Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink: The new German dream team in the Class 40
Andreas Fritsch
· 28.03.2023
There are such incredible moments of happiness in life that you hardly realise when they happen. For Lennart Burke, there was one such moment in 2021 when one of his greatest wishes came true: He successfully completed the Mini-Transat, finishing eighth in the second stage. At just 21 years old, the Stralsund native from the Melges 24 class had fulfilled a lifelong dream in three years. His phone rang in the Caribbean while he was still high on adrenalin after his arrival.
"It was a German sailor and entrepreneur, Joachim Wünning, who was following my Mini-Transat project and whom I knew from a performance training session on his Pogo 10.50." The two of them liked each other straight away. And this sailor then said on the phone that he had ordered a brand new Class 40 S4 from Pogo and would be happy to make it available to Burke for a charter fee so that he could enter what is probably the most active and technically professional offshore boat class among the Imocas.
"I couldn't really realise it at the time, I was totally flabbergasted. Of course, I said yes straight away. But after that, I called all my closest confidants and talked to them about it for a long time. I really had to make sure I stayed grounded."
After the Open 60s of the Vendée Globe, the Class 40s are the most important step to take if you want to catch up with the really big names in offshore regatta sailing. Like so many others, Boris Herrmann has also taken this route.
Even in the harbour, the Class 40 looks as if it is about to take off
Now, a year and a half later, Lennart Burke is standing on the jetty in Cascais, Portugal, in front of his brand new "Meganisi", named after a Greek island on which his supporter Wünning is building a sailing centre. And you still get the feeling that he can't quite believe his luck. Winter training is on the programme, getting to know the boat, mastering it in all weathers. YACHT sails with him for a day.
And what an aggressive design is floating at the jetty. The Pogo 40 S4 has the beefy, brute-looking, full bow that all top boats in this class now have. The mast is positioned far aft, has an impressive nine-degree drop and the raised bow floats 1.5 metres above the water surface. Even in the harbour, the Class 40 looks as if it is about to take off and can hardly run for power.
And then Melwin Fink comes round the corner, the surprise third place finisher of the last mini-Transat, who won the first stage in style with a hussar ride. In fact, the duo of Burke and "Meganisi" has now become a trio. And once again it was a perfect fit. "After the mini-Transat, I actually wanted to start a new campaign for the next edition straight away, but that didn't work out, so I started studying," says the now 20-year-old. And then he got a call. From Lennart Burke.
Two of the best young German offshore sailors in one team
"We've been friends since the Mini-Transat, and many of the regattas in the Class 40 scene are doublehanded. As I had realised that Melwin had to put his project on hold due to a lack of money, it was obvious to ask him if we wanted to do it together." And so it came about that two of the best young German offshore sailors now form a powerful team.
On top of that, it's also a question of budget, as they both openly admit. They want to sail five major races this year alone, the Normandy Channel Race, Spi Quest, Les Sables-d'Olonne-Horta, Fastnet and the Transat Jacques Vabre in the autumn as a major highlight, and first have to gain a foothold in the class and warm up to the boat. That has its price.
We've done everything ourselves so far. You can do it for a year, then you're burnt out." (Melwin Fink)
"Ideally, we are looking for a budget of 150,000 euros for one year." And the main sponsor is still missing. The two are currently making ends meet, Burke has sold his Mini and Fink has chartered his. In addition to training, they both do jobs, ferry yachts, offer training sessions and take guests with them on the Pogo on the route from France to the winter training camp near Lisbon. This secures their starts in the regattas. But: "Of course, this is not sustainable," explains Melwin Fink. "We've done everything ourselves so far, we're boatman, manager, skipper and are constantly tinkering with the boat to make improvements. You can do that for a year, then you're burnt out."
The Class 40 from Pogo is a real weapon
And first of all, they have to get really fast with the Class 40 - after all, it's a completely different world, the Pogo is a real weapon. The French shipyard has hit the bull's eye with the Guillaume Verdier design from 2021. It sailed onto the podium at the last Transat, after which demand exploded.
"That was really weird," says Lennart Burke. "The shipyard boss wanted to get to know me before it was really clear that we were getting the boat. They wanted someone with ambitions to sail it," he explains with a grin.
We want to get to know this "weapon". We head out onto the Atlantic in beautiful sunshine and initially only around ten knots of wind. The two of them are already surprisingly well-rehearsed as they scurry about the boat, setting the main and J2, and later the very futuristic-looking transparent Code Zero. It's a strange experience in light winds. With little speed, still around seven knots, the voluminous bow of the "Meganisi" literally smashes into the waves. The whole ship vibrates and labours, the rig shakes. It feels clumsy and tough, especially when the wave comes from diagonally forwards.
But as we get further out of the wind cover of the coast and the wind picks up steadily and drops a little, the ship suddenly comes to life. The bow begins to push onto its wave. First the frequency of the still very noticeable bumps increases, then suddenly it's time: the boat easily shakes off its stern wave and the bow wave on the left and right gets higher and higher. Then come the first 18-metre gusts, then 20-metre gusts, and the boat shakes and then races off like a bulldog gone wild. It throws monstrous wave crests to the left and right, which splash into the sail high above the foot of the Code Zero. All classic sailing experience tells us that this cannot be fast, but the opposite is the case. With a wind angle of around 90 to 100 degrees, the Pogo S4 sweeps along at a speed of 18.7 knots in gusts of 23 or even 25 knots.
