14 days on a regatta yacht of the Farr 40 type with 10 crew members – that was the announcement of skipper Lino and co-skipper Leon in January 2020 during the kick-off of our trip planning. It quickly became clear that the usual preparations would not be enough this year. The Farr 40 is not a normal cruising yacht. As a complex racing yacht, it holds completely new challenges. The lightweight construction of the boat, which is trimmed exclusively for speed, neglects any kind of comfort: Stowage options are scarce, and the usual galley kitchen does not even exist. The challenge: 10 people sleeping, eating, and sailing on 12.4m – in all weathers.
In the middle of July, we started our summer trip in Kiel. And it was the current weather situation that determined what our first destination would be: the wind was favorable and therefore we headed for the largest Estonian island Saameraa as our first stop. With three watches alternating in 4-hour intervals we sailed the 470M in only 3 days. During the trip to Estonia, we also set our preliminary speed record: 14.6kn! Of course, we had to beat this record in the following 10 days.
After spending the night in a beautiful anchorage off Saameraa, we headed west again – to the easternmost island of Denmark: Christiansø. The former fortress island impressed us with its picturesque charm, and we promptly decided to spend the night to enjoy some solid ground under our feet.
Not only during the long crossings, but also during the “island hopping” we were able to take full advantage of our experienced crew and the fast regatta yacht. We adapted to the wind conditions and on many occasions, we set sail in the morning shortly after sunrise or reached the targeted port only in the middle of the night. Due to our flexibility no day was like the other and within a very short time we explored the island of Møn, the Bay of Lübeck, Langeland and the Bay of Kiel.
Fortunately, it now also became apparent that our sophisticated preparations withstood the reality test on the high seas. With only two gas kettles on board, our daily menu consisted of cereal for breakfast and travellunch as hot main meal. The fast and easy preparation of travellunch allowed us not to miss out on varied food even in stormy weather.
As grand finale of our trip, the weather forecast promised us hefty wind forces of 5-6 for our last leg from Langeland to Kiel. But even with the help of the entire crew we “only” managed 12.7 knots – our record from the beginning of the trip remained unbeaten. Of course, this could only mean one thing: we have to start on a new trip next summer!
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