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14th Ophiusa regatta on board with Save Posidonia Project

Foto presentacio regata ophiusaThe details behind Regatta Ophiusa, a boating fixture that runs from April 13 to 15 and links Sitges and Formentera, were unveiled today at the main offices of the Formentera Council at the hands of local tourism councillor Alejandra Ferrer and organiser Josep Maria Ferrer.

Councillor Ferrer proudly announced the adhesion of the regatta's 250 navigators (and their 48 boats) to the Save Posidonia Project and their sponsorship, via QR code, of protected areas of posidonia seagrass. Participants will also be given a special presentation explaining the importance of posidonia conservation. In the words of the event's organiser, “as a group, boat enthusiasts use and enjoy the sea more than most, so it seems quite natural that they be engaged in the conservation side as well”.

He also asserts that the fourteen-year-old event, which receives funding from both the Balearic tourism agency and the Office of Tourism of the Formentera Council, has not strayed from its original vocation as an highly inclusive event. Participants, he said, vary from the most recent winner of the King's Cup to cruise ships whose families hanker for the chance to spend Easter at a boating event during Formentera's more relaxed —and perhaps more authentic— pre-summer season. With a wide array of groups and classifications, Josep Maria Ferrer called the regatta “an event with room for everybody”.

Low-season visitors
Councillor Ferrer indicated her hope that participants of the regatta —which will take place during Semana Santa, or Holy Week— would find plenty of restaurants and entertainment options already open for business. In that way, she said, those or others they'd spoken to would be more inclined to pay Formentera a visit before the start of the traditional season.

The event is 100% Made in Formentera, from its namesake (a Greek designation for the island) to classification titles like “Savina d'Espalmador,” “Savina d'es Cap” and “Savina la Mola” (the premier ranking is “Savina de Plata d'Ophiusa”). Even the trophies, concluded the organiser, are sculpted from Savina juniper wood.