Full house for Silverrudder 2022! The solo test for the sailor's "bucket list"

Tough, but hearty: the Round Fyn race for solo sailors got off to an impressive start in its 11th edition. The maximum starting places of 450 boats for the race to and from Svendborg were taken just two hours after the registration portal opened. Many record holders and other heroes and heroines of the stormy 2021 edition are back, as is a significantly larger group of ambitious female skippers. Their number has almost tripled from just six starters in 2021 to 16 registered women. Among them are two-time Mini Transat sailor Lina Rixgens, Olympic 49erFX silver medallist Sanni Beucke for the second time after her challenging debut last year and Lena Weißkichel, another aspiring repeat offender. Lena Weißkichel is training hard away from the Silverrudder course to take up Susann Beucke's legacy in Olympic sailing alongside her 49erFX helmswoman Nadine Böhm in two years' time. Beucke and Weißkichel, who have an affinity for skiff and sea sailing, will cross paths at the Silverrudder. Sanni Beucke has upgraded after her tough baptism of fire on the Seascape 18 last year: She will be contesting her second round on a Beneteau Figaro 3. Lena Weißkichel has chosen a Dehler 30 od for the Denmark test with a view to her Silverrudder comeback.

The Silverrudder brings together many exciting sailing careers such as those of Beucke and Weißkichel. Every year, the "Challenge of the Sea" attracts experienced warhorses, adventure-hungry novices, passionate solo regatta sailors, returnees and first-time participants. The event is becoming increasingly international: starters from 13 countries want to make their mark on the multinational fleet with their performances and stories one year after the anniversary edition in mid-September (start: 16 September). The anticipation is just as pronounced among the newcomers as it is among the long-time favourites.

The proportion of German starters for 2022 was just over 60 per cent shortly before the list of participants for this year was finalised. The Silverrudder enjoys cult status among German sailors. Philip Cossen, known as a knowledgeable Silverrudder commentator and a participant himself in 2022, says: "The Silverrudder is a race for the sailor's bucket list." Those who do not yet have a starting place can still hope for a second chance: a few handful of returned tickets should still be available in the summer on a date that has not yet been set.

A reminder of the most important figures from last year: the maximum 450 participants were also registered for the tenth edition. 29 cancelled their participation before the start. 67 stayed away from the races - mostly out of respect for the predicted harsh winds - without cancelling. 354 boats started the Rund-Fünen-Race, 329 reached the finish line. New records were set in all seven classes just in time for the anniversary. They will be hard to beat this year.

Screenwriter and author Jan von der Bank brings his very own records to the starting line: the 55-year-old from Eutin is starting his first Silverrudder with a self-built Berckemeyer 31 Classic. Click here to download the PDF of the YACHT on-site visit to the garage where Jan von der Banks' classic sports boat was built (please click!). For skipper and boat, the Silverrudder will mark the first major regatta start together. For successful Contender sailor Jan von der Bank, it will also be his first solo outing in an overnight race. His anticipation is huge: "In the past few years, I've flattened my nose at the screen during the Silverrudder starts. There were lots of friends there. They were allowed to sail - and I didn't have a boat." Jan von der Banks' beautifully sporty, classic, custom-built boat has been entered in the Silverrudder Medium category for the upcoming edition. "We're naturally one of the smaller boats," he says, recognising the challenge. Jan von der Bank knows the area around Funen from sailing with crews. Now it's just over 192 days until he can experience his Silverrudder solo debut. As a soloist, he is also looking forward to the legendary togetherness of the Silverrudder family: "The communal before and after is part of what makes a Silverrudder participation so special."

His good name accompanies Jan von der Bank on the Silverrudder course, at least as an extremely promising omen: three of the current seven record holders have Jan as their first name. These are exactly the three who will be competing and chasing records again this year: Jan Andersen with his Marlin 33 "Black Marlin" in the large multihulls, Jan Møller with the Frers 49 "Dream on" in the XL keelboat division and Jan B Hansen with his new Aeolos P30 with the well-known name, which should once again be the programme: "The Beast". Click here for the list of the seven current record holders and their predecessors (please click!). The Aeolos P30 will be on show twice, as Aeolos concept father and "Speed Junky" Hans Genthe will also be competing in the small keelboats with his racy new "Aeolos" lightweight.