Less than 3 weeks to the start of the Aegean 600

With less than 3 weeks left to the July 5th start, organizers from the Hellenic Offshore Racing Club (HORC) and Olympic Marine are excited that this year’s 6th edition of the AEGEAN 600 has attracted 77 entries, a 30% increase of last year’s fleet. With these teams hailing from 21 nations around the world, this is the largest and most diverse fleet yet of monohulls and multihulls to take on the challenge of competing in this annual 605-mile race tour of the legendary Aegean Sea.

“We’re actually surprised and quite impressed with the entry list this year,” said Ioannis Maragkoudakis, President of the AEGEAN 600 Organizing Committee and Commodore of the HORC. “This shows that with all the problems in the world today, offshore sailors will continue to pursue their passion for this sport, and we share this enthusiasm. Racing the Aegean Sea is always a challenge, it is never the same, so we are pleased to see many teams returning again this year.”

One of those teams returning is Frederic Puzin’s bright green Carkeek 54 DAGUET 5 from France, one of the fastest monohulls around last year’s race course, and a past podium finisher in three other famous 600-mile offshore races: the Middle Sea, Sydney-Hobart and Caribbean 600 races. DAGUET 5 achieved a podium finish in last year’s race in IRC One but fell short in the overall results due to highly variable weather conditions: last year’s race featured everything from calm conditions to gale-force blasts of the famous Meltemi wind and in the end overall favored slower boats who had a more steady range of conditions.

Nonetheless, Puzin is excited to return.
“I really liked this race not only because of it toughness to have skills tested in all conditions, but also the spirit of this race and its place in history,” said Puzin. “The setting here is amazing: the islands, the sunset, and the feeling of all the legendary sailors that have been here doing what we did for thousands of years.”

Last year’s winner of IRC One is also returning this year: Chris Hemans and his team racing his Cookson 50 VARUNA from the USA. His views about this race echo those of Puzin, but with some other important elements as well: the outstanding hospitality offered at the event and re-uniting with new friends made here in the last race.

“We found our experience here last year the very best celebration and greatest hospitality of any racing event we’ve done yet,” he said, which includes other 600-mile races and even the Transpac race to Hawaii. “Everyone has been so friendly and helpful in the organization, but also the spirit of camaraderie among the teams participating here has been amazing. We look forward to this again.”

Hemans says they feel better prepared than last year, now knowing more about this race course, and having participated in other offshore races in the Mediterranean region over the past year to enhance their skill sets in both light and heavy breeze.

“We have upgraded both our hardware and software, with some new sails and some new crew. Looking at the strength of our competition we will need this to do well again this year,” he said.

Besides VARUNA, other teams returning to defend their class titles are Maks Vrecko’s Elan 450 KARPO (SLO), and Alex Cot’s (FRA) and Michalis Aftias (GRE) double-handing the Pogo 50 EROS.

Gregor Stimpfl’s HAGAR V (ITA) is returning this year for the third time. The Scuderia 65 not only took part in the inaugural AEGEAN 600 in 2021, but returned in 2022 to collect an impressive armfull of trophies: the overall AEGEAN 600 Trophy as IRC division winner, the Poseidon Trophy as the overall ORC division winner, and awards for winning the Maxi, IRC 1 and ORC 1 classes.

As with all prominent offshore races, there will be teams coming to the AEGEAN 600 seeking first-to-finish line honors, and the Maxi Class for this year’s race is impressive: at 12 entries, this is the largest turnout yet in the history of the race. This race is part of the International Maxi Association’s (IMA) Maxi Mediterranean Offshore Challenge.

Among these the strong contenders for would include last year’s line honors champion, George Procopiou’s Volvo 70 AIOLOS (GRE) who competed the course in 3D 19H 7M 8S. Others may include Claudio Demerits’s Reichel/Pugh 90 PROSECCO DOC SHOCKWAVE 3 (ITA) and Artur Skrzyszowski’s Volvo 65 SELMA RACING - SISI (AUT). The right conditions, clever navigation and flawless sailing may allow others to be contenders as well, but these are the fastest-rated boats in this class.

Offering scoring in both IRC and ORC for Monohulls and MOCRA for Multihulls, in all there are 16 classes this fleet will be competing in, arranged by size, speed and boat types.

And while most will have full crews on board for racing, there are 13 teams racing Double-Handed in boats ranging in size from the smallest boats in the fleet - three Dehler 30’s being raced by Evangelia Delidou on AETHER (GRE), Periklis Livas and Simon Sweetman on OPTIMUM 4 (GRE) and Yam Wirtheim on LAVARO III (ISR) - to Les and Gordon Moeller’s Pegasus 50 BELLEROPHON (USA) and Michalis Aftias (GRE) and Alex Cot (FRA) sailing the Pogo 50 EROS.

Information about all 77 entries - boat names, boat types, skipper and owner names, crew lists, classes entered, ORC and IRC ratings, etc., can be found at the entry information portal on the event website.

There are several important events in the AEGEAN 600 schedule prior to the start on July 5th. These include:

Sunday June 28 ------------------ Free berthing commences at Olympic Marine

Tuesday June 30 ----------------- Secretariat opens at Olympic Marine

Wednesday-Friday July 1-3 -- Registration and Inspections

Thursday July 2 ----------------- Safety Training Seminar

Friday July 3 ---------------------- Warm-up Race, Skippers Briefing, Media Briefing, and

Welcome Ceremony followed by Crew Party

Saturday July 4 ------------------- Visit to the Temple of Poseidon

Sunday July 5 --------------------- Start of the AEGEAN 600 race at Sounio

Saturday July 11 ----------------- Expiration of Race Time Limit, Prize Giving Ceremony & Dinner

Monday July 13 ------------------- Free berthing period expires at Olympic Marine

More details on event timings are at https://aegean600.com/schedule-of-events/.
On Sunday July 5th all entries will assemble in the starting area just south of the iconic Ancient Temple of Poseidon at Sounio where spectators watch as the fleet sets off in waves starting at 1400 local time for their 600-mile race journey that was devised by HORC as one that was “designed by sailors for sailors.”

This is a complex race course that involves passing 23 islands in the Aegean Sea and is one of the most interesting of any course in offshore racing - a more detailed description is at https://aegean600.com/course-map.