Sailing at the Vendée Globe: “Terrifying”: Boris Herrmann caught by lightning again

Incessant thunderstorms, torrential rain and a lightning strike – even professional adventurer Boris Herrmann was shocked. “That was one of the craziest days I’ve ever had at sea,” admitted the German extreme sailor after a moment of shock at the Vendée Globe regatta.

It sounds almost impossible, but this is the second time that Herrmann’s yacht has been struck by lightning. His boat had already been badly affected near New York in May, and this time too the impact nearby damaged the systems on the Malizia Seaexplorer.

“Immediately my screen started flashing, went black, and the autopilot shut off along with the instruments. Alarms sounded and the boat lost control and lay flat in the water. “The wind picked up again, there was more thunder and lightning, it was relentless,” Herrmann reported: “I think the sea really showed me its teeth yesterday.” He “won’t forget” this day.

The thunderstorms were violent, “with lightning from all directions,” says Herrmann

The Team Malizia skipper had been sailing toward the equator near Cabo Frio off the Brazilian coast when he was caught in the storm. The thunderstorms were violent, “with lightning from all directions,” and he had “never experienced such rain,” said Herrmann: “A few times we were lying flat on the sea and I was thrown around.”

Despite the chaos, the 43-year-old from Hamburg managed to navigate the boat through the storm and restore some of the most important systems. However, other electronic elements on board need to be repaired or replaced if possible. The consequences of the lightning strike were “not quite as bad” as they were in New York six months ago, “but it was still frightening,” he said.

It was only on Monday that Herrmann had to overcome his fear of heights and climb the 29 meter high mast to repair damage to the rigging. The German is currently in sixth place in the rankings, with Frenchman Charlie Dalin at the top ahead of his compatriot Yoann Richomme.