12:00, Tuesday 16th July 2024, Alimos Marina N.C.Kalamaki, Greece.
Our long and well prepared entry in the 4th edition of the Aegean 600 was short lived. Team OPTIMUM-Samos Steamship had to retire from the race only two and half hours after the start due to a technical issue. OPTIMUM S was on a fast downwind ride towards Milos in brisk 25 knots conditions and the crew decided to ease the mainsail reef for more power. That was when the foredeck crew noticed the mast mainsail track was “departing” from the mast just above the gooseneck level. The issue could develop and become catastrophic and was deemed unrepairable at sea. Moreover it could become dangerous for the safety of the crew as it could develop in a series of failures in case of wrong timing, especially given the lively conditions forecasted the night ahead.
“As soon as I inspected the developing damage, mainsail mast track splitting from the mast, as screws jumping out one after the other, we made the call to retire and immediately notified the Race Committee that we head back. It was a tough call for me and co-skipper Nikos Lazos to make after months of boat preparation and crew training, time and money heavily invested by all team members and Team OPTIMUM supporters. But we did not hesitate a minute, knowing that the risk to continue racing would place boat integrity and personnel in serious danger. After twelve participations in 600-mile offshore races as co-skippers of Team OPTIMUM and reading about situations and sequences of events in other classic 600 mile races, it was no brainer to abandon. We live to come back another day to fight. Unfortunately, that was not the case for 40 year old lady sailor Anna Konontchouk from France on board yacht HEAVEN, when a sequence of events led her to lose her life after falling overboard and severely hit by the rudder blade the following evening near Kasos. We were already back in our base in Alimos, sad and demoralized by our situation, and the deadly news from HEAVEN shocked us all and deepened our grief and sadness to the maximum. Sailing is a challenging sport and every time we go out to the sea to train and compete, we learn or realize something new and we add it to our experiences. And this Aegean 600 was no different as we suffered a violent broach just after rounding the Poseidon mark in Cape Sounio. That led to the spinnaker trimmer thrown and hanging overboard, the crew fighting to get him back on, and our new A4 spinnaker exploding to pieces as we remained pinned down and delayed the spinnaker retrieval in order to first get our man back on board. In our 31st OPTIMUM season we never had a complicated and costly broach situation like this, we keep learning…”, says co-skipper Periklis Livas and Team OPTIMUM co-Principal.
This 4th Aegean 600 proved the toughest so far as the meltemi winds clocked 50 knots in the southern most part of the course and Mykonos-Delos strait the second day, followed by no wind zone on the eastern part on day four. These conditions led to a long list of retirements, due to damaged sails and equipment failures, crew injuries and loss of patience and faith. It was definitely tough and challenging, but isn’t that what is offshore sailing is about?
This too shall pass, we will regroup and get back stronger and wiser.
Stay tuned, stay alive…
Video credit:
Olav Stubberud / Austrian Ocean Racing
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