Chad Corning recounts another ocean race aboard Jason Carroll’s MOD 70 trimaran.
Argo crossed the Atlantic and Med on a freighter en route to the race. Contributed photo
After a successful Caribbean 600, it was time to get Argo east, way east to the Greek port of Lavrion. A 5,000+ nm trip through the North Atlantic and Med in the early spring was deemed risky, so we decided to ship Argo overseas on the deck of a bulk freighter. Having done it many times before, the process went smoothly. Hoist the boat with the ship’s crane, hover over the cradles, lower the boat, and weld the cradles to the ship’s deck. The three support containers came aboard next, and the party was on the move.
Sitting at a seaside café in Lavrion about three weeks later, we saw the ship round the point with the unmistakable shape of Argo amidships. After reversing the above loading process, we were soon tied to the dock half a world away from our last race.
The event we were in Greece for was the Aegean 600, a new race that does a counterclockwise lap around the Aegean Sea using the multitude of islands as marks. The race has a reputation for being windy, with northerly Meltemi winds blowing strongly on most days.
The Aegean 600 lived up to its fierce reputation, with the northerly Meltemi delivering the gustiest, most unpredictable winds Team Argo has has ever experienced. Contributed photo
The race certainly lived up to its reputation! We started at the southern point of Attica under the Temple of Poseidon, to whom we had previously paid our respects. We bombed downwind towards Santorini with 25-30 knots of Meltemi powering us along. We had a sistership MOD 70 in the race, our rival and friend Zou Lou, from France. As usual, a close match race ensued, with the lead going back and forth as we made our way to Karpathos, the southernmost mark of the course. From there, we pointed our bows to the northeast to round Rhodes before heading north to go around Kos and kiss the Turkish coast. Then we weaved around Mykonos and a few smaller islands and headed west to the finish from Kos.
Argo won the race on corrected time. Contributed photo
The Meltemi was the gustiest, most unpredictable wind we have ever experienced. The sail changes numbered over 100, as we could never find the sweet spot in the constantly changing wind. We had 40+ knots frequently, and the wind topped out at 52 as we made our way north through the Mykonos Channel. At times it was more an exercise in survival than a race. Tragically, it was also a race marked by death. A woman who fell overboard from the yacht Heaven succumbed to her injuries after being struck by the yacht’s rudder.
Ultimately, the two MOD 70s came together for the last reach into the finish a few boatlengths apart. Zou Lou took line honors glory by 1 minute and 30 seconds. We consoled ourselves with a somewhat hollow corrected time victory, as the lighter Zou Lou owes Argo a bit of time. With the tragedy and grueling conditions, we were quite happy to have this race in the rearview mirror.
Our last hurdle was getting the boat up to the Isle of Wight in the UK, about a 3,000 nm trip, this time on her bottom. The Mediterranean section was benign save for the severe storms that sank the184-foot Perini Navi Bayesian and caused havoc in the Balearic Islands. We felt some consternation exiting the Med, with a lot of wind and a few orcas sniffing around. We think the whine of the t-rudders must have made us an unappetizing prospect, as the orcas left us alone.
We had lovely views of Cape St. Vincent and Cape Finisterre as we made our way north and finished the trip in fresh downwind conditions while dodging ships in the English Channel and the approaches to Southampton. Argo gets a winter break in sunny England before taking on the Rolex Fastnet Race and some record attempts in 2025. ■
A professional sailor, program manager, build manager and coach, Chad Corning is a two-time Melges 32 National Champion, two-time Viper 640 National Champion, Shields National Champion, and Melges 32 European Champion.
This article originally appeared in Larchmont Yacht Club’s fine newsletter, The Mainsheet, and is reprinted with permission. Thanks to Publisher Buttons Padin.
