A very experienced
crewed sailor, who does not have much experience sailing solo, Pieter
Heerema has taken up a huge personal challenge by deciding to compete in
the next Vendée Globe. In addition to that, he will be doing it on a
brand new IMOCA 60’ fitted out with all the latest technology, which for
a single-handed sailor makes her complicated to sail. The Dutch sailor
has built up his project step by step with the help of experts in order
to get to know his boat. Last spring, he completed two solo
transatlantic races on her, the Calero Solo Transat (between Lanzarote
and Newport) and then the New York/Vendée (Les Sables d’Olonne).
Getting into Vendée Globe configuration
After these two races, No Way Back
entered the yard in Lorient. “Everything was taken apart and examined on
the boat. We didn’t carry out any major changes, but a lot of tiny
improvements to make life easier for Pieter during the Vendée Globe.
Reinforcements have been added around the foils to make her more
reliable,” explained Antoine Mermod, the project’s team manager. On
Friday 12th August, Pieter Heerema left Lorient to head for
Iceland, in order to carry out another long trip to check out all the
various improvements and onboard systems (such as the heater and
desalinator).
“Pieter is still lacking experience when sailing solo. He
needed to gain experience before the round the world race,” added
Antoine Mermod. “By sailing on this long offshore trip, Pieter will be
going through Vendée Globe type conditions. We think that is preferable
to simple day trips. Iceland is an interesting destination as far as the
weather is concerned. It is cold and the conditions are fairly
complicated. Incidentally, no IMOCA 60’ has ever gone as far north, as
far as I know.” Pieter Heerema is due back in his home port of La
Trinité-sur-Mer in Brittany early next week. “He has learnt a lot since
the project was launched. He is continuing to progress and is now much
more ready,” concluded Antoine Mermod.
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