Vigo (Pontevedra)
Updated:29/01/2021 20:52h
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Boris Herrmann has experienced both sides of the coin in the Vendée Globe 2020-2021. Before leaving, “one morning I had coffee with Sam Davies in Lorient and we wondered what would we do if we were forced to withdraw. And the answer was that we would continue out of the race because we are motivated by the colors of the causes that we carry. She ended up for children, I for science. I am very happy to see that it has worked as we imagined.
Four years ago, Herrmann had the opportunity to participate in the Vendée Globe solo tour of the world thanks to the decision of Monegasque Pierre Casiraghi, who is the owner of the “Seaexplorer – Yacht Club de Monaco” and who has achieved all the financial support so that, for the first time, an IMOCA boat under the flag of the Principality of Monaco would be in this regatta.
The chosen boat was the former Gitana 16, a VPLP / Verdier design of the seven new IMOCAs for the 2015-2016 Vendée Globe, built by Chantier Multiplast in Vannes and purchased in 2017 by Pierre Casiraghi’s Maliza team, skipper Herrmann being that has 22 people working to make everything work like clockwork and sailing under the necklace of the Yacht Club of Monaco. More could not ask Boris Herrmann his dream of participating in the 9th Vendée Globe came true.
The first generation foils were changed to the third generation, much larger ones, for which they had to make structural work inside the hull and the exits of the «foils» on the waterline; Looking at the deck of the ship, you can see how the hydrofoil guides come out on it, a system very similar to how the “Charal” carries them.
During this Vendée Globe BorisHerrmann was always in the leading group of the fleet. In Ecuador it crossed in seventh position, after 10 days, 17 hours and 30 minutes; at Cape of Good Hope it crossed into the Indian Ocean in fifth position after 23 days and 13 hours; On day 37 of the regatta, on December 14, 2020 he crossed the length of Cape Leewin to the east in eighth position; After 57 sailing, on January 5, 2021 he turned Cape Hornos in ninth place to begin the ascent through the Atlantic Ocean towards Le Sables d’Olonne.
In the South Atlantic the German skipper is ready to launch its attack on the first of the fleet, in addition, at that time he already had a six-hour bonus for participating in the search and rescue tasks of the sailor Kevin Escoffier. Across Cabo Frio it was placed in sixth position, and 945 miles further north, at the height of the Brazilian city of Recife, it sailed third behind the “Apivia” and the “Bureau Vallée 2”; and would cross into the northern hemisphere in the same position on January 16, 2021.
Son the last three thousand miles To finish the Vendée Globe, Boris Herrmann has reached the North Atlantic hemisphere with the “Seaexplorer – Yacht Club de Monaco” without serious breakdowns and was in a golden position to materialize the dream of his solo trip around the world. It is no longer that he aspired to finish in fifth place, he had the door open to being on the podium and even, why not, winning the regatta.
The final attack came after the Azores islands, 1,200 miles from arrival. Ahead, to leeward, he had Charlie Dalin’s “Apivia” dragging a damage in the port foil; and north to “Office Valley 2”. At first he decided to go north behind the “Bureau Vallée 2” until he gybed east across the defeat of the “Apivia” and followed in his footsteps to enter the Bay of Biscay through the Cantabrian Sea.
The last 300 miles of the Vendée Globe between Cape Ortegal and Le Sables d´Olonne are very difficult, and not because of the weather conditions, but because of the accumulated fatigue that the skippers have after 80 days of racing and having to deal with the maritime traffic between Finisterre and the English Channel, in addition to the numerous fishing boats that are operating in those waters.
Boris Herrmann had the situation under control to let the «Seaexplorer – Yacht Club de Monaco» navigate with the autopilot while he would take the opportunity to rest a little, what is called a nap to be a little cooler in the last miles. He left all the alarms on, the radar, the AIS, the electronics, the OSCAR system, etc., everything worked. And 90 miles from the end, in the middle of the night, his boat crashes against a fishing boat that was with its gear at sea. In the smack he lost the bow boom and pulpit, the sails were torn and the worst part was taken by the starboard foil as it was badly damaged.
After disengaging from the fishing boat, and clarifying things with the captain, Herrmann resumed the march, tying the starboard foil with some lines to prevent the movement of the boat from causing a major damage.
At 11 am 2:59 pm this past Thursday, January 28, 2021, the “Seaexplorer – Yacht Club de Monaco” crossed the finish line of the Vendée Globe in sixth position in real time after 80 days, 20 hours and 59:45 minutes. And by applying the 6 bonus hours he was ranked fourth behind the winner “Maître CoQ IV” by Yannick Bestaven.
In a difficult moment, already on the ground, very tired, Boris Herrmann commented: «I am happy with the result, especially considering the latest events. Absolutely happy with my regatta and my result. It has been a team effort and I am looking forward to celebrating with them. The preparation of the boat, around the regatta, the mission with science and education. It’s nice to have all these people here together now. This is the best part of the regatta.
“The Vendée Globe has changed me. The worst thing was colliding with the trawler before arriving. I was standing in the back of the boat and I could see parts of my boat get stuck and then break. In the end, we were able to finish and well. The damage to the ship is not too serious, it is not structural.
“I don’t know how, the Vendée Globe has changed me, it has taught me a lot about patience and trust: trust in people, trust in the boat. It taught me that good things come with time. That you have to wait 80 days for the end and for all those beautiful emotions and that it is not a pleasure trip. It’s a strange relationship between time and reward.
Yannick Bestaven defined Herrmann on arrival: “He is without a doubt the skipper with whom I have communicated the most since the start of the race. Boris is a beautiful person, a patron as gifted as he is discreet. I am very disappointed not to share the party with him ».
Herrmann was able to realize his dream of completing the Vendée Globe regatta, he was also the first German to do so, and his IMOCA “Seaexplorer – Yacht Club de Monaco” was also the first Monegasque sailboat to do so.
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