62 crews in the Round Denmark Race inshore 2021: Denmark's "Doldrums" challenge the fleet

Interest in the new Round Denmark Race inshore 2021 to and from Aarhus is well distributed: 21 single-handed sailors, 21 double-handed crews and 20 larger teams have started the 650 nautical mile summer rally. The soloists had already been sent out on the course on 19 June in what were initially fantastic sailing conditions. The "2Star" teams and the larger crews followed on Monday, initially in light winds and then with a brisk ride towards Skagen. The field of 62 boats has now spread out accordingly.

This Denmark rally with its picturesque start and finish port of Aarhus - the hip Northern European sailing city with its new sailing centre - challenges its participants with sometimes extreme conditions. In the notorious Kattegat, for example, the single-handed sailors were suddenly surprised by winds of up to 35 knots that came out of nowhere. The "2Star" and team sailors, on the other hand, found themselves in a vacuum and had to struggle with it until they were gradually relieved by a very light breeze. Philipp Kadelbach's crew on "Rafaele" was the best to get going again. But even the fast Elliott 52 SS managed just 100 nautical miles in 18 hours at an average speed of less than six knots.

As expected, the Dragonfly 800 "Tri" with Lars and Jon Kämpfe and the JPK 10.30 "Ratzfatz4", just one year old, with experienced regatta sailors Andreas Rohde and Stefan Knabe, who are good friends, were among the fastest "2Star" teams at the start. The boats led their fleet at the north-eastern tip of the island of Anholt on a southerly course as "Rafaele" sailed into the Øresund. Jan Heinze and Peter Sorowka were struggling on their Dehler 30 od. Their routing had tempted them to go it alone to the east of Læsø, while the entire fleet passed the island to the west - a mistake that initially set the ambitious duo from Hamburg and Wedel far behind.

Mini-Transat sailor Jan Heinze reported: "We trusted our routing, which led us exactly there. As we were at the front of the field, it was difficult to orientate ourselves on other boats of equal strength and we simply trusted the routing. However, it was a mistake not to pay attention to our instincts and, above all, the risks compared to the field. When we realised that everyone (!) was sailing west of Læso, we couldn't go back. We paid dearly for that." However, the considerable gap really fuelled the duo's fighting spirit. Their pursuit motto can be read on the boom: "Inch by Inch". It comes from the Al Pacino film "On any given Sunday". Heinze explains the message: "I wrote it on the tree. We won't give up a quarter of an inch. We're fighting for every mile. There's still time to sail forwards. The mistake was so annoying, but it's now been chopped off. We'll get the fleet back." A little later, late on Tuesday afternoon, the "Calle" crew was able to report the fastest speed in the fleet at just over eight knots. The race to catch up, in which the two sailors take turns at the helm every 20 minutes, continues.

At the head of the fleet, the single-handed sailors were simultaneously endeavouring to find the best course to the west on the cross between Denmark, Sweden and Germany. Three boats maintained their position in the centre of the course: Jan Hansen's Figaro 2 "The Beast", Anders Johansen's JPK 0.30 "Beluga" and Anders Nyberg's "Embla". Harmen de Jong's Dutch HOD 35 "Xtra Hod" occupied the right-hand side, with Peter Cederberg and his Seascape First 27 "Let's Sea" on the left. On Wednesday morning, "Embla" was just ahead of "The Beast" in the intermediate classification north-west of Rügen. It remains exciting out there: will Philipp Kadelbach's "Rafaele" still be able to catch up with the leading single-handed sailors? According to the new regulations, the top soloists will have to take at least one, maybe even two eight-hour breaks on their way to the start and finish harbour. Their lead had already shrunk from 270 at the start to less than 150 nautical miles by the halfway point.