March last year. Athens, Greece.
I’d been itching to join one of the Train & Race trips with Fastsailing.gr since way before the pandemic. COVID killed the plan twice, but finally, it was go time!
Bags packed, heading for Greece.
I’d booked an apartment in Athens to soak up the city for a few days before hitting the water. If you’re there anyway, you might as well see the sights, right? And man, Athens has some serious character. My place was super chic, but located in a corner of town where you wouldn’t exactly volunteer to live at first glance. Junkies, hookers, and a pretty run-down exterior. At least that was my first impression.
Getting there was a breeze. Took the train from the airport straight to the neighborhood. I’d split my gear into two bags: the heavy sailing kit stayed in airport lockers. The plan was to meet some of the crew at the airport three days later, swap the city bag for the sea bag, and split a cab to the marina.
Athens
I explored the city on foot. Athens is loud and quiet at the same time. One minute you’re drowning in traffic noise and chaos, the next you’re turning a corner into a silent alley filled with orange trees and lush greenery. The locals try to plant something in every tiny patch of soil they find, I really loved that.
And then there’s the graffiti. Everywhere. But unlike, say, Lisbon, it’s not just mindless tags and trashy slogans. It’s actual art, fascinating murals and wild spray-can masterpieces.
Food-wise, Athens is a heavy hitter. I’d done my homework online and knew exactly where I wanted to go. Marked my favorites on Google Maps (all reachable by foot or a quick Metro hop) and headed straight for my first Souvlaki. Absolute perfection. Just a little hole-in-the-wall joint that pumps out thousands of Souvlakis and Gyros a day. First stop: Check.
I skipped the heavy-duty archaeology. The tourist center around the “old stones” is just too crowded for me. I still wandered through the lower sections of the ancient sites, watching Asian tour groups so busy taking selfies they forgot to actually look at the view.
The Views
Following a local tip, I headed for Mount Lycabettus, which towers over the city opposite the Acropolis. I just missed the cog railway, so I figured: what the hell, I’ll walk the 400-odd steps.
Glad I did. You get perfect views over the rooftops of Athens the whole way up. I took a breather at a gorgeous bar with a top-tier view and a glass of white wine. Perfect pit stop.
At the summit, the wind was howling. Visibility wasn’t great, the Acropolis was hiding in the haze, but I didn’t care. I’m a sucker for those 360-degree panoramas. I just sat there enjoying the moment, wishing my wife was with me. Then again, a “Train & Race” trip isn’t exactly her idea of a relaxing cruise…
I squeezed in a professional teeth cleaning at a hyper-modern dental clinic (random, I know) and finally caught up on some sleep.
The next day was a blur of walking, seeing, smelling, tasting, and discovering. That evening, I had an incredible meal at a restaurant right around the corner from my “shack.” On the way back, I stopped for a drink at a dive bar across the street to meet Stefan. He’s joining us on the boats too. He’s currently living in Athens, taking a breather after a successful startup stint. He rode his motorbike all the way to Greece – hardcore. Great guy. We talked shop (sailing, obviously).
After Stefan headed off, I hung out with a few locals. They’re a friendly bunch. Sent a quick “wish you were here” to my better half back home, and that was that.
Heading for the Blue
Early start to catch the train back to the airport. Swapped my bags and waited for the rest of the crew. Peter was the first to show up, a salty “Round the World” sailor who’s seen it all. Compared to him, I’m basically the cabin boy. Peter had organized our taxi, and an hour later, we touched down in Lavrio.
The sheer amount of fast glass in the marina is mind-blowing. It’s like a “Who’s Who” of performance yachts, and “my” Pogo is right in the thick of it.
Apollo 1
We’re split across two boats: Apollo 1 and Apollo 2. Both are identical Pogo 44s – the “luxury” version of the Pogo, so to speak. The interior is actually quite sleek, though once you pack six sailors and all their gear on board, you don’t see much of that “nice decor” anymore. She’s a beauty, for sure, but is she fast? We’re about to find out.
We started settling in, but there’s one cabin that has to be shared. I can’t remember exactly how we decided, probably drew straws, but of course, I had the “luck” of sharing a bunk with Darius. Darius is a great guy, but man, the way he saws logs at night is unreal. I’m talking world-class snoring here.
Our skipper is Benoit Charon. The man is well known – a seasoned pro and two-time European Champion in the J24 class. If you want the full deep dive on his background, check out Voiles magazine. The guy on the left!
Once everyone had claimed their bunks, we headed out for a group dinner. We quickly set up a cost-sharing app to keep the finances straight, and just like that, we were officially ready for Train & Race.
Sailing, and sailing fast!
We headed out the next morning. It was pretty chilly, and everything was covered in that damp morning mist. There wasn’t much wind, but it was just enough to break out the really cool sail wardrobe. With only 8 knots of true wind, we were already hitting nearly 8 knots of boat speed. The bay was like a mirror, getting just a little choppy as we cleared the headlands.
The wind topped out at 12 knots today, perfect conditions to get a feel for the boat. And to top it all off, we had a brief encounter with a pod of dolphins. Absolute magic.
We wrapped up the day at a relaxed tavern in Poros. Even though it wasn’t a high-action day, I’m wiped. Darius is already “sawing logs” next to me. I’ve resorted to sleeping with noise-canceling headphones. A bit uncomfortable at first, but you get used to it, anything for some peace and quiet.
