Why She’s Called La Reina de la Mar

Patsy Verhoeven of La Paz and her crew report that they made it to Nuku Hiva, Marquesas, from Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, in 18 days and two hours aboard her Gulfstar 50 Talion, and had "a great trip."

That’s a swift passage for a boat that, depending on where you are in the country, has a PHRF rating between 126 and 147. And despite rumors that Patsy — aka La Reina del Mar — wasn’t bringing any food for the trip, Talion was pretty loaded down.

One of La Reina’s secret weapons? A big ‘Free Corky’ spinnaker that the Wanderer got from David and Kathy Kane of the Bay Area’s Atlantic 42 Lightspeed. It wasn’t a good fit on Profligate, so we passed it along to La Reina. She chopped it down a couple of times until it fit perfectly.

Well done La Reina — and crew!

Ed. note — Later this summer, look for our Pacific Puddle Jump Recap in Latitude 38 magazine, where many boats share anecdotes from their crossings to French Polynesia.