Sailing Challenge: An extraordinary kind of team building

A stormy start

From Tunis to Sardinia: The first day and night were tough: Wind up to 28 knots, 3 meter high waves, the boats tilted, and the first crew members caught seasickness as soon as we left the port of Bizerte, says IT architect Fabio Andree Scheurel. So many people lay flat on one or the other boat that some skippers took on several night shifts in a row.

Fabio: “As bad as it looked at times, really every sailor got back on his feet and was able to experience the beautiful moments. No one canceled the trip, on the contrary, in the end some of them, despite the experience, really wanted to sail and started making plans for their sailing license.”

Repair work in Sardinia

Our crews reached the coast of Sardinia on a bright blue morning, the sea has calmed down and our colleagues felt better again. Extensive repair work and refueling of the boats in the port to be well prepared for the three-day onward journey to Mallorca.

Even though the stays in the ports lasted longer than planned and the crews arrived in Valencia a day later, that didn’t dampen the good mood in any way. “The weather was good, and so was the feeling,” IT consultant Andreas Bäurle tells us.

Eleven people in a small space

“We fished together, filleted fish, shared stories, alternated night shifts every three hours and trusted each other completely. That was team building from the other planet – with eleven people in a very small space.” The 1.93 meter tall Andi shared the 1.20 meter narrow double bed with skipper Kristofer.

Fabio: It depends on the inner attitude

The most important thing on the Sailing challenge? For Fabio it was very clear: “Expect the unexpected: Since you can’t just call someone on the boat and ask for help, it almost all depends on your inner attitude. If a sheet tears at night in strong winds and rough seas, it is repaired. When the body gets seasick, you have to go through it. When the jellyfish behind the boat fluoresce in the dark, you enjoy the moment.”

There were many such moments, Fabio continues: “Sailing under the Milky Way. Go swimming in the middle of the sea with no land in sight. Celebrating an impromptu party on three boats lying side by side in a turquoise bay off Mallorca.”

Finally, our colleagues from the Valencia office welcomed the sailing team with a big party in the marina.

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