On the final day of the 2019 Heineken Regatta, Austrian team Godspeed had one goal: beat the Germans. (Two of the Godspeed crew members are German themselves, but any patriotic fraternity was left at home that day.) With first place out of reach, held soundly by the undefeated Lady Mariposa Racing, Godspeed and Aquis Granus were in a tight race for second place, having traded seconds and thirds for the past three days. Godspeed is part of a teaching program that allows sailors to come together, train on the boat and race in major regattas like the Heineken, but you’d never know the sailors had only just met. They race like they’ve been teammates—and talk like they’ve been friends—for years. The only thing that could slow them down was an exploded gennaker on the last leg, but with enough of a lead, they still managed to finish ahead of Aquis Granus and secure second place in the ORC Performance Class.

When not racing with Godspeed, boat captain and instructor, Peter Steinkogler, is also working on an exciting sister project: designing and building the most efficient hydrofoil possible. For more information on this project, visit v-rex.eu/en/

March 2019