Six months to go! 18 sailors in 5.8-metre self-built plywood yachts will take part in a solo race around the world in a groundbreaking event!

• For 20 million euros, Ultim makes a rapid 40-day solo circumnavigation of the world possible! While a Globe 580 Mini costing 50,000 euros promises an epic 400-day solo circumnavigation adventure! 400 times less money.
• 16 men and two women from 12 countries are taking part in the world’s first mini race around the world.
• The one-design Globe 580 class home-built mini for hobby builders is taking off. 80 boats are actively under construction and 160 more in 28 countries are getting ready!
• MGR follows in the footsteps of John Guzzwell’s first solo voyage around the world in the 20-foot-long, self-built vessel “TREKKA” in 1955.

On February 23, 2025, the McIntyre Mini Globe Race (MGR) will begin, marking the start of a 13-month sailing adventure that will test both the physical and mental endurance of its participants. At a time when technology and €20 million can send a solo sailor around the world in 40 days, a fleet of brave mini sailors will show that this can be done for less than €50,000 over many days! Sixteen men and two women from 11 countries will navigate 28,000 miles around the world solo in identical, narrow plywood mini yachts, pushing the boundaries of what many think is possible.

Before the main event, competitors must complete a 3,600-mile solo qualifying race across the Atlantic. This journey begins on December 28, 2024, in Marina de Lagos, Portugal, continues to Marina Rubicon in Lanzarote, Canary Islands, and ends at the National Sailing Academy in Antigua. This solo transatlantic voyage is a major challenge in itself, but only after completion can sailors compete in the McIntyre Mini Globe Race.

Don McIntyre on board Trekka at the start of the Globe 580 Transat in Lanzarote in December 2021. 28 days and 3,000 miles later, he arrived at the National Sailing Academy in Antigua. Trekka will participate in the MGR in 2025 with Ertan Beskardes. Photo credit: Aïda Valceanu / CG580

Known as the “Globe 580 Class,” the yachts are built in-house from plywood on wooden frames and coated with fiberglass-reinforced epoxy. 580 refers to the length in meters, which is compact enough to fit in a 20-foot container to and from international events. The idea came from Australian adventurer Don McIntyre, who in 2010 sailed 4000 miles across the Pacific in an open wooden whaling boat with very little food, water and no nautical charts, recreating William Bligh’s Mutiny on the Bounty. Working with Polish designer Janusz Maderski, McIntyre launched the one-design class in 2019 and offers simple build plans for €300. Builders can also opt for a CNC-manufactured plywood kit, supported by an active online community of builders. There are currently over 80 yachts in various stages of completion, of which around 20 are in the water and another 140 builders have plans.

Course overview

The race begins and ends at the National Sailing Academy in Antigua. The first leg takes sailors to Shelter Bay Marina in Panama, from where the yachts are transported overland to the Pacific Ocean. The second leg, which begins on March 23, 2025, covers 6,500 miles to VUDA Marina in Fiji, with mandatory pit stops in the Marquesas, Tahiti and Tonga. Each pit stop requires a minimum stay of eight days to allow sailors to rest and make repairs.

The third leg will travel 10,000 miles to Cape Town, South Africa, with stops in Darwin, Mauritius and Durban. Given the difficult weather conditions and the notorious Agulhas Current, an additional ten days of pit stops are planned. The fourth and final 7,000-mile leg will begin on December 22, 2025, with stops in St. Helena and Recife, Brazil, before the final sprint back to Antigua, expected in late March 2026.

Route map for the McIntyre Mini Globe Race 2025

Organizer and history

Event organiser Don McIntyre, a veteran of the 1990 BOC Challenge solo circumnavigation, is also the organiser of the solo Golden Globe Race and the recently completed McIntyre Ocean Globe to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first fully crewed Whitbread race. This McIntyre Mini Globe follows in the footsteps of John Guzzwell, who set out in September 1955 to become the first person to sail a small yacht: his home-built, Laurent Giles-designed 20′ 6′ “TREKKA” circumnavigated the world solo. McIntyre has great confidence in the capabilities of the Class Globe 580. He built and sailed a Class Globe 580 named “TREKKA” solo across the Atlantic in 2021, proving the yacht’s endurance and suitability for such a demanding race.

Safety and regulations

Sailors must complete survival and medical training, pass comprehensive medical examinations and stress tests. Safety equipment is of world-class standards, as detailed in the official race announcement. Restrictions include a ban on electronic wind instruments and logs, limited capacity of 200-amp batteries and 200-watt solar panels, and electric outboard motors only. Hydro generators and desalination plants are not allowed. Sailors can make penalty-free stops, but the race clock continues to run and the YB3 satellite trackers provide 24-hour monitoring for everyone on the MGR website.

Unlike other solo races, MGR competitors sail as independent sailors, with each sailor responsible for their own trip planning, logistics and safety management, overseen by individually appointed Safety Managers. These managers report to MGR Event Management but retain primary responsibility for their sailors 24/7.

Father and son team Mike Blenkinsop, hull 99, and John Blenkinsop, hull 100, of Mooloolaba, Queensland, Australia, built two identical CG580s side by side. After two and a half years, they launched the boats, which are currently undergoing sea trials. Both boats will be shipped in a 40-foot container to Marina de Lagos, Portugal, to race the Transat 2024 and then the MGR 2025. Photo credit: John Blenkinsop

Final thoughts

Don McIntyre emphasized the uniqueness of the MGR and stated:

“The MGR, like the Golden Globe Race, will be a journey of exhaustion. I have great confidence in the sailors, the boats and the careful planning that has gone into this event over the last five years. The Globe 580 yachts are robust, safe and fun to sail, offering an affordable challenge. The McIntyre MGR is an exciting companion to our other two unique round-the-world races, coming full circle and now offering true adventure to all areas of sailing. 10 years ago I set out to bring back affordable, human round-the-world racing that is truly sustainable for all sailors and where money and speed at all costs are not the driving force. All three events GGR, OGR and now MGR are epic human stories.”

This McIntyre Mini Globe Race promises to be an extraordinary test of endurance, skill and courage, proving the resilience of the human spirit in the face of adversity.