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Vendée Globe: Benjamin Ferré (SKEMA 2015) rounds Cape Horn and begins his final stretch
Since Departing Les Sables d’Olonne on 10 November 2024, Benjamin Ferré (SKEMA 2015), a graduate of SKEMA’s Master in Management (PGE) programme, has been tackling the extraordinary challenges of this legendary race with determination. Nearly a month after rounding the Cape of Good Hope, he has now reached another iconic milestone: the legendary Cape Horn.
Like Ulysses in Homer’s Odyssey, Benjamin Ferré (currently 20th overall and second in the daggerboard class) navigates treacherous seas, where howling winds and towering waves test even the most seasoned sailors. Aboard his monohull Monnoyeur - Duo for a Job, he advances with determination, braving the ever-changing and unpredictable ocean. Reflecting on the emotional intensity of this milestone in his logbook, the SKEMA alumnus poetically wrote: "I am pierced with happiness. It fills every part of my being. [...] All the storms, the fatigue, the moments of absolute anguish, are worth enduring to experience, even once, this timeless joy."
Fortunate is He Who, Like Benjamin, Embarks on a Grand Voyage
Like Ulysses confronting Poseidon’s wrath, Benjamin now faces the challenge of navigating an unforgiving weather system—not to return to Ithaca, but to reach Les Sables d’Olonne. A massive depression looms, threatening to turn the South Atlantic into a raging torrent. To escape it, the sailor must aim for the "mousehole"—a narrow calm corridor offering refuge before the full fury of the elements is unleashed. His strategy is clear: waste no time after rounding Cape Horn. Every mile counts in his race to outrun the fierce winds and towering waves that lie ahead.
Cape Horn: A Mythical and Personal Journey
For Benjamin, crossing Cape Horn is both a mythical and deeply personal achievement. In 2013, at just 22 years old, he glimpsed this legendary cape during a hitchhiking journey to Antarctica as a student, though he never crossed it in the symbolic west-to-east direction. "On that same day, François Gabart rounded Cape Horn, leading the Vendée Globe he would go on to win aboard the very boat I am now sailing. Maybe life does have a way of coming full circle?"
A Human Adventure That Inspires
Despite sleepless nights and relentless manoeuvres, Benjamin continues to embrace every moment with a philosophical outlook. Quoting the late French academician Jean d’Ormesson, he reflects: "Thank you for the roses, and thank you for the thorns." This delicate balance of pain and beauty is what makes his adventure so uniquely transformative.
