Scott Shawyer became infatuated with the Vendée Globe while watching the start of the 2020-21 edition during the pandemic lockdown.
He was cooped up at his home in Collingwood, Ontario, Canada, spending his days on Zoom calls with private equity firms trying to raise money to expand his engineering company. He was struck by what he saw while watching the start of the solo, non-stop, round-the-world race on YouTube.
“The skippers walked down the docks with their masks on, got to their boats, threw the masks off and jumped in their boats to sail around the world,” Shawyer said in our phone interview. “I just thought about my situation vs. theirs. Here they are, like the ultimate freedom, they’re on a boat, they’re not even affected by COVID, they’re going to sail around the world and here I am not allowed to leave my home because of COVID.
“I thought, ‘This is terrible. I need to kind of get some freedom in my life, and some adventure.’ “
Suitably motivated, Shawyer founded Canada Ocean Racing and its Be Water Positive initiative with the goal of entering the 2028-29 Vendée Globe and becoming the first Canadian to complete the epic voyage. Two Canadians tried previously. Gerry Roufs was lost at sea during the 1996-97 edition and Derek Hatfield suffered a knockdown in the 2008-09 race.
But there was a big hurdle to overcome – seasickness.
That’s why, in December 2023, Shawyer found himself wearing a VR headset while swinging on a swing set at a park in Collingwood in an attempt to find the right medication...
