Dan Lenard had aimed for 500 nautical miles, but ended up with 321.5 in the end. third attempt Christian Kargl's existing record of 495.9 nautical miles. The Austrian also sailed off Croatia in June 2016 and on a Laser Standard. Last summer, Lenard attempted to set the Guinness World Record for the longest unsupported solo non-stop voyage in a dinghy in the Ilca 7.
The much more impressive figure relates to the final duration of the venture anyway: Dan Lenard spent seven days on board, i.e. more on the edge of his Ilca 7. The 4.23 metre standard dinghy probably offered the 57-year-old around three square metres of deck space. Lenard sailed without outside help, with supplies packed and secured in advance and without mooring. The tracking confirms that he was on board for 147 hours and 41 minutes and also clocked up miles at night - sometimes while asleep, according to a press release from his foundation Vela Code.
Superyacht designer on an endurance cruise
Away from Vela Code, the Slovenian-born designer creates superyachts with and without sails as co-founder and chief designer of Nuvolari Lenard. He has designed yachts such as the 107 metre long gigasailer "Black Pearl". In 2019, Lenard crossed the Atlantic solo in a ten-metre sports boat made from recycled components in 43 days without GPS, autopilot or engine.
During his mile record attempt in the Ilca 7, only around 20 centimetres of freeboard separated him from the Adriatic Sea. However, Dan Lenard chose the Kornati islands as his record-breaking area, and there was usually a light breeze during the week. After setting off from Sukošan at 1 p.m. on 12 August, he set a north-westerly course. His endurance race also took him around Dugi Otok and Otok Kornat, two of the 89 Kornati islands. Dan Lenard's long haul can be retraced via the following link: https://cf.yb.tl/vela500miles
Sustainability principles of Vela Code
Slovenian Finn Olympian Vasilij Zbogar supported the preparations. In accordance with the principles of Vela Code, Lenard's journey was completely emission-free. No plastic bottles of water were transported, meaning that no plastic waste was produced during the entire journey.
The record-breaking trip was part of a wider initiative to promote the Vela Code Foundation and movement, which aims to raise awareness and engage water sports enthusiasts about the state of our oceans. The ultimate aim is to promote ocean conservation on a global scale.
Vela Code plans next campaign
Vela Code's next project is the refit of the VO70 "Telefonica Black", which is already well underway. The refit will follow Vela Code's basic principle of recycling, while all design and modification decisions will of course be made by Dan Lenard himself. He has already written a book about his solo transatlantic crossing, and he is certainly still processing his Ilca 7 adventure in some form. First videos are available on: https://www.instagram.com/vela.code/
Sören Gehlhaus
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