Thousand Islands Race - Leg 1

10th Thousand Islands Regatta © Sailing Club of Rijeka

Rijeka - Tivat - Rijeka

At the start of the first leg of the 10th Thousand Islands Regatta, it was hard to expect that the record of 27h24m05s established in 2015 by the Hungarian "Wild Joe" on the course of 278 NM from Rijeka to Porto Montenegro will be obliterated.

However, one record was broken. This year's first leg is the slowest of all 10 editions of the Thousand Islands Race. It took 80h24m58s for Slovenian "Karpo" to reach and cross the finish line in front of the Porto Montenegro marina in Tivat.

And while the start in Rijeka and sailing through Kvarner in conditions of very weak wind has already become familiar to everyone who has ever been to this race, not long after the start we saw something for the first time. The Slovenian crew of "Chili" decided to sail the course on the western side of the island of Cres, which is certainly longer. However, expecting a more favorable wind, they took a risk and, in the end, it turned out that the decision was not bad. Unfortunately, due to damage to one of the sails, they had to retire near Ilovik. The Austrian trimaran "Lightness" also had to give up due to technical problems, while the others continued to fight with light winds, that required a lot of patience and nerves. The worst is for sailors - no wind. Everything else is easier to bear.

The time limit for finishing is 72 hours after the start in Rijeka, but it is extended to 88 hours if no boat finishes within 56 hours after the start. This became evident when, after 56 hours, the sailboats were almost 100 NM from the finish, expecting the wind in the waters of island of Vis. Finally, the southerly filled in and all worries were forgotten. Thunderstorm and rain helped when boats enter Boka Kotor bay and the great triumph of finishing after more than 3 days of sailing.

Slovenian "Karpo" and Austrian "Emilia" sailed very close for almost the entire race and alternated in the lead, and "Karpo" gained a significant advantage at the entrance to the of Boka Kotor bay, finishing a little more than 2 hours ahead of "Emilia". As soon as "Karpo" crossed the finish line, it was clear that she was the overall winner of the first leg under corrected time, because no one could overtake her. This victory gains even more value considering that it was achieved by a two-man crew consisting of father and son, Maks and Matic Vrecko. Third is the Austrian "Talanta", which finished a little after midnight, entering the fifth day of sailing after the start.

Due to the long duration of the first stage, the organizers modified the schedule to let crews recuperate. Prize giving of the first leg will be held on Friday, 22 September at 12:00, after which the second leg is scheduled to start at 18:00. Results here.

Find out more here.