The latest Class 40s are faster than old Imocas
No wonder that the latest Class 40s are now faster in good conditions than the older Imocas without foils. Top speed of the two so far: 21 knots. Just like the larger racers, the boat sails as if on rails under autopilot with the twin rudder system. Although: the windward rudder attached to the stern is usually folded up.
Burke and Fink see my incredulous amazement and grin. "That's a cool boat, isn't it?" It certainly is. We want to know how they are experiencing the transition as mini-sailors after just four months of training. Will it be a long learning curve? How do you get to grips with such a new projectile?
It's much more physical, we both need to build up more muscle mass!" (Melwin Fink)
"It's different, much more physical, we've already realised that we both need to build up more muscle mass," says Melwin with a grin. "The sail areas here are quickly 200, 300 per cent larger. If something goes wrong with the mini, you can even pull a sail out of the water that has gone overboard during recovery. That's no longer possible here!" But apart from that, the boat actually sails like a mini. Just like on steroids.
The full bow is really a revelation for someone who has not yet experienced the principle. The boat simply comes out of the water incredibly fast with the bow up. And this despite the fact that a Class 40 is far from being a high-tech lightweight monster like an Imoca due to strict rules.
The strict class rules of the Class 40
It is a composite construction made of multiaxial fibreglass fabrics with a foam core, manufactured in vacuum construction, but with a normal T-steel keel with a lead bomb underneath. It cannot be swivelled, so there is no need for daggerboards, and foils are prohibited. Only the rig and bowsprit are made of carbon fibre, everything else is normal glass laminate, not even epoxy is allowed. The electronics on board must come from the suppliers' shelves and must not cost more than 20,000 euros in total. Customised products, titanium, PBO staging - all prohibited. Cost control is an important fundamental maxim of the class.
Although that is of course relative. The Pogo costs 530,000 euros without extras and above all without the eight authorised sails, which easily swallow up another 100,000 euros. Burke and Fink sail with goods from Incidence Sails. The main is a 3D full laminate in one piece with four rows of reefs. According to the class rules, the latter does not require a try sail. Then come the jibs (Jib, J) 1, 2, 3, a code zero and three asymmetric space sheet sails, furled and attached to the long bowsprit. An expensive wardrobe, but the bottom line is that a Class 40 regatta ready only costs around a tenth of an Imoca. This is another reason why half of the class is still made up of wealthy amateurs who enjoy the powerful boats and seek the adventure of long-distance regattas.
As designers, the big names in the class are just as busy as in the Imocas: Guillaume Verdier, Sam Manuard, VPLP and old warhorses like Marc Lombard or newcomers like David Raison ensure the further development of the class and some innovations such as the full bow.
The class is good for huge starting fields. At the last Route du Rhum transatlantic regatta, which has the same status for the Class 40 as the Vendée Globe has for the Imocas, 55 boats were at the start. A whole 17 more than in the Imocas.
Team spirit instead of competition
Is the rivalry in the Class 40 as strong as in the Imocas? "No, the class has retained a nice team spirit, similar to the Mini-Transat," says Lennart Burke. When it was clear that he was switching to the class, he simply approached skippers, was allowed to look at their boats and asked them about their experiences. Swiss skipper Simon Koster, who has already finished on the podium in transatlantic races, then simply invited them on the 220-mile crossing of his Class 40 to the start of the Route du Rhum.
"He explained a lot of manoeuvres to us, had us change sails, stood next to us and gave us advice. It was super instructive," enthuse the two new Class 40 rookies. For example, the tip on how best to keep all the halyards apart at night. "Each sail here has its own halyard with a halyard lock," explains Melwin Fink. It's super important that each one has its own attachment point on the mast, which everyone has internalised, otherwise things can go wrong at night when you're overtired. It is little things like this that they have learnt so much about.
"What I found most impressive was how he was absorbed in sailing. He constantly trimmed the sails in 24 hours, checked the performance via software and kept an eye on the routing. He really lives it, he slept maybe one hour in 24 hours," says Melwin.
Operation of the software can be decisive
And of course, a Class 40 also brings a whole new dimension for mini-transat sailors. It has modern tactical and weather software on board: Adrena. This is a completely new tactical variant, say both sailors. "But also a welcome one," says Melwin. "In mini-transat, you often sail with totally rough weather data because it's too rare and the spatial resolution of the models is far too high."
The latest data is always on board via a satellite connection. You have to be able to operate the software with polar data, routing variants and sail configurations perfectly, otherwise you quickly find yourself at a disadvantage. Both are already fully familiar with the technology. They are really happy with the Pogo 40 S4 so far, especially as Lennart Burke was able to visit the shipyard several times during the construction phase and make changes. For example, the rig was fitted with two pairs of spreaders instead of one for more stability in rough seas. A fifth winch was added in the cockpit for smoother manoeuvring, and he had the two water tanks divided at the sides to allow better variation of the trim along the longitudinal axis.
