Globe40: Inspired by Boris Herrmann - Burke and Fink sail around the world!

Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink want to conquer the world. They will be the youngest German two-handed crew to start at Globe40 on 31 August! Personally inspired and strongly motivated by Boris Herrmann, the young up-and-comers and shipyard founders of Next Generation Boating in Hamburg are taking the biggest and most exciting step of their careers to date.

"World premiere" for Burke and Fink at Globe40

As Boris Herrmann once did with Felix Oehme on "Beluga Racer" in the Portimão Global Race 2008/2009, the Class40 sailors Burke and Fink want to circumnavigate the world in pairs for their premiere. The Globe40 will take them from and to Lorient around the world. At the age of just 23 and 26, Melwin Fink and Lennart Burke will be the youngest crew in German sailing history to tackle such a challenge at the starting signal.

Boris Herrmann and Felix Oehme were both 27 years old when they set off 17 years ago. For Herrmann, his first of six circumnavigations marked the breakthrough to a global career and his rise to sea hero status in the eyes of the German and international public. Today, Herrmann's Malizia team is one of the largest and most important racing teams in international offshore sailing.

Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink are still on the move. The two young ocean strikers, who made a name for themselves in the 2021 mini-transat, only decided to embark on their round-the-world adventure a few weeks ago. A long phone call between Boris Herrmann and Lennart Burke on 17 April was the deciding factor. Burke had called Herrmann to ask for advice on finding sponsors for the Class40 crew's originally planned regatta programme.

Boris Herrmann has shown the way

This led to an intensive discussion about the best way forward. With words that were as passionate as they were convincing, Germany's best-known sailor advised the dynamic duo to sail around the world. Boris Herrmann also looked back at his own past and told his sporting successors: "Perhaps it wasn't so different for me back then than it is for you now."

Like Burke and Fink this year, Herrmann also initially had his sights set on a series of individual races 17 years ago and was looking for partners. His approach: "I really wanted to sail the Artemis Transat back then and was looking for sponsors. One said he couldn't support a single race like that. Rather a two-year programme."

Boris Herrmann responded to this request and reorganised himself. His recollection: "So I combined the Transat and other races with the Portimão Global Race around the world. The potential sponsor still backed out, but the programme with a total of four races was good and had a solid basis. I then found Beluga as a sponsor."

A new XL adventure for fans

Looking back on this early phase of his own development, Boris Herrmann says today: "It was the race around the world that also reached people outside the sailing scene. After the Portimão Global Race, there was a WDR documentary by Wiel Verlinden that was shown more often than almost any other on German television. That showed me: The exciting story is not the transats, it's the circumnavigation!"

I am convinced that Germany is ready for another Class40 crew around the world." Boris Herrmann

According to Boris Herrmann, he will also be very happy to follow and watch the adventure himself. Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink had already considered taking part in the Globe40 before the inspiring conversation with Boris, but initially rejected the plan due to a lack of financial resources. Instead, they wanted to compete in individual races this year such as the Normandy Channel Race (from 25 May), the Rolex Fastnet Race (from 26 July) and, above all, the Transat Café L'Or as the highlight in autumn with their Pogo 40 S4, which was christened in October 2022.

But since the conversation with Boris Herrmann, everything has suddenly changed. What remains is the Baltic 500 (from 29 May) and the Fastnet race in the summer. The planned Transat gives way to the circumnavigation. Instead of 3750 Atlantic nautical miles, Burke and Fink now want to master the Globe40 over 30,000 nautical miles. The great adventure will take them around eight months.

Globe40: Caught fire, opportunity seized

"I told them not to worry so much about money. Then they just sleep on the boat during the regatta stops and don't fly home," says Boris Herrmann. Before his ascent, he also had to sail through deep valleys without money or support, before first slowly and then rapidly climbing up the ladder. This is what Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink are now working on in their enormous endeavour.

"Boris gave the important impetus. And the kick up the arse...", says Lennart Burke with a smile. According to Melwin Fink, the decision to circumnavigate the globe gave them "much more fire and motivation". According to the former law student, you have to "make the most of your opportunities". After going public, Burke and Fink have a good 100 days to prepare for the start of the race.

I will be their biggest fan!" Boris Herrmann

The conditions for sailing around the world are as challenging as they are promising. Like-minded friends Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink founded their company Next Generation Boating on 4 November 2022. They jokingly refer to the date as "our wedding anniversary". Melwin Fink laughingly expresses how much they trust each other: "We started young because we want to make it to the Iron Wedding." That would mean working together for 65 years.

Mini-Transat: How the journey together began

They got to know each other six years ago during the initial preparations for the Mini-Transat 2021. "We first noticed each other because we both wanted to sail the Mini-Transat. I had this old red Mini, a Lombardi Zero design from 2006, which I wanted to sail in a regatta in Poland and was looking for a co-skipper. I messaged Lennart on Facebook and he was immediately on board. We even won the race in Gdynia in 2019. Our only win so far..." says Melwin Fink with a grin, recounting the companions' first sailing coup.

