Background

Stephan had recently bought a new boat and was looking simultaneously for a longer-term plan which would help him prepare for the ARC in a few years, but also to understand how best to proactively maintain his new boat to keep it in great condition.

How White Dot Sailing helped

White Dot Sailing started by visiting Stephan and the boat in Montenegro to conduct a Readiness Assessment. This gave us a complete understanding of Stephan's sailing experience, the boat set-up, and what kind of ARC adventure he is looking for - for example understanding what his power requirements will be, how many crew he wants to take onboard, and where he wants to sail after the ARC.

Taking all of this into account, we created a regular scheduled maintenance plan that Stephan can execute himself. Meanwhile, we have also created an 'action' list of areas he can consider over the next two years before his ARC.

Stephan says:

"My ambition is to do the World Arc in a few years, it’s really outside of my comfort zone but that is part of the excitement, because I know I have a lot to learn. 

As soon as I started receiving documents from the ARC on the scale of the project, I realised I needed some guidance.

Of course, I know the basics, but my boat is quite complex. When I tried to make a list of things I needed to do be well-prepared it became overwhelming.

When I get to my boat, I want to know what to look after and get the boat ready in an efficient way so we can enjoy the sailing.

Initially I found it hard to understand exactly how White Dot Sailing will help as it isn’t a fixed package, it all depends on each boat and skipper. So, we have been backwards and forwards on several phone calls, but actually going through this has increased my confidence in Will, I see he genuinely wants to help and I can rely on him. I am looking forward to working together."