers support deciding between models, support understanding how to fit out a new build, then carries through to reaching the start line of a big adventure, whether that is a World Cruising Club rally or a long-distance voyage of your own.
"What we'd like to do through the program is help boat owners get better prepared for that next sailing adventure," said Paul Tetlow, Managing Director, World Cruising Club.
And when they are ready to sail, there is more choice in how and where with this partnership.
And on the water
The World Cruising Club runs rallies across the Atlantic in both directions, including the ARC and ARC+. Its World ARC is a full circumnavigation of around 26,000 nautical miles over a 15- or 27-month period, heading west through the Panama Canal and on around the world. Sailors can also join for part of the route, for example sailing as far as Australia, or picking it up in South Africa and returning to the Caribbean.
Over distances like that, keeping a boat maintained and its equipment working is critial. This is where the partnership adds hands-on support. If a Balance owner runs into a problem on a rally, there is a direct line between World Cruising Club’s rally control team, the owner and our team at Balance, so issues can be sorted out quickly.
In practice, that means:
- Support for every leg. A support network stays in place for the whole event, working to have a fix ready by the time the boat reaches its next port.
- People ready in port. Someone on the ground can talk to the local yard in advance, so the work is understood before the boat arrives.
- Parts and logistics. World Cruising Club knows its routes well and can advise us on the best ways to get parts and materials to rally stops, from shipping options to flights.
"It's a huge value to our ownership group and any participant in the World ARC or any of the ARC events, because you have that logistical support that reduces a lot of anxiety if something were to go wrong," explains Patrick Roscoe, COO of Balance.
Look at it this way: Accessing easier solutions to the inevitable challenges along the way means more time to enjoy the far-flung places these rallies visit.
Sailing together
The partnership is about community as much as logistics. Balance owners are already finding each other and grouping up for longer passages certainly, but the Blue Water Partnership gives those groups a way to take part together in even larger, more far flung events.
"To be able to sail to the Med together and come have a beautiful evening in Cannes is part of this wonderful global sailing experience we all love so much," said Roscoe. "So now you have a choice to do it with old friends and new.”
First up: Pressure Drop and the ARC
The partnership gets its first trial run soon. In mid December, World Cruising Club opens its rally office in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria, for ARC+. This traditional ARC route begins a few weeks later by sailing directly across the Atlantic to the Caribbean.
Pressure Drop, a Balance 526 will be on the start line in Las Palmas.
"It's a great way to celebrate this announcement," added Roscoe. "She will be participating in this first leg with you guys from Las Palmas, so we're all super excited."
We’re looking forward to a big year ahead with the World Cruising Club. For our owners dreaming of an ocean crossing or a lap of the planet, there is now one more reason to go, and more support behind them when they do.
