I have never had a bucket list. I think that they are a bit silly and besides I have already been to most of the places I want to go and done the things that I want to do. However, there is a race that I haven’t done and if I had a bucket list, it would be on it.
Think about this. The waters of the Aegean Sea are so crystal clean and clear that you can see lobsters strolling along the bottom 30-feet below. The islands of the Aegean are sparse and beautiful and many have relics of old buildings that may have housed people or been a fort dating back to the bronze age, yet still standing tall and proud despite centuries of constant wind and weather.
Then if you fancy yourself a good navigator, this is the course for you to prove your prowess. There are ten islands that have to be left to either port or starboard (I am not going to list them all.) There are also two times that you have to navigate a tricky gap between two islands, so let’s just say, if you are the navigator, bring lots of coffee and forget the idea of sleep for a few days.
The race is open to both monohulls and multihulls and there doesn’t seem to be an upper size limit. The monohull record for the race is held by Leopard3, a 100-foot Farr designed Super Maxi. They nipped around the course in only 1 day and 21 hours.
The fastest time, however, is held by the MOD 70 trimaran Zoulou who managed a time of 1 day and 13 hours. There should be no problem staying awake that long.
The weather is typical Mediterranean, meaning that there are not the big competing global systems dominating. It’s local weather that can kick up some nasty stuff to deal with in the middle of the night and idyllic conditions during the day. You just have to play the hand that you are dealt.
Even if you are not the navigator, try and stay awake for as much of the voyage as possible. You will pass some of those places whose names have rolled off people’s tongues for centuries. I am going to paraphrase what’s on the Aegean 600 website because it captures the romance and beauty of the race so well. Let’s start with this. “The Start is given by Homer’s sanctuary, in front of the columns of Poseidon’s temple, and with the wishes of the mythical god of the sea the boats sail for Milos, the home of the Venus of Milos, the prize of the Louvre de Paris.”
I’m hooked already.
“Next the fleet will soon reach the scenic Caldera of Santorini where the white of the houses blend with the volcanic rock creating unique contrasts and images.” Then on to the southernmost islands in the Aegean Sea, Kassos, and Karpathos leaving both to port The nativity island of Athena, and the residence of Prometheus, finally reaching the Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights in Rhodes which you leave to starboard.
If that’s not enough “the course continues towards scenic Kos and Kalymnos, the island of sponge divers, while on the way they meet, besides dolphins, beautiful small islands, each with its own history. The sailors meet Patmos, the island of Saint John and the Cave of the Apocalypse, and head to cosmopolitan Mykonos and Delos, the birthplace of Apollo. The last islands of the route are Giaros and Kea. Slowly, finally the contestants face the Temple of Poseidon that will mark the end of the sailing adventure and the race.”
See what I mean by staying awake? I would not want to miss a moment of this extraordinary, like-no-other ocean race. We have missed this year’s race; it starts on July 5 but there will always be next year so brush up on your Greek mythology. See you there. – Brian Hancock