"With the modern Class 40, it is extremely important to get the bow out of the wave, otherwise the boat simply doesn't run well. A 150-litre tank is also installed aft for this purpose. We also stow all the sails aft on deck during downwind courses so that the boat lifts the bow as far as possible."
Next level: Training with other Class 40 skippers
Their conclusion after the winter training is consistently positive: they have internalised all the manoeuvre sequences, know which sail combinations work well in which conditions and have refined their trim. "Now comes the next stage: we sail back to Lorient and compete with other Class 40 skippers in the first training sessions. Only then will we know where we stand!" says Melwin.
In the meantime, we sail further strokes on the Atlantic. The cockpit proves to be well protected, there are two seats just under the overhang of the cabin roof, which allow a very good view of the sails through windows directly forwards and upwards, without getting wet in rough seas. For light wind conditions or starts, backrests with glued-in foam strips are also firmly laminated to the side decks, allowing super-comfortable steering using the telescopic tiller. At the centre of everything is the central winch on a pedestal, in front of which all the lines from the foredeck arrive, reefs and tensioners. However, the halyards are operated directly on the mast and are not deflected into the cockpit.
You feel well protected in the cockpit, yet the winches and clamps are very easy to reach. The latter are mostly constrictor rigging clamps, as is also common on Imocas. In terms of fittings, everything else is at its best: Harken ST-50 winches, Karver furling systems and latch locks, Antal fittings. What is immediately noticeable when walking across the deck is the enormous amount of space on the wide bow. Ideal for changing sails, but sometimes bad for holding on, as Melwin explains.
The loud howling keel tells of the speed of the Pogo
Later on, we set sail with the big jib and unreefed main in 18 to 21 knots of wind. The boat is neutral on the tiller, just gets faster in the gusts, flies along at 15 knots, doesn't even develop rudder pressure in gusts. Impressive. The loud howling keel also indicates how fast you are. But that can be remedied with a little fine-tuning of the trailing edge, they say.
Looking along the decks on deck, you notice the three hoses on the outside of the hull. The boat has ballast tanks with 750 litres of water on each side, 150 litres in the stern. The semicircular snorkels are the tank vents. The wind slowly dies down off Cascais in the late afternoon and we gently return to the harbour.
Friendly and bright below deck
Time for a tour below deck. Anyone who dives through the narrow, watertight companionway hatch is initially surprised. Instead of the dark carbon fibre caves of many high-tech racers, a soft, yellow light awaits you. The glass-covered foam panels create a pleasant, friendly atmosphere. And what immediately catches the eye: the surfaces. Edges, laminated reinforcements - everything looks super clean and the surface finish is flawless.
"We were thrilled by that too," says Lennart Burke. "Pogo has a team that only builds the racers, and their level of quality is really great," says the German, who was at the shipyard seven times during construction to monitor the progress. What immediately catches the eye below deck, however, is the foredeck. Ten round, A-shaped struts support the deck in the foredeck area. A boatbuilding consequence of the large-volume bow, as Lennart explains.
"The large width of the bow and the strong wave impact from below make them necessary, otherwise the ship is not stiff enough. They weren't installed at the beginning, as there were many cracks and breaks in the bulkheads and stringers of the foredeck." Some Class 40s are also braced with vertical pillar-like struts; Pogo has chosen the diagonal variant.
Two buckets form the "bathroom"
Otherwise, it is spartanly bare below deck. You climb over the frames, with a beanbag between them as a seat for the sat nav computer, which can be swivelled to the respective windward side. The obligatory single-burner Jetboil gas cooker suspended from rubber bands is the kitchen, two adjustable tubular bunks are the sleeping area and a bucket is the bathroom. But wait, that's not correct! "We have two buckets, one is the toilet, the other is for showering in the cockpit!" explains Lennart with a laugh. So much hygiene is a must.
As is usual on regatta yachts, all the cables for electronics, electrics and the hoses for the ballast tanks are laid open "on plaster", ideal for reaching them in the event of problems or for replacing them when newer, better equipment is available. What immediately catches the eye on the main bulkhead, however, are the keel bolts. There are just two of them. Admittedly, they are of a massive diameter. The explanation for this is simple: "The keel flange is in a very deep, laminated recess in the hull, so the bolts really only have to hold the weight downwards, so one pair of bolts is enough." Six lithium batteries are grouped underneath, which are charged on board via the solar cells on the cabin roof or the 30 hp diesel engine.
Our exciting training trip has unfortunately come to an end. You can't help but be happy with the two sailors at what a coup they have pulled off. They both show satisfaction, ambition and ambition, and it's fun to watch them make a fresh start in the class of their dreams. And perhaps in November they will pull off the coup, and two years after their top Mini Transat result, they will be back in the Caribbean with a good result and can't believe their luck. Their goal for the Transat? "Top ten would be a dream, of course!" Then the sailing fairytale would be perfect.
