MAPFRE challenge set a new record on the Christopher Columbus 'Discovery of the Americas' Route from Spain to the Bahamas.

Finishing the Volvo Ocean Race 2011-12 was not enough for some members of the old Telefónica crew: today they were celebrating as the MAPFRE challenge set a new record on the Christopher Columbus 'Discovery of the Americas' Route from Spain to the Bahamas.

On Friday, February 22 at 08:18:10 CET, MAPFRE crossed the finish line in San Salvador, Bahamas. On board the rebranded Telefónica Volvo Open 70, the Spanish crew, including Pablo Arrarte, Ñeti Cuevas-Mons, Pepe Ribes and former Media Crew Member Diego Fructuoso, celebrated taking their place in the record books.

"It's a very happy day for all the MAPFRE crew and all the people who made it possible," said skipper and Olympic gold medallist Fernando Echáverri. "We are all glad to have reached our objectives.”

The entire route from Palos de la Frontera in Spain to San Salvador, with a stop in La Gomera (Canary Islands) took 11 days, 7 hours 38 minutes and 40 seconds.

The Atlantic crossing from La Gomera to San Salvador accounted for 9 days, 12 hours 18 minutes and 10 seconds of that time.

“We’ve sailed between 20 and 25 knots since we left the Canary Islands,” said Volvo Ocean Race’s Pedro Freitas, who joined the team as an Onboard Reporter. “It blew a bit less once we entered the Bermuda triangle. We’ve sailed downwind the all way from La Gomera to the Bahamas, always over the wind speed.”

Looking for the trade winds, the Spanish crew sailed a total of 4,446 miles from La Gomera to San Salvador instead of the 3,084 miles of the theoretical route. Yet they got there faster than Christopher Columbus, who sailed that exact same route in the 15th century and reached the Bahamas Island on October 12, 1492.

The team is not stopping in the Bahamas but will sail to Miami, Florida.