Aussie Lap update

22-year-old Gold Coast sailor Xavier Doerr 11 days in and a quarter way through his campaign, but it hasn’t been smooth sailing.

21 May 2023

Gold Coast-based youth sailor Xavier Doerr is taking on one of the most challenging solo sailing campaigns, a non-stop, unassisted, solo circumnavigation of Australia in GCCM his 21-foot Mini Transat Carbon Fibre Race Yacht called GCCM: Gold Coast City marina.

11 days in and Xavier has sailed 1600 nm which is approaching a quarter of this epic campaign done. Xavier is in great shape, however it has been far from smooth sailing. In the past 11 days he has seen whales and a lot of flying fish, he has had a close call with an illegal fishing vessel and a bunch of Albatross bird hitched a ride and sh*t all over everything on his boat.

Overnight the boat hit something which ripped a small hole in the hull and bent an outrigger diagonally. Xavier is busy today doing running repairs with epoxy and sealing up the hold.

Xavier is just a quarter of the way through his circumnavigation record attempt.

GCCM is heading over the top.

Sunset in the Gulf of Carpentaria.

Overnight he also had his big pink spinnaker up and there was a 25 knot gust which folded his spinnaker pole back. Here is his chat with Lee Randall, his shore manager about this.

Xavier left April 29 from Southport Yacht Club and he will attempt to complete his counter clockwise circumnavigation in under 50 days. Abord his 750kg blue yacht – named GCCM; Gold Coast City Marina, the circumnavigation of the enormous Australian continent feat is equivalent to one-third of a lab of the Globe or 12 Sydney Hobart Races.

Three years in the making, this second campaign could not be possible without the incredible support of generous sponsors: GCCM Gold Coast City Marina, Mass Products, B&G, Aramex, Southern Seas Marine, Waterline, Deepwater Collective, Zhik, RawCorp, Australian Framing Solutions, Evolution Sails, Rope Solutions Rigging, PredictWind, Mastervolt, RELION, Hybrid Composites, WrapIt, Classic Marine Trimming and Southport Yacht Club.

The Support Team have been posting regularly to Facebook and Instagram and Xavier has also been going LIVE facebook.com/ThelittleAussieLap2.0

FOLLOW the gigantic “Little Aussie Lap” via a Live Tracker on the website.

thelittleaussielap.com

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