This year's Garmin Round Denmark race has successfully concluded, and the organizers are receiving very positive feedback regarding the event. Focus this year has been on simplicity, the route, and the service surrounding the event are some of the aspects that have garnered significant praise from participants this year.
How did it go?
Early Wednesday morning on August 7th, Palby Marine / Hansen Sailing Team was the first Full Crew boat to cross the finish line, setting a new official inshore record of 91 hours, 13 minutes, and 19 seconds. The Palby Marine / Hansen Sailing Team now holds the record for both the inshore and offshore routes, and we are eager to see if the inshore record will be broken next year in 2025.
At around 9:30 AM the same day, the German Double Handed boat "Tri" with sailors Lars and Jon Kaempfe, father and son, finished with a time of 94 hours, 33 minutes, and 06 seconds. Lars and Jon won the Double Handed category for Multi Hull, after having sailed closely with Palby Marine for a long time. However, a damaged fitting at the top of the sail meant that their boat lost speed and therefore could not keep up with Palby Marine.
At around 2:00 PM, the two Double Handed boats "Cheekytatoo" and "Red" arrived, and after nearly 100 hours of sailing, Cheekytatoo managed to win the Double Handed category ahead of Red by just 19 seconds. The total winning time was 98 hours, 31 minutes, and 10 seconds, with Red finishing at 98 hours, 31 minutes, and 29 seconds. It was a nerve-wracking finish that greatly excited both the spectators on land and the two participating boats.
On Thursday evening, August 8th, Ricard Roth arrived and, as the first singlehanded sailor in his boat “XAR”, he crossed the finish line with a time of 130 hours, 25 minutes, and 15 seconds. All singlehanded participants are required to sail for a maximum of 36 hours before taking a mandatory 8-hour break. Ricard took three such breaks during the race, and after deducting the mandatory breaks, his official time was 106 hours, 25 minutes, and 15 seconds.
The last singlehanded sailors crossed the finish line on Friday evening: 'Xplorer,' steered by Roland Jarlgaard, and 'Bliss,' steered by Madelon Kuiper, who crossed the finish line early on Saturday morning, August 10th.
Feedback from Participants will be used to develop the Event
Involving the sailors in the development of the event is something that Aarhus International Sailing Center, in collaboration with Garmin, will focus on in the future.
"We've received really good feedback on the changes we've made to the event this year, but we've also received great tips and suggestions for changes from almost all the participants in this year’s Garmin Round Denmark Race," says Jon Koch Hansen, the director of Aarhus International Sailing Center. "The event has huge potential, and the participating boats confirm this, so we’re looking forward to an exciting future where we'll focus on increasing the volume of participants," he says.
"Together with Garmin, we will establish focus groups where some of the participants from this year's Garmin Round Denmark Race will be involved to further develop the event, and we have high expectations for that," Jon Koch Hansen concludes.
The date for the Garmin Round Denmark Race 2025 will be announced in September, when the organizers will also open for registration.
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