Please select your home edition
Edition
Excess Catamarans

Swiss solo sailor Oliver Heer's battle with The Transat CIC Race

by Oliver Heer Ocean Racing 9 May 2024 22:52 AEST
Swiss solo sailor Oliver Heer's battle with The Transat CIC Race © Oliver Heer Ocean Racing

Swiss-German solo sailor, Oliver Heer, is facing a gruelling personal battle in the Transat CIC race, a notoriously difficult solo transatlantic crossing.

While the leading boats have already crossed the finish line just outside of New York, Heer faces several more days at sea as he continues to fight through a series of setbacks and unforgiving weather conditions.

The race began in pleasant conditions on April 28th in Lorient, France, but quickly turned fierce. Heer battled strong winds, heavy seas, and equipment failures, including a dramatic autopilot malfunction that knocked his boat down causing significant damage as well as minor injury.

During this knock-down, Heer lost all power, forcing him to rely on paper charts and traditional navigation techniques, using old weather data. He lost all onboard communications systems and the signal on the satellite phone has been patchy making communication with his shore team frustrating and difficult. Additionally, he was unable to use his autopilot, or crucially, his water-maker and was down to his final 1 litre.

After working relentlessly for 24 hours, Heer, 35 has managed to rig a temporary bypass solution to provide power to the boat using his onboard solar panels during the day when there is sunlight. But Heer is forced to hand steer the boat both day and night which is exhausting and prevents him from sleeping.

During the knockdown, Heer also suffered sail damage whilst battling to regain control in over 40knots of breeze at night. He is currently repairing his broken mainsail battens to help regain sailing speed towards the finish.

Whilst Heer is in regular contact with his technical team, he still has to handle all of these challenges alone. Despite this, Heer's spirit although fragile is not broken. He has displayed exceptional resourcefulness and determination, repaired his boat and sails, and is adapting to the electrical black-out and new regime onboard.

"So far, this has been the toughest race of my life," said Heer. "Congratulations to winner Yoann Richomme on Paprec Arkea and all the sailors who have finished. I know I'll be at sea for a few more days and the weather forecast alternates between zero and 50 knots which isn't helpful, but I'm determined to finish."

"We're all extremely proud of Ollie's resilience in this race," said Theresa, Heer's wife and team manager, "While it hasn't been the race we planned, and been extremely stressful for the shore team, Ollie and the team are gaining invaluable experience for the Vendée Globe. The challenges he's facing now will only make him a stronger sailor in the future."

For Heer, quitting is not an option. Completing The Transat CIC race is a vital part of his campaign, securing the miles to guarantee a position on the start line of the Vendee Globe, the toughest race of them all, in November 2024. He is fighting to keep alive his dream of becoming this first Swiss-German to compete in the Vendee Globe.

Heer will continue to make his way to the finish line, located 100 miles offshore between New York and Newport Rhode Island, where the aim his team can turn the boat around in time to start the New York Vendee return race from New York to Les Sables d'Olonne, France on 29 May.

Related Articles

Rolex Fastnet Race: Upwind to the Fastnet Rock
The long range forecast for this year's race shows more benign conditions Teams that competed in the last two Rolex Fastnet Races and are returning for this Saturday's special centenary edition will be breathing a sigh of relief looking at the long term forecast. Posted on 23 Jul
Sam Goodchild announced as Henri-Lloyd Ambassador
One of Britain's finest offshore racers has chosen the British sailing apparel brand As one of Britain's finest offshore racers, it is fitting that Sam Goodchild has chosen to become an ambassador for British sailing apparel brand, Henri-Lloyd. Posted on 23 Jul
Transat Café L'or calling for next destinatation
After Cartagena, Salvador de Bahia, Puerto Limon, Itajaí, and Fort-de-France After Cartagena, Salvador de Bahia, Puerto Limon, Itajaí, and Fort-de-France, the TRANSAT CAFÉ L'OR Le Havre Normandie is now calling for applications to find a destination partner for the next editions, starting from the fall of 2027. Posted on 22 Jul
IMOCAs in the Rolex Fastnet Race
Ocean racing's state of the art One of the most historic and eternally ground-breaking oceanic racing yacht classes is the IMOCA. These 60 footers are the world's most advanced offshore racing monohulls, the class used in the Vendée Globe since its inception in 1989/90. Posted on 16 Jul
Everything to know about The Ocean Race Europe
One month to go to the race start in Kiel One month out from the start of the 2025 edition of The Ocean Race Europe seven mixed-gender crews made up of sailors from across 13 nations are in the throes of their final preparations for the Race start in Kiel, Germany. Posted on 10 Jul
The Ocean Race Europe Video Preview
We speak to Phil Lawrence, Peter Rusch & Pip Hare to find out more The Ocean Race Europe will take place between 10 August & 21 September, following a debut event in the summer of 2021. The racing is in IMOCA yachts, the same as the Vendée Globe, but this time with 4 crew and an OBR who will document the action on board. Posted on 8 Jul
Tom Dolan flies to the finish in Course des Caps
Irish offshore champion finishes 5th in 2,000-nautical-mile race around Britain and Ireland Irish offshore sailor Tom Dolan has completed the Course des Caps in an impressive 5th place, racing aboard the IMOCA 60 Charal alongside legendary skipper Jérémie Beyou. Posted on 7 Jul
Goodchild takes his first win in the IMOCA Class
After a dominant performance in the Course des Caps The British skipper Sam Goodchild celebrated his first victory in the IMOCA Class yesterday after crossing the finish line of the Course des Caps - Boulogne-sur-Mer - Banque Populaire du Nord, a 1,800-nautical mile sprint around Britain and Ireland. Posted on 6 Jul
Biotherm has arrived in Kiel
Ahead of the Start of The Ocean Race Europe on 10th August At 1:00 am on Saturday 5 July, Biotherm came alongside in Kiel's marina, north-east Germany, following a 48-hour delivery trip across the Baltic Sea. Posted on 6 Jul
Team Malizia secures 4th in Course des Caps
After thrilling high-speed finale to Boulogne-sur-Mer After six days of intense racing around the British Isles, Team Malizia crossed the finish line in Boulogne-sur-Mer to secure an impressive fourth place in the Course des Caps 2025. Posted on 5 Jul
V-DRY-XHenri-Lloyd Dynamic RangeX-Yachts X4.0