Circumnavigator Pieske was awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany just last year. And specifically for his commitment to the Euro Viking project: in recent years, Pieske has sailed and rowed several times with young people along the old trade routes of the Vikings, from the Baltic coasts via rivers to the Black Sea.
The trips always had a therapeutic, experiential educational approach: many of the mostly unemployed young people came from broken homes, had committed offences or had experience with drugs. The aim was to teach them to take responsibility, solve problems independently and open up new perspectives for their future lives.
Burghard Pieske recently made the headlines when he capsized in the Pacific with a large outrigger boat, a Proa. With the "Ana-Varu", which he had built in Heiligenhafen, he wanted to sail in stages from Taiwan to Easter Island. And he did this without any technical aids, using only the stars. Although his endeavour ended prematurely as a result of the accident, he nevertheless received a great deal of recognition, particularly in the South Seas.
Pieske: many projects, some of which seem crazy, but always linked to a mission
Other of his sometimes seemingly risky projects were more successful: in the early 1990s, he sailed from Denmark to the Faroe Islands, Iceland, Greenland and Newfoundland to New York with a crew in a longboat in the footsteps of the legendary Viking Leif Eriksson. He later sailed 5,000 nautical miles through the South Seas single-handed in an open seven-metre boat, this time in the wake of Bounty captain William Bligh.
Pieske's sailing career began with a self-built catamaran. Accompanied by Helga Seebeck and Ludwig Bayreuther, he sailed around the world on the "Shangri-La" for ten years from 1977 to 1987. He was the first sailor to round Cape Horn with a yacht sailing under the German flag. For this he had already received Trans-Ocean's highest honour in 1980, the TO Prize, which the association awards every year.
Gabriele and Lutz Pestel: 15 years travelling the world's oceans with "SuAn"
This year, the TO Prize went to Gabriele and Lutz Pestel from Chemnitz. Their originally planned four-year circumnavigation turned into the "Welt(be)segelung" project, during which they logged almost 85,000 nautical miles.
An outstanding navigational achievement was the rarely sailed Pacific round trip from Australia via South Korea, Japan, Alaska and back to the South Pacific. Even a rig loss in Japan after a collision with a fisherman could not stop them. They spent four and a half years in the South Pacific between the Marquesas, Australia and New Zealand.
During the coronavirus pandemic, the Pestels circumnavigated New Zealand twice, which is one of their favourite destinations alongside Alaska, Vanuatu and Fiji. After more than 15 years, they finally crossed their course in April 2024 with their "SuAn", a Reinke 13M, off St Lucia - and were therefore able to receive the World Circumnavigator Award in addition to the TO Prize.
Three other crews were also honoured with the circumnavigation award: The Arnold family travelled around the world with two school-age children. Afterwards, they returned with many different impressions, from the beauty of Patagonia to negative influences such as the depressing extent of plastic pollution.
Heike and Udo John spent six years exploring the world together and enjoying the endless freedom. Ulrich Fingscheidt fulfilled a childhood dream by sailing around the world for six years.
Marcus Warnke, Chairman of the TO:
Our members' journeys are always an inspiration and motivation. Even though navigation and communication have become easier thanks to digitalisation, the oceans still remain a great adventure.
This year's Race Award went to Lina Rixgens and Sverre Reinke. As the first Germans in the new Class 30, the duo took second place with their Sun Fast 30 OD at the Drheam Cup and seventh place at the highly competitive Doublehanded Offshore World Championship for mixed teams.
A special prize was awarded to Philipp Hympendahl, who travelled 8,700 nautical miles within eight months on a solo Atlantic voyage. Three crews also received a TO medal in recognition of their "challenging voyages".
Membership figures continue to grow - and a gradual rejuvenation
Trans-Ocean e. V. is an association of blue water and long-distance sailors whose aim is to promote ocean sailing. With over 5,000 members, TO is one of the largest sailing clubs in the world. Many of the club members are on extended sailing trips, ocean crossings or circumnavigations.
Marcus Warnke
Like many clubs, the Trans-Ocean is currently undergoing a major change. We are delighted that our seminars and Lossegler meetings are appealing to more and more young people and families.
Trans-Ocean also maintains around 180 volunteer-run bases worldwide as contact points for its members. In addition, Trans-Ocean promotes offshore racing, equips sailors for long voyages and annually awards some of the most important prizes and honours for special achievements in offshore sailing.
