Crossing the Aegean Sea with the Stars and a Compass

If there is some piece of history that I like and have read plenty of it, is the acient Greece stories. How come they were so civilized and with so many knowhow and skills in all areas at that time? as I always keep wondering what would have happened with a continued evolution from that era to our days with that advanced Civilization. And now look what’s happening right now in Greece, hope they can make it through, as we had a similar situation here in 2001, although I was abroad at the worst part of it.
Nevertheless , two greek Olympic Tornado sailors are making a great sailing journey using the stars as their guide, like the old days. Best of luck to them and to the legendary Greek Nation.
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Sent by Andrew Dowley ///- Kostas Trigonis – Iordanis Paschalidis – Crossing the Aegean Following the stars, having a compass and the lighthouses as their allies, the tornado sailing athletes Iordanis Paschalides and Konstantinos Trigonis, will attempt crossing the Aegean, starting from Thessaloniki on July 4th and terminating their journey at Chania.

This is a fascinating sea marathon, where the two athletes aim at covering the Thessaloniki – Chania distance at the less possible time. With no help from advanced navigation systems, Trigonis and Paschalides will have to rely on the support of just a compass, the positioning of the stars, the lighthouses and a map. The two athletes will attempt something unique for this sport, since no-one has achieved something similar before.
“For us there is no turning back…after the first workouts we felt that what we are about to do is an achievement….Our feelings are incredible….We are either crazy or we just see things in a different way”, Konstantinos explains.

The idea came up during the summer of 2009, when the two athletes took part at the Sailing Marathon for disabled people at Chios. After the initial excitement, it was time for careful planning which combined with the athletes’ love for sea and their will for adventure, became the starting point for this exciting journey, which is expected to last from 1,5 to 3 days, according to the weather conditions.

The Aegean is considered one of the most difficult seas to cross, since the wind that usually blows during that period (meltemi), makes this journey a real challenge. Among the most important difficulties that they may be facing is sailing during the night, which is quite dangerous. In order to accomplish this project, Konstantinos and Iordanis have followed strict preparation and they will rely on their knowledge, stamina, focus and daring spirit. We will have to see whether they will make it!

For more information and Live Tracking of the athletes’ course visit: www.redbull.gr