I am intrigued with Sven’s latest project – to design, make
and sail a 10’ boat alone around the world. As far as I understand it, he truly
does want to complete a full and proper non-stop circumnavigation, starting
from Southern Ireland. He plans to sail south through the North and South
Atlantic before continuing eastwards south of the Cape of Good Hope and onwards
passing south of Australia and Tasmania, then south of Cape Horn. From there he
intends to sail northwards crossing the equator for a second time, eventually meeting
his outward track in the North Atlantic. At that point he will have completed
his circumnavigation, but he will continue northwards with the aim of sailing north
of the British Isles from where he will head for Sweden. There his epic
marathon will come to an end.
If he is successful, he will have achieved something quite
remarkable. He will have set a new world record, that of sailing around the
world in the shortest boat. I think he will also be the oldest to have sailed non-stop
around the world. Minoru Saito* at
the age of 77 is the oldest to circumnavigate the world, but he did not do it
non-stop. It took him 1,080 days, finally putting into Yokohama, Japan.
Sven is not interested in breaking records, but he has taken
up the challenge set by the Around in Ten group** - that’s to sail a 10 foot
boat around the world. Most of all he enjoys solving problems, theoretical and
practical; he gets a kick out of building boats he has designed; he loves being on the ocean alone, especially
aboard a small sailing boat. He feels alive when he is not distracted by the
trappings our noisy, materialistic world. He seeks a spiritual dimension that
he believes can only be found in the vast emptiness of the oceans. There he is
close to nature and a part of it. Sven also likes keeping fit, eating
healthily, maintaining an active mind by playing with ideas, both abstract and
concrete. He derives great satisfaction from reading.
Encapsulated in his nutshell boat he will be happy. He will
have thoroughly prepared for the voyage, even taking with him a crash helmet
for protecting his head when his boat will be tumbled around in the wild seas
of the Roaring Forties. When conditions
permit, he will swim at least once a day. He will further exercise by peddling
a homemade generator for topping up the ship’s batteries. His food on the whole
will be bland, and it will not require cooking.
Links
Sven Yrvind – Present Project
*World's oldest
sailor arrives home in Japan after solo journey around globe
**Around in Ten
Sven Yrvind
Sven Yrvind, Ocean Sailor and
Yacht Designer
Micro 10’ Sailboat for Global
Circumnavigation
Martinique – Fort-de-France -
Sven Yrvind
Out of Sight, but not out of
Mind –Sven Yrvind
Progress of Sven Yrvind
Sven Yrvind Sails Again
‘Yrvindaren 4.1’
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