In the summer of 2008, Pieper was helmsman on the Favonius yacht (Swan 82) and he successfully claimed the Swan World Cup in Porto Cervo, Italy. Together with his longtime associate and navigator Roy Heiner, Pieper finally won this event after various attempts. The hobby of sailing and regattas were given to Pieper by his father who taught him sailing and racing at a very young age. Pieper's father bought a small yacht called Favonius in 1974 and as a remembrance Pieper always tried to use that name as part of his memories of his father. In 2013 Pieper has assisted in creating the K3 Foundation in Portland, Oregon, USA. The target of the foundation is to restore and maintain the globally well known sailing yacht Kialoa III. The yacht has successfully returned to the racing scene in 2015.