Poole-based Vendée Globe sailor Pip Hare is to speak at Lighthouse and share – for the first time in a public event – the highs and lows of her incredible story.
Pip is only the ninth woman in history to complete the race – more men have walked on the moon than women have completed the Vendée Globe – and in An Evening with Pip Hare on Tuesday 6 July she will share her first-hand account of sailing single-handed non-stop around the world for three months in the 24,000-mile yacht race known as the ‘Everest of the Seas’.
BBC Radio Solent’s Breakfast In Dorset presenter Steve Harris will lead a question-and-answer session so the audience will have the chance to talk to Pip directly.
“Pip is an absolute inspiration to us all, so we were absolutely delighted that she accepted our invitation to share the inside story of her incredible achievement with an audience at Lighthouse,” said Chief Executive Elspeth McBain.
“And knowing she is now set fair to take part again only adds to this amazing story.”
Pip recently announced that she has renewed her partnership with Medallia and bought a foiling IMOCA yacht for her 2024 Vendée Globe campaign. It’s a far cry from last time out when she began her 2020 campaign with no title backer and a tiny budget but having secured American software company Medallia as a sponsor just months ahead of the start of the 2020 race, she delivered an incredible race in one of the oldest boats in the fleet.
With sponsorship in place nearly four years ahead of the next Vendee Globe, Pip has a valuable jump-start on other skippers facing years of searching for funding.
Commenting on the sponsorship, Pip said: “Medallia and I have had a fantastic partnership over the last year – they made a huge difference to my 2020/21 Vendée Globe race when they joined my campaign just five months before the start of the race. So having them with me now, at the very start of my 2024 campaign is brilliant – their support has given me the chance to secure the boat that will take me round the world in about three years’ time.
“I’m now determined to spend those years training, upgrading and finessing and I can’t wait to see what Medallia and I will achieve together in the lead up to the next Vendée.”
Tickets for An Evening with Pip Hare are available at www.lighthousepoole.co.uk.
