Sergio Davi, the Italian adventurer, just crossed the Atlantic on his 36-foot RIB. Davi left Mindelo on Cape Verde on Feb. 4, and stepped off his boat this afternoon in Kourou, French Guyana, in South America, 1,770 nm and six days and eight hours later. This was the longest, and most dangerous, leg of his 10,000 mile journey from Salerno to Los Angeles on his RIB named Aretusa Explorer.
Joining him was Teo Aiello, the co-owner of Nouva Jolly Marine, which made the RIB. Aiello’s brother, Antonio, was on board for the previous leg, 836 miles from Grand Canary to Cape Verde.
Fuel management was a matter of life or death on the trans-Atlantic leg. The RIB is powered by two Suzuki DF300F dual-prop outboards, and has two built-in tanks holding 264 gallons. Davi had to call in a fuel truck to load 1,848 gallons at the dock in Mindelo the day before he left. All that gas added 11,278 pounds to the boat, and was loaded into custom-made floppy tanks (see picture below).
Because of the extra weight, the boat started off at 7 to 8 knots for the first few days, until it could burn off enough fuel. Fortunately, the sea conditions were mild. After it reached the half-way point, it sped up to a planing speed of 15 knots and a day later to 22 knots in 4- to 6-foot seas. (In calm water, the RIB tops out at 60 knots.)
The boat was so loaded that Davi and Aiello had to rest sitting up for a few days, until they finally were able to use the cabin. The boat has a full complement of Simrad electronics, including autopilot, radar and AIS.
Davi started this Ocean to Ocean adventure on Dec. 15 in Palermo, and made stops at Mallorca, Gibraltar, Lanzarote and Grand Canary before reaching Mindelo. Originally, he hoped to make the trip to Los Angeles in 100 days, but he tested positive for Covid in Grand Canary and had to spend several days in self-isolation. He planned to cruise by himself on about 25 of those days, with sponsors or friends joining him the rest of the time.
This is not Davi’s first trip across the Atlantic. In 2019, he cruised in a similar Nouva Jolly RIB from Palermo to New York. Read more:
https://www.ciuriciurimare.com/avventure/ocean-to-ocean-rib-adventure-2021-22/
