Last Friday and Saturday, a three-man crew took third place in the Tour 1 class of the "24-uurs"! Bram, Niels and Jur braved the changeable weather. "A bit cold and wet, but above all a lot of fun!" was the first reaction of Bram, the skipper during the race.

The lee of trees made the start in Enkhuizen difficult. The Off-Duty sailed their entire race north of the Houtribdijk. Except for the storm jib, all sails have experienced the open air. "The route was a puzzle every leg, due to the changeable wind".

Nothing was left to chance. The outboard engine was allowed to rest in the front end for the entire race and the sleeping position was always on the high side. The passengers had to make do with two sessions of rest, each an hour and a half. From what could be gathered, not much sleep was had during that time.

The finish in Medemblik was, as it is every year, very impressive. The whole quay is full of people and everyone, including the back runners, are welcomed with cheers. The Off-Duty finished half an hour early. "But that was the right decision." The wind had dropped quite a bit at the finish and there was a real risk that they would otherwise incurred penalty miles for arriving too late.

There was also a party on the quay after the race. After 24 hours of continuous sailing, the sleep-deprived crew could finally rest. But not before a proper sausage and cheese scenario!

From campus to start

Being able to sail the 24 hours was quite an involved process. Not only was it necessary to get the boat race-ready by installing a three-color top light and life buoy on the boat, but the boat was still in Enschede at the opening market of the Kick-In 2 days before the race! With joint forces the boat was already in the water in Lelystad the day after the opening market, after which it sailed to the starting port of Enkhuizen.

Sunday afternoon, after handing out the trophies, the Off-Duty sets sail back to Akkrum. The boat goes via Enkhuizen and many things are unloaded there. Niels and Jur also get off there. Bram sails the boat back to Akkrum.

Not the first time

All in all, we can look back fondly at this edition of the "24-uurs". Last year the Off-Duty had already sailed the "24-uurs". Back then, Kasper, Hylke and Jelle just missed out on the prizes. In the same class as this year they finished in fourth place. Previously, Jaffa also participated in the 24-hour race, but she did not sail in recent years because she is usually at sea around this time. The open water was the reason of absence this year as well.