Much is different this year. In the club sector, the pandemic is currently making itself felt with the cancellation of traditional events such as the annual general meetings including award ceremonies for extraordinary cruises of the past year. At the end of November, members of Trans Ocean e. V. (TO) from all over Germany wanted to meet for the annual general meeting followed by a festive evening in Cuxhaven - of course, canceled
"The prizes are also awarded after such a year, because sailing achievements are still to be honored, even if a trip had to be ended earlier than planned, if destinations could not be reached and many crews were slowed down by a virus on their trips", says Egon Lutomsky, deputy club chairman, who has been managing the club through the pandemic times and the search for a new club head since Peter Wiedekamm's resignation in September.
Honors in Corona mode
Two prizes were even handed over personally - due to corona in a very small group without guests. Susanne Huber-Curphey received on board her aluminum yacht "Nehaj", with which she moored for the winter in Bremerhaven, the Trans-Ocean Prize.
Astrid Ewe gives the laudation for Susanne Huber-Curphey on board the "Nehaj" in Bremerhaven. The ceremony was held without an audience, it was recorded and will later be released on video
The passionate single-handed sailor has received the award for the most demanding sailing voyage of the past twelve months for the third time. The decisive factor in this case was her return to Europe in spring 2020 after her outstanding circumnavigation, for which she received the Seamanship Award from the renowned British Ocean Cruising Club at the beginning of the year.
Around the world alone and non-stop - and beyond
As part of the "Longe Route", a non-stop circumnavigation of the world in memory of Bernard Moitessier's journey 50 years earlier, Susanne Huber-Curphey started on the US east coast in 2018. After reaching the southern Atlantic, she followed the Moitessiers route and, like this one in 1969, after the passage from Cape Horn, did not sail back to Europe, but further and further east.
It was only after 33 043 nautical miles, 251 days at sea and a one and a half one-handed non-stop circumnavigation of the world that she docked again in Tasmania.
On the return journey towards the US east coast, the fatal accident - with a happy outcome: "Nehaj" stranded off Réunion due to an anchor that did not stop. The badly damaged ship was born. After an initial repair on site, the journey continued via Cape Town and Martinique to Sneek in the Netherlands, where the trip ended after a further 12,600 miles in April 2020 with a shipyard stop before the skipper headed for the current winter quarters.
The laudation at today's award ceremony was held by Astrid Ewe, who has already undertaken numerous challenging trips in high latitudes with her sister Ulrike on the steel yacht "Luna" (YACHT 2/2020).
Tour helper in the home
The challenge award Ocean Award the association of deep sea sailors awards to the voluntary helpers of the so-called Trans Ocean Rolling Home Team.
In the early summer of 2020, the group made up of members of the TO, the amateur radio association Intermar eV and the Cruising Club Switzerland (CCS) supported numerous crews on their return journey from the Caribbean to their home country free of charge with weather, route and situation information (YACHT 16 / 2020).
The support team assisted the sailors from the computer
Because of the pandemic, they unexpectedly faced unexpected problems, and the return trip home had become a trip with completely new challenges due to the unclear situation about port closings and entry restrictions. The "Rolling Home Team" contacted important transit ports in order to provide the yachts with at least basic supplies and breaks and provided them with current weather data.
Around the world and across the Atlantic
Two one-handed sailors will receive the 2020 TO circumnavigator award:
Sebastian Groth crossed the Atlantic with a friend in 2017, explored the Caribbean islands sometimes alone, sometimes as a couple, but covered large parts of his tour around the world with the Bénéteau First 35 "Frida" in one-handed mode. 33,421 nautical miles led him westward around the world, through the Panama Canal, across the Pacific, including Bali, across the Indian Ocean, around the Cape of Good Hope, to Namibia and in the summer of 2019 after three years back to Germany.
One-handed circumnavigator Sebastian Groth
Also Andreas Dohmeier has sailed around the world largely solo on the barefoot route with his Hanseat Commodore 42 "Kama" from June 2012 onwards. After eight years and 42,667 nautical miles, he returned home in 2020.
The TO medal receives for his ambitious long trip with good travel preparation Martin Daldrup. In 2019 he set off with his Bavari34 "Jambo" for his first round of the Atlantic and was caught in the Caribbean by the consequences of the corona pandemic and the upcoming hurricane season.
Home course: drone photo of the "M Jambo"
Martin Daldrup, skipper of the "M Jambo"
In May 2020 Daldrup started his return trip to Europe, which finally took him back to Germany on a far north route past the British Isles. The remarkable solo trip lasted 42 days and 5130 nautical miles (interview in YACHT 16/2020; YouTube channel "M Jambo").
Shooting star in the mini 6.50
The TO cup for outstanding athletic performance at sea Lennart Burke. After the TO campaign for the Mini-Transat 2021 burst, he had successfully set up his own and had already impressed the French mini-scene and observers in this country several times in the past season.
Lennart Burke on his Pogo 3 "Vorpommern"
In the first big solo race of the season - "Les Sables - Les Açores en baie de Morlaix" - Burke with his Pogo 3 "Vorpommern" came third in the overall classification of the series boats, just behind the two leading Minis. In the subsequent Duo Concarneau, he and mini veteran Oliver Tesloff took fifth place after a nerve-wracking light wind thriller and stayed within striking distance of the top.