Canadian skipper Melodie Schaffer to set sail in one of world's most gruelling races
CBC
On Aug. 31, Melodie Schaffer will set sail around the world from Europe on a months-long race called Globe40. She'll be prepared, focused and representing Canada in one of the most gruelling races at sea.
The 56-year-old biomedical engineer and mother of three began racing in 2018 but had been sailing her whole life. I spoke with her during her last week at home in Toronto, before she set sail toward France where the race begins in the coastal town of Lorient.
The race is quite a feat featuring six different stages, around two continental horns, then toward Australia and South America before heading back to France where it is expected to conclude in April 2026.
Schaffer tells me that only four Canadians have ever raced around the world like this and she is the only Canadian woman. The race itself is something that she describes as "extreme."
Schaffer is sailing a double-handed boat — one that she sailed as a child — and is the only female skipper entered in this race (something she has experienced before). For her, however, that's not the headline.
"I'm just a skipper," she says.
The aptitude and physical strength required is the key to her success. I asked her if her engineering background has helped her with sailing at this level.
"Engineering training and the background I've had really helps," she replied. "I mean, sailing is all physics, right? And so I have the scientific mind for it and understand it. So that's part of how you trim your sails and you make your boat go fast, and then engineering overall teaches how to problem solve.
"When I'm out there sailing and things go wrong or things break, I am quite good at managing and, you know, rigging and figuring out how I can get through or do a repair."
Schaffer toiled for hours on her beautiful boat, Whiskey Jack, preparing everything possible for her journey. Schaffer spent time at the gym a few times a week working on her strength training. She gave her boat a big overhaul, taking off every sitting, every motor and then inspected everything and put it back together.
Some days, Schaffer worked until 3 a.m.
"I am already sleep deprived," she said with a laugh. "I decided two days ago that the next time I get caught up in my sleep and I get an afternoon nap is next summer."
Schaffer will sail with a teammate — she will have three different people over the course of the race. But a lot of the time she will spend alone because her sailing partner will be sleeping as she does repairs and other things like navigating, calculating and planning.
Schaffer says you can't plan too far ahead but you can look at weather patterns historically. When she is navigating, she has a rough idea of where she is going to go and then she uses the weather forecast to help chart the exact course.
