Ulysse Nardin has a new “Ulysses” onboard. Dan Lenard, co-founder of the renowned Italian yacht design firm Nuvolari-Lenard, embarked on a daring adventure: a transatlantic crossing departing from Cadiz, Spain and arriving at Miami. Dan’s company specializes in the design of yachts for both private clients and shipyards. Based near Venice, the studio has created some of the world’s most acclaimed superyachts, winning every major award and becoming both prolific and highly sought-after.

The aim of his odyssey was to raise awareness about the plight of the seas. Dan Lenard chose sailing, a 5000-year-old invention, because it is one of the means that were used by humans to explore the Earth. His voyage was bearing witness to how polluted the seas and coastlines have become. Ulysse Nardin is proud to endorse Dan Lenard’s mission, which he has called “Vela-Code”. For this new Ulysses, it is a “distress signal on behalf of the ocean”, because we need to reset how we treat our environment. We need focused initiatives, for both prevention and cure: prevention, through intelligent design of yachts and through education to highlight activities and behaviours that cause damage; cure, by taking responsibility for what we have done and devoting resources to repair the damage.

Dan Lenard joins the Ulysse Nardin Armada of Explorers formed by free-diver and photographer Fred Buyle, sailors Sébastien Destremau and Romain Pilliard, snowboarder and surfer Mathieu Crépel and kite-surfing champion Alex Caizergues. Like the hero of Homer’s “Odyssey”, these modern-day Ulysses throw themselves into adventure, not afraid of the unknown and of the possible obstacles, following their dreams and ambitions.