True, our comfort has increased beyond imagination – but so has our enchainment.
Sven Lundin was born in 1939. He grew up on a small island in the North Sea while his grandfather was Captain and his father First Mate on a Swedish cargo ship. The sea practically runs his life like the blood in ones veins. Later, Sven Lundin changed his name to Yrvind, reflecting the intense “whirlwind” of a gale at sea. After life struggles until his early twenties, he found his purpose and passion in building boats. One of his first creations is on display in the Museum of Yachting’s Hall of Fame for single-handed sailors in Newport, Rhode Island.
Swedish Sven Yrvind has been sailing and living on boats of his own make for half of his life. Next to other adventurous endeavors, he crossed the Atlantic in a 15-foot long boat sailing from Ireland to Martinique in 2011. The UK’s Royal Cruising Club granted him the Seamanship Medal for sailing a 20-foot boat alone through the notoriously tempestuous waters off Cape Horn in 1980. He sailed from East to West - the “hard way”- around the Cape.
Mastering the hard way and to always keep going has been Yrvind’s credo for life. Dyslexia made it more than difficult for him to obtain a formal education and during his compulsory military service, he and his superiors had very different ideas about war strategies. Yrvind ended up in a maximum-security prison. Where, he did not behave as expected so the punishment was one additional day of imprisonment for each day he misbehaved. After not giving up, he was finally let go with the condition to sign a paper stating he was a psychopath. He signed to prove that it was a useless piece of paper. “I chose to be Captain of my own ship. The mass of men has historically traded freedom for economical growth and comfort. I do not agree. True, our comfort has increased beyond imagination – but so has our enchainment.”
While most people would go crazy during 600 days alone at sea, the 75 year old self-described “recluse” cannot wait to get started on his next voyage. Equipped with muesli, powdered milk and sardines as well as 100kg of books, he is well prepared for his upcoming longest journey at sea.
