Event Briefing
New classic
And an almightily pleasant one at that... the latest 600-mile IRC/ORC offshore contest takes full advantage of some of the finest sailing waters on the planet
It’s arguably the best place in the world for sailing. The weather’s nearly always perfect with a reliable strong, warm breeze. The scenery is spectacular and exhilaration is virtually guaranteed. And now there’s a new 600-mile IRC/ORC passage race around the Aegean, designed by local experts to deliver the ideal balance of challenge and fun on a grand tour of the Greek islands. A large and diverse fleet of entrants from 19 countries have already signed up, ranging from Orma and TP52 teams to family crews in midsize cruiser-racers and every sort of boat in between. Race-ready yachts are available for charter and there’s free berthing in a dedicated race village before and after the event. The Aegean 600 looks set to be a major highlight of next year’s Mediterranean sailing calendar. If you like the sound of it, here’s what you need to know. The race kicks off on 4 July, when the famous meltemi trade winds are almost as regular as clockwork in the Aegean. An experienced team of race officers from the Hellenic Offshore Racing Club (HORC) have put a lot of thought into planning the route, which aims to deliver equal amounts of downwind sailing, tacking upwind and fast reaching. It includes a spectacular transit of the Santorini Caldera and tough tactical passages through the Kos and Mykonos-Delos Straits. It crosses rough patches of sea at favourable angles; keeps the fleet away from shipping traffic; avoids potential hazards such as
68 SEAHORSE
rocky capes, shallows and lee shores; and gives a zigzag route for the upwind leg.
‘We designed the course to keep the fleet in the south Aegean Sea where there is definitely more wind than the northern Aegean,’ says HORC’s Konstantinos Tsigkaras. ‘Then we selected landmarks like the Poseidon Temple on Cape Sounio for the start and finish, and used the islands of Milos, Santorini, Rhodes, Kos, Patmos, Mykonos and Delos to create a challenging counter- clockwise course that most likely will offer all points sail. You can expect to sail under spinnaker and surf all the way to Kasos and Karpathos. There’s a broad reach to Rhodes, a navigationally interesting upwind leg all the way north to Patmos, and then all kinds of reaching to the finish.’ The Aegean’s prevailing weather is driven by high pressure over the central Balkans and low pressure over the eastern Mediterranean with the difference in pressure between the two systems dictating the wind strength. ‘It can be force 6-7 but force 3-5 is normal, getting down to force 3 at night,’says Pericles Livas, co-leader of the locally based Optimum racing team. The wind is typically NNE in the Cyclades and NW in the lower part of the Aegean. On the east side, in the Dodecanese, it’s usually NNE in the morning but shifts to NNW in the afternoon. ‘The wind cycle for the meltemi is that it rises with the sun, peaks in mid-afternoon and eases off by at
Above: the Aegean Sea is one of the world’s best sailing areas with reliable fresh breezes, warm sunny weather, spectacular scenery, tactical
pilotage and more. The new Aegean 600 Race offers an exhilarating non-stop
grand tour of the Aegean’s uniquely beautiful
islands at the very best time of the year. Pictured above is Astypalaia in the
Dodecanese with its castle placed royally on a hilltop
least 10-15 knots as the sun sets. ‘Also, when the meltemi is strong enough in the day (around force 6), it picks up again after midnight and gets to maximum speed as the sun rises. So the lightest winds are between sunset and midnight. But then you get these funny nights when it blows 25 knots all night and the position of the sun makes no difference.’ It’s also worth knowing that the meltemi tends to come in roughly three-day cycles, alternating between medium and strong. ‘A windless day at this time of the year is rare but it could happen,’ says Michalis Aftias, a member of the race organising committee. ‘I would prepare the boat and crew for light, medium and heavy weather conditions but remember we are always talking about t-shirt sailing conditions, air temperature of 30°C+ and water temperature over 25°C, no boots, no socks, just light waterproofs to wear mainly at night. If you are from the UK, just shorts and t-shirt and you will be fine!’
‘The forecasts are good at predicting where the most pressure is and the general pattern of the meltemi as you sail east towards Rhodes and then west on the return to Cape Sounio,’ explains Nikos Lazos the other co-leader of Team Optimum. ‘They tend to be accurate when the meltemi is strong but less so when it goes light or transitional. We usually look at two or three forecasts and study the variations. Then when we race we decide which prediction was closer to reality and
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