Boris Herrmann successfully completes sail repairs
by Holly Cova 14 Dec 2020 05:14 GMT
14 December 2020
Seaexplorer - Yacht Club de Monaco - Vendée Globe © Holly Cova
Over the past 24 hours, Boris Herrmann sailing on board Seaexplorer - Yacht Club de Monaco has fixed two issues regarding his sails. Firstly, he has replaced the broken batten on his mainsail and has repaired a small rip by gluing new patches on the damaged area. It was a fairly complex and time-consuming operation, which involves taking down the mainsail completely, carrying out the repair, allowing the glue to dry and finally re-hoisting the sail. Inevitably, Boris lost a few miles in this process, but his mainsail is now stable and back to its original condition.
Secondly, Boris was finally able to fix the J2 headsail. The zipper, which usually holds the front section of the sail in position, had come undone already at the entrance to the Indian Ocean. Strong winds throughout the past two weeks made this repair impossible, but a few hours ago Boris profited from lighter winds to climb up the forestay, repair the zipper and secure it with stitches.
All his sails on board are now fully operational! Boris is tired, but extremely happy to have successfully completed all sail repairs. "It is a huge relief that all sails are now in great shape. It was mentally and physically demanding. Especially the problem with the J2 was very stressing for me over the past days, as it is an important sail here for the South and I didn't have an opportunity to get it repaired. Now, I can finally pick up the pace again!"
Find out more...