Regatta Training
This is exactly what we signed up for. Not memorizing rulebooks, but raw Match Racing with two identical boats under all kinds of conditions. It didn’t take long to realize that Benoit saw us as a proper race crew, not some holiday sailors. At first, I actually thought, “Man, what’s this guy’s problem?” But it was exactly what we needed. You don’t get peak performance without a bit of pressure and a push. We had to learn that the hard way, but once we did, it was totally fine. Since we mostly communicated in English, he struggled a bit to articulate clear commands in high-stress moments, and as every sailor knows, that’s a direct recipe for even more stress.
Leveling Up
Day two brought a serious step up in wind and swell, and Apollo finally got to show what she’s made of. For the first time, we caught a plane and were jetting across the water at up to 15 knots. Epic! The Pogo handles just like a dinghy; she stays stiff, can be steered with a single finger, and everyone was grinning from ear to ear. The final leg to the finish meant beating upwind into 45-knot gusts. That’s never “fun” on any boat, but the Pogo handled it surprisingly smooth.
It was a killer day with no official winner, even if we were usually a nose ahead and were the first to hit the dock. All those headsail changes were deep in my bones by the end, but I’m pretty sure I was beaming from ear to ear.
Gennaker Grinding
We left Ermioni in the morning with a forecast of 8 knots, supposed to ramp up to 20 by noon. The wind didn’t wait and hit us by 10 AM. I spent four hours straight at the helm under the gennaker, fully focused on squeezing every bit of power out of that 200 m² sheet of nylon. The wind eventually climbed toward 35 knots, but luckily, we already had the gennaker down by then. The weather closed in, and the temperature took a dive. We were planing under jib and main until just before our destination, and everyone was visibly relieved to reach port given the freezing temps. Again the Fastsailing.gr Train & Race was e perfect choice for me.
Greece in March
Not much is open this time of year; most of the touristy islands are still in deep hibernation. Marina facilities? Nada. We’re showering on board. One head for six guys means you’ve got to be quick. And you will be, the Pogo is French, and let’s just say showering wasn’t at the top of the designers’ priority list. But hey, it gets the job done.
Every evening feels like Groundhog Day. A local tavern, a touristy, meat-heavy Greek menu, and then straight into the bunk. Don’t get me wrong, Greek food can be legendary, but in these tourist traps, it’s the same standard fare you get at your local Greek place back home. Tasty, sure, but a bit repetitive.
Heading to Hydra
We’re pointing the bows toward Hydra because the Hydra Regatta is the grand finale of this trip, so naturally, we’re scouting the area first. The wind is clocking in between 25 and 45 knots, but the sun is out in full force. Cold, but brilliant.
I’m in my element with the Code Zero, my favorite sail. On tracks between 50 and 80 degrees to the wind, that thing pulls like a freight train. We’re planing and planing and planing. Again, swapping the headsails is the most brutal job on deck. I completely botched one sail change, tied a wrong knot (out of four, for some reason) and couldn’t get the damn thing undone. Had to whip out the knife. Total chaos because Apollo 2 was breathing down our necks. In the end, the working jib was up, I was soaked to the bone, but happy. You feel life so much more intensely out here, even if your bones are aching.
Benoit keeps driving us. Sometimes you feel like a gladiator being shoved into the arena with the lions. Just kidding, it was exactly the right amount of pressure.
The Masters of the Sea
We’re docking. I’m on the quay as Apollo 2 comes in. No idea what they were thinking, but they came in hot, stern-first, with way too much speed, totally unnecessary since the wind had died down.
Andrea Caracci, the skipper on Apollo 2, tosses me a line. I try to make it fast to the bollard, but I don’t have enough slack. At that exact moment, Apollo 2 puts the hammer down to engine into the spring. The line slips, and Andrea starts hopping around the deck like “Rumpelstielzchen”, screaming at me like I’d just cut his leg off. I just thought, “What a tool,” took the line again, and made it fast properly with enough slack this time. In the background, I could still hear a choleric Italian losing his mind. It seems social skills among pro regatta skippers are… let’s say, a work in progress.
Hydra itself is stunning, though still mostly shut down. Just a few shops open for the winter. In the summer, luxury yachts supposedly line up here like a string of pearls. We’re moored with our Pogos next to a German-flagged Dufour. A family with a bunch of kids is on board, I lost count, but there were many. All on a 40-foot yacht. I would’ve loved to see the chaos below deck there.
I managed to sit down with Benoit for an interview. Between maneuvers, I’ve been shooting a ton of footage and want to edit a proper report. The material needs some serious post-production, though. Maybe soon.
Match Race: Real Conditions
Regatta mode: engaged. And I didn’t think Benoit could kick it up another notch, but he did! Especially since Apollo 2 was in the lead. A smart tactical move put them in pole position, and once you’re there with two identical boats, it’s hell to get past. You could tell it was eating our skipper alive. Such a childish rivalry, but hey it made for a great day of learning in 15 knots of wind.
It was all about reading the wind between the islands and the wind shadows. Not easy, but we got better at anticipating trim and tactical moves by watching every marker: the ripples on the water, the swaying trees on shore, the direction of wind turbines, and, of course, the opponent. There weren’t any other sailors out there to use as a reference.
An educational, brilliant day came to an end, and with it, my journey. The forecast for the actual regatta was zero wind (which turned out to be true), and my flight was leaving early anyway. I had one last great day in Athens, same apartment, the restaurant around the corner, and a head full of memories.
See you in the MED!