After that, they initially went their separate ways again. The younger boy still had to complete his A-levels in 2020 and only returned to France the night after his final exams in the summer. By then, Burke had already been living in Lorient for almost six months, where he had immersed himself in the mini-scene with the most modest of means.

Fink was still studying for his law degree, which kept him very busy in the winter of 2020/2021. "It wasn't until 2021 that we lived next door to each other in our small bungalows (editor's note: this refers to converted buses) in Lorient and spent a lot of time together. It was almost like an open-air flat share and probably bonded us the most," says Lennart Burke, recalling their time together in Lorient's famous harbour, La Base.

Starting your career in a mini-transat

"The whole Mini-Transat construct - the preparation, the boat search, the search for sponsors, the training and the race itself - has really left its mark on you," says Melwin Fink today. "You organise your entire life around it, leave everything behind you, go full throttle. You always think about the boat and the money, less about yourself," says Lennart Burke, describing this initial phase in the mini scene. Right from the start, he saw it as a stepping stone to the next higher Class40.

Melwin Fink, on the other hand, initially competed to realise his pure mini dream and then wanted to continue his law studies. But things turned out very differently after his podium finish. Melwin Fink stormed to third place on the podium in the Mini-Transat with a daring assault ride on the first of two stages as a teenager.

Lennart Burke took 20th place and, as a much higher-ranked starter, had to pay hard tribute to a persistent doldrums, but was also able to show his class in phases as twentieth in the field of 65 series boats. After both had handed over their Minis to new owners following the race, Lennart Burke dedicated himself full-time to building the team's current Class40 in 2022, which was completed and christened at Pogo in October 2022.

The switch to Class40

The ambitious project succeeded in cooperation with the owner and client Dr Joachim Wünning, who gave Burke the boat for a fair charter after it had been built. Nevertheless, the proud Burke was initially left with a racy new racing yacht, but no sponsors. Fink, meanwhile, had built a new Mini, which he lost dramatically on the first crossing to the Balearic Islands.

He will never forget the night in April 2022 when he and fellow sailor Marc Menzebach had to be rescued from distress at night by an MRCC helicopter after their mast broke in stormy winds. Fink didn't give up after that, built a new Mini straight away and returned to Spain for training, but he had run out of time to collect qualifying miles for the planned second Mini Transat participation.

While this series of unfortunate events slowed Fink down, Burke stood in front of his Pogo 40 S4 without any money. What to do? "I asked Melwin if he could come. And Pogo, if they had a place for us to sleep. Then we started to finish the boat," Burke remembers today. Pogo was very supportive of the young Germans and let them sleep on a demonstration boat. The sales manager often bought the burnt-out sailors a small lunch.

Pogo provides touching support for the German duo

The Benjamine Class 40 rocket was allowed to lie on the pogo jetty for almost a month and a half for nothing. Burke and Fink worked day and night, finalising the boat - and from then on tackled regattas as a pair. "We rocked it together, threw our networks, our sponsors and everything else together," says Burke.

We turned two projects into one." Lennart Burke

Burke and Fink took maximum initiative to become masters of their own Class40 campaign, which is now facing its biggest challenge in Globe40. Accompanied by ground rules that they established together for their future collaboration. They developed their team name Next Generation Sailing and the company name Next Generation Boating the evening after the delivery of the Pogo over gin & tonic in the saloon of the new Class40.

The initial chronic lack of money for the operation of the boat, which already amounts to around 150,000 euros a year without regatta participation, will be answered in the future with creative ideas, repair services for other sailors, transfers, the chartering of Melwin Fink's top mini, individual engagements as professionals or coaches and the proceeds from taking paying guests on board.

Around the world with the Class40 in the Globe40

Because they would rather put all the sponsorship money into the boat than pay themselves a salary, the connoisseurs and experts also buy, overhaul and sell minis in France. "What has always motivated us is the possibility of entering the professional league," says Lennart Burke.

The Class40, with which they now want to sail around the world under the team name Next Generation Around the World, is both the origin and symbol of their shared history. Their history includes some highs such as fourth place in the stormy Fastnet Race 2024, but also painful lows such as the breakage of the forestay during the last test for the Transat Québec Saint-Malo 2024, which brutally cancelled the start of the race after extensive preparations.

Nevertheless, Burke and Fink have come a long way. On land, too. The shipyard, where they buy and sell, repair, equip and tune regatta yachts, is flourishing in Hamburg, including sailmaking and rigging with a state-of-the-art online rigging shop. The young company Next Generation Boating is built without an investor, without credit or debt.

The company's own Hamburg shipyard is its home port

"We started with my father's tools. He had a well-equipped hobby workshop in Bad Salzuflen," says Melwin Fink. The company grew in small, solid steps and with the help of the trust of customers and partners. "For the first year and a half, we ploughed all our income back into the business, didn't pay ourselves a salary and lived off our savings," Melwin Fink looks back.

Rigging, optimisation, repairs and advice form the core business of the 13-strong shipyard team and a number of freelance experts, in addition to the launching and running of boats. Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink face the dual challenge of being entrepreneurs and sailing professionals with hard work, a lot of passion and a strong network. Located not far from Hamburg Airport, the shipyard is considered by regatta sailors to be a small but fine forge with a big heart.

