We like Mini (solo world tour)

Fuerteventura in the early morning is more Martian than usual, the red of the earth caressed by the sunrise is even brighter and in the sky, always clear and blue towers a huge moon.

Mini Globe Race

I am here on vacation with my family, shortly we will take the hydrofoil to Playa Bianca from Corralejo, half an hour of dancing crossing to reach Lanzarote, the island in front of us, which hosts the start of the Mini Globe Race.

The presentation of the event is well worth a visit, since we are talking about nothing less than a round-the-world trip in stages for loners (more or less experienced) on 5.80-meter boats. In the newsroom they call them “the crazy ones,” and I don’t think they are far wrong. It starts from the Canary Islands to Antigua: the crossing is a qualification for the round-the-world race proper, leaving Antigua at the end of February.

The presentation is at Rubicon Marina, which is a few miles from where we disembark. In the heart of the marina (beautiful indeed) we see the little boats in question, “mah, they’re so tiny,” says my 5-year-old daughter as I show her and my wife (who looks at me astonished) the reason for our early rise; heedlessly I wander among the minis taking pictures of the small hulls and the details that catch my eye. The little boats are mostly built by the owners themselves, after purchasing the drawings from the organization (about $2,000), and have a construction time of two years; the sails and some parts are the same for all; the campaign budget is about $40-50,000 for the Transat and $80-100 for the round-the-world race.

Don McIntyre’s philosophy

As the meeting unfolds in a very informal manner, Don McIntyre (the race organizer) tells in a talk that has now become habitual what the Globe Race is all about: “The McIntyre Mini Globe Race is the first world event attempted by Mini Ocean racers. The Globe Race celebrates the 75th anniversary of John Guzzwell, who set out in 1955 on his home-built 20-foot wooden yacht TREKKA to become the first ever ‘Mini Yacht’ to sail around the world. This endeavor fully reflects my vision of the racing world, and enabling all sailors, professional and amateur, to participate is my goal. “Don how do you prepare for such a challenging race?” “Participants have to undergo certain tests both on the human level, such as a rigorous first aid course, and on the construction level of the boat, the boat is inspected a first time after it is built and then in Lagos before qualification where it is severely tested in the water.

The solidity of the hull is total, this kind of boat has already passed through 70-knot winds and 6-meter waves, it is the safest boat in the world for this kind of sailing. “Indeed, the high broadside and not too much sail make it visually very stable, certainly more so than the mini 6.50s, to compare with its bigger brothers. How many of the Transat participants will go on to round the world? “All but the Irishman,” he says, smiling behind his bright eyes. Hebbesi yes, because there are 12 participants in the first leg and those who will continue will be 11, plus new entries are expected from leg to leg, a real success for such an event.

Mini Global Race: Jasmine on her first ocean (sailing)

I greet Don warmly and return to the dock, there I meet the youngest sailor in the fleet Jasmine Harrison (25), a tall, well-placed girl, intent on sorting out the last “things” before departure; I take the opportunity to ask her a couple of questions: Jasmine are you ready? What led you to attempt this venture? “I’m here because I think it’s very cool, no one has ever attempted a round-the-world race on 19-foot boats, I’ll be in the mix for quite some time, about 15 months.” Do you have experience in ocean sailing? “Of sailing not much actually, but I did the ocean on a rowboat when I was 21.

“Well, I think, easy”…I close. Other interesting information was: unlike other ocean races technology is allowed on board (except for weather forecasts from the shore team), food is mostly freeze-dried or in tins and there is no bathroom, for media content, sailors have a way to communicate constantly with the outside world, uploading the videos they shoot from aboard to their social and the organization’s social sowhen you are bored or in the winter doldrums keep an eye on your phone, because adventure in the middle of the sea in the next year and a half will not be lacking!

“But almost…”

So as I imagine young and old, professional and non-professional embarking on the adventure of a lifetime I bourgeoisly walk back to the ferry hand in hand with my daughter and in my head for a moment the idea goes… “But if they do it…then maybe..me too..someday…” in that instant I cross my wife’s eyes, come to my senses and feel, “I love, but what fools to do such a thing, but what does their brain tell them, I would never do it, I swear!“

From our correspondent in the Canary Islands Tommaso Oriani

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