Brad Van Liew and Le Pingouin Crossing The First Sprint Finish In Cape Town. (Photo by Ainhoa Sanchez/ Velux 5 Oceans
American ocean racer Brad Van Liew today sailed into Cape Town to claim victory in the first ocean sprint of the VELUX 5 OCEANS. The 42-year-old from Charleston, South Carolina, blasted across the finish line in Table Bay at 5.51pm local time (3.51pm UTC).
Brad Sprays Champagne in Celebration of First Sprint Win In Cape Town (Photo by Ainhoa Sanchez / Velux 5 Oceans)
Brad Van Liew Celebrates His First Sprint Win with Family (Photo by Ainhoa Sanchez / onEdition)
While American Brad Van Liew has been revelling in his victory in the first ocean sprint of the
VELUX 5 OCEANS, the rest of the fleet have been making frustratingly slow progress towards Cape Town. Light airs have dogged Zbigniew ‘Gutek’ Gutkowski, Derek Hatfield and Chris Stanmore-Major as they battle their way to the finish line of the 7,400 nautical mile leg whichstarted in La Rochelle on October 17.
Frustration has swept through the fleet, now tantalisingly close to Cape Town. At the last position report at midday UTC second placed Gutek and his Eco 60 yacht
Operon Racing were just 560 nautical miles from the line but in the previous 24 hours covered just 121 nautical miles.
“Right now I have no wind,” the 36-year-old Pole said. “I am sailing very, very slowly.
During the last three days I made less distance than I would normally in 24 hours. The longer I sail the slower I go. I keep looking back for the boys, but I don’t think they will catch me because they won’t have any good wind either.”
He is right – Canadian Derek Hatfield was today experiencing equally frustrating conditions on Active House
Statistics from 12pm UTC position report:
Skipper; distance to finish (nm); distance covered in last 24 hours (nm); average speed in last
24 hours (kts)
Brad Van Liew: finished Nov 14, 28 days, 1 hour, 51 mins
Gutek: 562.3; 523.6; 121.8; 5.1
Derek Hatfield: 1,067.1; 207.2; 8.6
The VELUX 5 OCEANS Skippers as they depart La Rochelle for the first of 5 Ocean Sprints in the VELUX 5 OCEANS around the world race.Velux 5 Oceans Start 2010 (Photo courtesy of onEdition)
And they’re off! Crowds packed the race village and lined the walls surrounding the Bassin des Chalutiers to watch the emotional goodbyes as the skippers said farewell to their family and friends. Following a moving departure ceremony held on the steps of the VELUX House the five impressive Eco 60s left the dockside at 1pm to rapturous applause
The VELUX 5 OCEANS is the oldest single-handed round the world yacht race. Run every 4 years since 1982, the race is the longest and toughest event for any individual in any sport. The race is a series of five high-pressure ocean sprints within a marathon circumnavigation. The 30,000 route is La Rochelle to Cape Town, then onto Wellington, Salvador, South Carolina before finishing in La Rochelle.
Le Pengouin (Photo by Dustin Ryan)
Brad Van Liew arrived in La Rochelle, France today, having sailing Le Pingouin more than 4,000 miles to mark his qualifying sail to compete in the upcoming solo race around the world. A small crew accompanied Van Liew on the transatlantic voyage from Charleston, South Carolina to France, a perk allowed by VELUX 5 OCEANS race officials based on Van Liew’s two previous solo circumnavigation races. This offered Van Liew the chance to utilize a team to test equipment, document areas to improve, and put the brand new sails, rigging, lines and electronics to the test under various extreme conditions.
“The boat is a really fast machine and has been prepared immaculately by our small team in Charleston,” Van Liew said. “The Atlantic put us through the paces, with every condition I would want to encounter before starting the race. Thanks to the enthusiasm and hard work of many friends, I will be at the start line on October 17th.”
Life aboard an Open-60 race boat is less than comfortable for one, so with four aboard, things got quite interesting. Reducing weight aboard the boat is a major priority for Van Liew, if not an obsession. This translates into Le Pingouin’s stark interior space measuring the size of small walk-in closet. One pipe berth tucks up against each side of the hull’s interior for the fits of sleep allowed, while accommodations like a sink, toilet, and galley are absent. The nerve center of the interior is the navigation station, where Van Liew downloads various weather analytics with his B&G electronics, monitors radar and other alarms, and communicates via his Inmarsat satellite system.
“Re-entry into the lifestyle of extreme ocean racing has been a trip,” said Van Liew. “I imagine it would be somewhat like when an astronaut goes on another mission into space. You eat, sleep, dream, work, and live in a totally different realm. For me it takes a few days for my body to adjust, but then it is like a machine, focused on two main goals – performance and safety.”
Van Liew has competed in this epic solo race twice before aboard 50-foot race boats, taking third place as an underdog entry in 1999 and winning first place in his class in 2003 with a convincing cumulative lead of 21 days. This will be Van Liew’s first entry in the race aboard a 60-foot boat. With the start looming a mere month away, Van Liew feels prepared and enthusiastic for the challenge ahead.
Following today’s arrival, Van Liew and his shore based crew will attend to repairs, make adjustments to systems they have tested offshore, conduct final sail testing, and continue the search for supporting sponsors. Although Van Liew has attained support from industry leaders such as Samson, B&G, Simrad, Gill, and West Marine, finding a Title Sponsor to name the race boat and enjoy the lion’s share of branding space has eluded the team. Ondeck joined the effort recently as the first Associate Sponsor, and the team is actively pursuing additional companies that would like to benefit from the vast media exposure and hospitality opportunities that exist for the 9-months of racing.
