The Optimum prototype, piloted by Mateo Le Calvic And Arthur Mérose, was the absolute winner of the first stage of the Palma-Melilla-Palma regatta. In second place, in the production boat category, came the Red Hot Mini Pepper, a team formed by the Italians Nicolas Gamenara And Giacomo Nicchittafollowed closely by the Twelve Aetolies, of Victor Le Roy And Paul Antonie Jacopy.
The competition, organized by the Real Club Náutico de Palma and the Real Club Marítimo de Melilla, is reserved for boats in the Mini 6.50 class. The fleet left Palma last Saturday, and the route has been marked by a mix of favorable winds and calm areas. This circumstance caused the so-called accordion effect, where the most advanced ships were temporarily overtaken by those lagging behind when wind pressure decreased at certain points along the route.
The voyage left the island of Cabrera on the starboard side and the islet of Alborán on the port side, with a strict ban on entering Algerian territorial waters. The regatta, which covers a total of 1,000 miles, will resume next Saturday, November 16, with the return to Palma.
Optimum, leader in the prototype category, completed the 500 miles of this first stage in three days, ten hours and ten minutes. For its part, the Red Hot Mini Pepper took almost three additional hours to cover the same distance, followed by the Douze Etolies, arriving 27 minutes later.
Nicolo Gamenara, leader in the Series category, experienced a mishap in May when collided with a whale near Cape Salinas, south of Mallorcawhile adding miles to meet the requirements of the Mini Transat. Since then, he has been repairing his boat on the island, focusing his preparation for this competition.
The first stage of Palma-Melilla-Palma is equivalent to a flying goal in which The time of this first crossing will be added to that of the return to Palma. Although for classification purposes a formal distinction is made between Prototype and Series, the vast majority of entries (30 out of 33) are series models from different designers.
This regatta is significant for the Mini Transat 2025 ranking, a goal that motivates almost all participants. Among the Spanish teams, the first crew to cross the finish line was that formed by Thomas Ruiz And Carlos Manera (second in the Mini Transat 2023) aboard the Suricate, reaching fourth position in its category. In the rest of the Spanish fleet, Ramon Ribera And Juan Maria Adriozola in the Amuitz Sames company, they came tenth, Joan Trench And Witolp Malecki at Pachamama, they were eleventh, Miguel Rondon And Marc Claramunt in Kristina II, twelfth, and Hugo Ramon next to Aleix Sellés They finished in thirteenth position.
