Another successful year for Spirit of Canada Ocean Challenges; a 3rd place finish in the VELUX 5 Oceans Single Handed Race around the world race and a successful solo transatlantic training passage with team member Patianne Verburgh at the helm returning Active House Spirit of Canada to Canadian waters. The remainder of the 2011 summer was spent conducting two quick training runs to Bermuda.

2012 is set to be another year of challenges as we set sail once again with the training runs to Bermuda and Horta aboard the Spirit of Canada. These sessions are aimed at keeping Derek and the team competitive while preparing for the next race around the world.

Upcoming Events and Lectures

During the upcoming boat show season, Derek and his team will be making appearances at a number of Canadian boat shows and will be conducting inspirational talks about the 2010/11 VELUX 5 Oceans Race and the Spirit of Canada story. The schedule includes:

January, 2012

Nepean Sailing Club, Ottawa – Jan 11th
Ashbridges Bay Yacht Club, Toronto – Jan 12th
Toronto International Boat Show (check the Show Guide for the Speaker’s Schedule
and location) – Jan 14th – 22nd
Port Credit Yacht Club, Port Credit – Jan 18th
The Oakville Club, Oakville – Jan 19th
Frenchman’s Bay Yacht Club – Jan 24th at 8.00pm

February, 2012

Vancouver International Boat Show, Vancouver – Feb 8th – 12th
Vancouver Marine Museum Speakers Series – Feb 10th
Halifax International Boat Show – Feb 23rd – 26th

March, 2012

Moncton Boat Show, Moncton NB – Mar 23rd – 25th

Thank you for your continued interest and support.

Happy Holidays to Everyone.

Take Care,

Derek and the Spirit of Canada Ocean Challenges Team

Contact us for more information: patianne@spiritofcanada.net or call 902.531.2532

Copyright (C) 2011 SPIRIT OF CANADA OCEAN CHALLENGES All rights reserved.

Since the finish of the VELUX 5 Oceans Race in June, the past couple of months have been put to good use aboard Active House Spirit of Canada. During this period, Derek, together with intrepid sponsors aboard, have completed two offshore training sessions to Bermuda and back. Both trips were deemed a great success. A third trip ended prematurely back in Lunenburg with the threat of a close encounter with a hurricane that was fast approaching from the south.

The 2011 hurricane season has been extremely active this year and a few, like Irene, have severely threatened the East coast. Active House Spirit of Canada has been taken out of the water and safely placed in its in ground “pit” cradle at East River Marina. The Spirit of Canada shore team is now conducting a mini refit over the next few months so the boat will be ready to go sailing again in May 2012.

Award of Excellence

Last week in Oakville Ontario, the Executive Director for Ontario Sailing presented both Derek Hatfield and VELUX Canada with the 2011/2012 Sailing “Award Of Excellence” for their combined efforts in the VELUX 5 Oceans Race 2010/11. “It is great to be recognized in this manner, as the Canadian competitor in the VELUX 5 Oceans single handed race around the world and it’s great to share this award with our long standing partner VELUX Canada”, says Derek. Shown here in the picture to the right is Derek and Nels Moxness, President of VELUX Canada.

Busy Boat Show and Public Appearances Season

The busy boat show season is approaching and we are preparing a new presentation to utilize during our public appearances. The presentation will document the highlights of the most recent race around the world, the grueling VELUX 5 Oceans aboard the Open/Eco 60 Active House Spirit of Canada as well as stories from the Vendee Globe 2008 and Around Alone 2002. We have some new sailing footage and amazing photos to show as well.

Derek and the team are very interested in doing as many public appearances as possible over the coming months. These appearances are considered the backbone to the success of Spirit of Canada as we prepare our next challenge. If you or someone you know are interested in having Derek and/or Patianne speak at a yacht club, business association or corporate function, please contact us.

Derek and the Spirit of Canada team want to thank you for your continued interest and support and hope that we have a chance to thank everyone in person over the coming winter season.

Spirit of Canada Ocean Challenges

Via email: patianne@spiritofcanada.net
Via phone: 902.531.2532

Hello from Active House Spirit of Canada,

Active House Spirit of Canada has arrived safely back in Canada and sits quietly at the dock in Lunenburg, Nova Scotia. It has been a busy time for the team since the finish of the VELUX 5 Oceans single-handed race came to an end in La Rochelle, France. The last leg was a fantastic climax to the race and securing a position on the podium with a third place overall was amazing. We have Active House and a lot of people to thank for supporting Spirit of Canada and believing in us as a team.

After the end of the race, we did a couple of small repairs to the Open 60 before Patianne delivered it back to Canada by herself. It was very strange indeed helping her out of the harbour, getting the sails up and setting her off for her first transatlantic in solo mode. She has arrived in Canada safely and is much more experienced for the 16 day crossing. I flew home to get some much needed rest and time with the family after a grueling nine month race. I figure it has taken at least three weeks to clear my head from the stresses of the race.

The remainder of 2011 will be hectic as I will be finishing the Spirit of Canada book about all three single handed races around the world. At the same time we are in the planning stages to build an “Active House” here in Canada. Along with the book writing and house building, I will be attending media events and conducting speaking engagements.

At this point, I am not sure what is next for the Open 60 Spirit of Canada; it will take about three months to unwind from the Velux 5 Oceans and organize future racing plans. In the mean time we are be conducting two training trips to Bermuda with crew just to keep the boat and myself active. There are a few spots left for crew members so if anyone wants to experience a full blown Open 60 in open ocean conditions, please let me know. There are also corporate opportunities for training & branding aboard the Open 60 and for keynote speaking engagements for this year and next.

Take care,
Derek

Canadian skipper secures third position overall in solo race around the world

CANADIAN ocean racer Derek Hatfield has crossed the finish line of the final sprint of the VELUX 5 OCEANS singlehanded round the world yacht race in second place to secure a third place overall in his second successful solo circumnavigation of the globe.

The 58-year-old sailed his 60ft yacht Active House into La Rochelle, France, and across the ocean sprint five finish line at 0907 local time (0707 UTC) in fourth place, bringing this edition of the oldest and longest solo round the world race to a close.

From Mahone Bay, NS, former mountie Derek also finished on the podium of Class II in the 2003 edition of the race (then the Around Alone).

Derek completed the 3,600-mile final sprint from Charleston in South Carolina to La Rochelle in 14 days, 12 hours and 07 minutes.

Audio, images and footage will be made available later today.

-ENDS-

MEDIA NOTES TO EDITORS

Rights-free race images, video and audio available to download in high-resolution:
www.w-w-i.com/velux_5_oceans_2010_race/

For broadcast-standard video please visit www.thenewsmarket.com/Velux
If you are a first-time user, please take a moment to register. In case you have any questions, please email journalisthelp@thenewsmarket.com

For interview requests and further information on the VELUX 5 OCEANS, please contact Sarah Hames, Race Press Officer:
T: + 44 7813 009 783
E: shames@velux5oceans.com
W: www.velux5oceans.com