First woman winner of world sail race welcomed home
Skipper Kirsten Neuschäfer was greeted by cheers, ululation and the voices of the Isibane se Afrika choir as she arrived at the V&A Waterfront on her sail yacht Minnehaha on Friday, January 24.
Neuschäfer, who is from Gqebergha, sailed for 33 days from Madeira to bring her sail yacht home to Cape Town after she became the first woman to win the Golden Globe Race in 2022, and the first South African sailor to win a round-the-world event.
The 1968 Sunday Times Golden Globe Race is a solo, non-stop yacht race around the world with no assistance and without the use of modern technology. The route for the race is France, down the Atlantic, east-about the Southern Ocean, and back up the Atlantic to France - an approximate distance of 30 000 nautical miles and lasts anywhere from seven to nine months or more at sea.
The race is based on the first solo circumnavigation race that took place in 1968. In order to stay true to the original circumnavigation, boats are all older designs, no bigger than 36 foot.
“That's about eight months unassisted with no food drops and rain water for drinking water, and you have no modern technology - you navigate with a compass,” said Neuschäfer.
“The Southern oceans are notoriously rough with big seas and can be dangerous so storms were one of the biggest challenges - was something going to happen? Was something going to break? Am I deploying the right storm tactics to survive?”
Neuschäfer was one of 17 skippers to depart Les Sables d’Olonne for the race around the world in 2022. She was one of three to complete the race after spending 235 days alone at sea on the Minnehaha and became the only woman to ever win the race.
On Friday, an emotional Kirsten danced and clapped with the Isibane se Afrika choir before she set foot on land for the first time in over a month.
“It feels really good to bring my baby home. It’s been almost three years to the day that I first sailed her to Cape Town. I didn’t expect a welcome like this.”
Neuschäfer, who grew up in Pretoria, said as a child she never really had access to the water, but when she went to dams or to visit the seaside, she loved it. “So as a child there was just something about the water - I’ve always said I want to be on the sea or by the water, or in the water. And that’s kind of how I made my life.”
She became a professional sailor in 2006. From sailing training to sail boat deliveries, she built a diverse set of skills and experience. Along with sailing, Neuschäfer also enjoys other solitary adventures. She cycled from Europe back home to South Africa - 15 000km over approximately one year - on her own.
After the race, she had left Minnehaha, a Cape George 36-foot sailing yacht launched in 1988, in Europe, and thought about what she would do with her boat. “If you spend that much time working on a boat and it takes your life around the world, It’s a hard thing to get rid of, so I thought I would sail her home to Cape Town and see what happens.”
While Neuschäfer didn’t mind the solitude as she enjoys being alone as much as she does being around people, she said the weather was one of the biggest challenges while she was out on the ocean.
“It was difficult when things were tough, like during storms, or if there was no wind to sail and I was getting frustrated. But when things were going good, I felt like this boat was my companion”, she said as she rubbed the side of Minnehaha.
She said there may also be breakage and you need to make sure you have all the tools on board to fix things.
And after living off a simple diet of dry foods at sea, Neuschäfer said her first meal back on land would be snoek, chips and salad.
Waterfront CEO David Green said: “Sailing solo from Madeira to Cape Town is an incredible achievement, and it’s an honour to mark this occasion at the V&A Waterfront.”
About being the first woman ever to win the Golden Globe Race, Neuschäfer said: “If you choose to be a sailor or a mountain climber or whatever it is - that’s what you’ve chosen to be and being a woman is not really the focus, so don’t let anyone put you in the bottom because you’re a woman.
“When I entered the race, I was there as a sailor, not woman versus man - I arrived on equal terms as a sailor.”