After everyone tackled everything during the departure, Burke and Fink are now increasingly taking on the work according to their strengths. Fink explains: "For example, I do everything that has to do with ropes, electronics and electrics. We do boatbuilding in pretty much the same way. Lennart does everything that has to do with sailing." Responsibility for remote assembly and repair jobs is taken on by one person at a time.

Courage as a joker up your sleeve for Globe40

Markus "Porky" Mehlen, master boat builder and operations manager, is the centrepiece of the shipyard. Next Generation Boating's first apprentice has already passed his journeyman's examination. Together with a managing director yet to be hired and the Next Generation Boating team, the shipyard will now have to manage without its young fathers for eight months from August. "We have candidates in our sights for this. We will," says Lennart Burke.

Courage remains the most important joker up Burke and Fink's sleeves. They made the bold decision in April to sail around the world without a secure budget. But what is not could still become reality precisely because of this courageous decision. Boris Herrmann also ventured on his first circumnavigation with a mini-budget and then achieved maximum success by winning the Portimão Global Race. "I think it's great that the guys are doing this! With their decision, they can now present themselves confidently to sponsors."

If we had money to spare, I would sponsor them immediately." Boris Herrmann

Boris Herrmann's assessment: "I think it's the best sponsorship opportunity you can have this winter. And a real stroke of luck for fans. The story is so good: two refreshing and dynamic guys fighting for their dream."

Mentor Boris Herrmann took a similar path

Mentor Herrmann vividly remembers the magic of his own first lap around the globe: "It is one of my favourite regatta memories. That first time... pure and simple. There were so many volunteers in the harbours around the world who gave us such a warm welcome. The good spirit of Corinthian Sailing prevailed. Then these impressive nature experiences at sea. It was extraordinary!"

Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink are now heading for such an experience with determination, but also respect. A circumnavigation on a Class40 is an extreme challenge. In contrast to 60-foot-long Imocas, which Boris Herrmann describes as "power machines thrashing through the sea", on a Class40 "everything is half the size".

Herrmann knows from his own experience: "A Class40 is like a dinghy compared to the Imoca. Felix and I were knocked over a few times in the Portimão Global Race. The boat was thrown completely onto its side while we clung on inside. Of course, that's not without its problems..."

Intrepidity characterises the Globe40 team

On paper, Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink's Class40 is one of the top five boats in the Globe40. The chance of a podium finish at the first attempt is real. "As always, we want to do as well as possible," says Melwin Fink. "They still have to rebuild the boat a bit". This will be possible "relatively cheaply" at their own shipyard. "Where others spend hundreds of thousands, we want to do it with a mid-five-figure sum," says Fink with the fearlessness that has characterised the team since day one.

We will definitely go through with it. No matter what happens."Melwin Fink

There are not many people between the ages of 21 and 24 who have the confidence to set up a boatyard and boat trade that is already flourishing. And certainly not many who manage to do so in parallel with their sporting career. "There is this dream of two young people who want to sail around the world, tell their story and make their mark. Now we're asking sponsors and fans: do you want to be part of it?" says Lennart Burke calmly, looking ahead to the race, for which 16 teams are on the entry list.

Burke's partner Emilia Vaes supports the team as Social Media Manager and has accompanied the crew several times as a hard-boiled on-board reporter. She sees the impact of the decision in favour of circumnavigation on a daily basis: "It's mega how Lennart and Melwin's eyes have started to light up again. It's a great campaign to be part of now. It feels like the next big step."

Conquer the world with the Globe40

During the shipyard break-up, Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink were "Hamburg's most famous sailing flat-share", living under the same roof. They now still live in the same street in the Hanseatic city, but in separate flats with their respective partners. Melwin Fink's girlfriend Elena Schultheis also supports their plans to sail around the world. The budding circumnavigators will hardly have a moment's peace between now and the start of the Globe40 prologue from Lorient to Cadiz on 31 August. There is so much to do!

"We have to get our whole lives under control," says Melwin Fink, looking ahead to the race with stops in Cadiz, Cape Verde, La Réunion, Sydney, Valparaiso in Chile, Recife and the hoped-for happy return to Lorient. Boris Herrmann's Malizia team is also based in the cradle of French sailing. "We'll see how we can support them," announced the 43-year-old pioneer of the budding circumnavigators.

On their Class40, Burke and Fink are certain that they could even complete most tasks blindfolded. "The feeling of becoming one with the boat, of merging with the boat, you only get that after a few days. It's incredibly nice when it sets in," explains Lennart. He soon gets a whole world of this feeling alongside Melwin Fink.

Project presentation at the Ancora Yacht Festival

Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink will be presenting their project to the public for the first time at the Ancora Yacht Festival. In Neustadt, they want to show the boat in its new look and present their plans at the berth of their Pogo on 23 May at 12.30 pm.

How it all began - two years ago, Lennart Burke presented the Class40 for the first time on YACHT TV in March 2023, which is now set to take her around the world after another intensive refit:

Read more about this:

• Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink: The new German dream team in the Class 40