The Velux 5 Oceans starts from La Rochelle in France on October 17, 2010 and features five ocean sprints. After heading from La Rochelle, France to Cape Town, South Africa, the race heads across the vast Southern Indian Ocean to Wellington, New Zealand. From there, the racing yachts will head to Salvador, Brazil, then up the Atlantic to Charleston, USA before returning across the ocean to France to the finish.
Le Pingouin Ready To Launch (Photo Courtesy of Team Lazarus)
Sole US Entry in Velux 5 Oceans Race Takes Huge Step Forward In Round The World Campaign
Solo American sailboat racer Brad Van Liew and his devoted support team can score one victory already in their campaign to win the grueling VELUX 5 OCEANS 2010-2011 race, as today they officially re-launched the completely refitted Eco 60 racing yacht Le Pingouin. The team splashed the boat at Detyens Shipyard and motored down the Cooper River to its new home at Seabreeze Marina on the Charleston Peninsula. “I can’t explain how grateful I am for the amazing support of the marine industry, the Charleston community and my incredible shore team,” said Van Liew, shortly after the mast was lowered into place on the deck of his sleek racing vessel.
Van Liew and his “Lazarus Project” team have spent some six months in a no-expense-spared refit of Le Pingouin, ensuring that the boat is impeccably prepared for the intense singlehanded round-the-world VELUX race. “We’ve redesigned the deck and cabin to suit my sailing style, repainted her with some awesome and eye-catching graphics, and brought every facet – no matter how minute – up to the highest standards possible for an oceangoing racer,” said Van Liew. While the level of attention to detail may seem tedious, Van Liew explains that cutting corners isn’t an option. “This will not only be my home for nine months, but she’s my survival pod, my life raft, and will need to keep me safe for 30,000 miles of wild ocean sailing.” The stripped-out, carbon fiber racing sled is adorned with a determined-looking penguin that will watch over Van Liew, along with the team slogan, “Full Noise or No Noise” to remind Brad to push as hard as he can in his battle for victory over an international fleet.
ECO 60 Le Pingouin Launching (Photo Courtesy of Team Lazarus)
Many Challenges Conquered, Many More To Go
Van Liew said he’s always had faith that his team could get the boat ready, but that “it has been more challenging than I anticipated.” He’s referring not only to the stifling heat and humidity of the summer – one of the hottest on record according to NOAA – during their painstaking rebuild of Le Pingouin, but also to the immense challenge of securing title sponsorship support that has eluded the project thus far. “We’ve relied on friends, family, a devoted group of companies, and a group of individuals, both sailors and nonsailors, that see the importance of ensuring a US entry in the world’s oldest and toughest race of its kind,” said Van Liew. “We remain hopeful that we can enlist more commercial support, but one way or another, we’re going to see this race completed, and it’s all due to the hundreds of people that have thrown themselves into this project.”
Brad Van Liew Onboard Le Pingouin After Launch (Photo Courtesy of Team Lazarus)
Exactly two months away from the start of the VELUX 5 OCEANS 2010-11 race start day, Van Liew feels Le Pingouin will be one of the best prepared race boats on the start line. “Our equipment is the best, our shore team is the best, and we’re ready,” Van Liew said. His team installed a full suite of state-of-the-art B&G autopilots and instrumentation on the 60-foot racer, an integral component of the boat. Samson Ropes throughout the boat are color-coded, and in some cases, custom-designed for specific loads, tensions, and duties. Simrad systems will assist Van Liew with navigation, radar, and traffic avoidance, and complimenting the ultra-high performance systems of the interior is a flawless head-turning Awlgrip paint job on the hull and proactive coatings on the bottom and keel. Gill technical clothing will protect Van Liew from the elements, and his diet will primarily consist of Alpine Aire dehydrated food produced for extreme environments that require light-weight provisions.
Several Charleston based companies have proved invaluable resources to Van Liew and team in getting the race boat ready. Some of these supporters include CMMC Machine, Charleston Rigging and Hardware, charlestonyachting.com, Seabreeze Marina, West Marine, High & Dry Boatworks, and Pierside Boatworks.
When Van Liew finishes the Velux 5 Oceans 2010-11 race, he will become the first American in history to officially finish three solo round-the-world races. He plans to depart on September 5th for the long passage to France for the October start.
The Velux 5 Oceans starts from La Rochelle in France on October 17, 2010 and features five ocean sprints. After heading from La Rochelle, France to Cape Town, South Africa, the race heads across the vast Southern Indian Ocean to Wellington, New Zealand. From there, the racing yachts will head to Salvador, Brazil, then up the Atlantic to Charleston, USA before returning across the ocean to France to the finish.
Brad Van Liew’s entrepreneurial spirit has seen him through successful business endeavors in aviation and sailing. As a professional sailor, Van Liew completed two solo circumnavigations, taking 3rd place as an underdog entrant in the 1998-99 Around Alone race, and claiming victory in the 2002-03 edition of that event aboard Tommy Hilfiger Freedom America. He broke a world record by covering 345 miles in one day aboard his 50-foot monohull. Van Liew has been awarded an array of honors including a US Navy Seamanship Award, Raymarine Communications Award, and Sportsman of the Year from California Yacht Club. He has a bachelor’s degree from the University of Southern California
Le Pingouin In Slings (Photo Courtesy of Team Lazarus)
