PORT TOWNSEND — The executive director of the Port Townsend Maritime Center said he expected only a handful of teams to participate in the Race to Alaska, so he’s overwhelmed that 64 have signed up so far.
The race among nonmotorized craft between Port Townsend and Ketchikan, Alaska, will begin at 5 a.m. June 4.
“A year ago when we started thinking about this, we expected we’d get maybe 10 or 20 teams,” said Jake Beattie of the maritime center, which is producing the inaugural Race to Alaska.
“It’s been an amazing response,” he said. “We are getting racers from all over the world.”
All craft will start from the maritime center at 431 Water St. in Port Townsend.
“This will be the craziest starting line ever,” Beattie said.
“You will see everything from stand-up paddleboards to kite boards to rowboats and high-end-performance sailboats.”
Beattie said six new designs that have been created just for the race.
The only rule for the race is that vessels travel without any type of engine on board.
Any boat with any size crew can enter, and there is no specific route, though certain checkpoints are required.
The entry fee is $650, but Beattie said he is flexible.
He has accepted three beaver pelts as partial payment from Alaska outdoorsman Alan Hartman.
The total 750-mile distance is split into two legs: the initial qualifying run from Port Townsend to Victoria and the second to Ketchikan.
As of Tuesday, 23 teams had registered for the first leg and 41 had committed to go all the way to Ketchikan in a boat that runs under its own power or the people who may be rowing it.
Racers must complete the first 40-mile segment in 36 hours or less to qualify for the remainder of the race, which will be an additional 710 miles of estimated 50-degree water.
From Victoria, the boats will travel on the Strait of Georgia to Seymour Narrows and then to Bella Bella, B.C.
Other than those two required stops, participants can take any route they choose and stop for any length of time along the route.
Beattie expects the winner to arrive at the finish line at Thomas Basin Boat Harbor in Ketchikan about 10 days after the race starts, and he plans to greet them there.
The deadline for all boats is the Fourth of July.
Boats must arrive during the allotted time without needing to be rescued, Beattie said.
The crew of the boat that arrives first will win $10,000.
The second-place finisher will get a set of steak knives.
Several solo boaters and even paddleboarders have signed up.
“There is no scenario where someone on a paddleboard could win,” Beattie said.
“But I think they are doing it to redefine the sport because no one does long voyages or expeditions on a paddleboard.”
“The race taps into a spirit of self-reliance and teamwork coming together to meet a common goal and satisfy their intellectual curiosity,” said Daniel Evans, race boss and a former captain of the tall ship Adventuress, which is based in Port Townsend.
“There are some people who grew up messing around boats all their lives,” Evans said.
“They are just putting oars on a sailboat and are just going to go for it without a lot of the safety nets that we rely on today.”
Safety is Evans’ responsibility.
He has designed a process that keeps all public safety agencies on alert during the race and ready to spring into action if a rescue is needed.
Winning or losing isn’t as important as raising consciousness and visibility, Beattie said.
“There is the perception that boating has become an elitist culture because the cost of owning a boat goes up every year at the same time that disposable income is decreasing,” he said.
“We are looking to restart the conversation as to how we can put the adventure back in boating. We don’t all have the money to go out and buy a fancy boat, but anyone can get on the water and find a way to have an adventure that’s safe and affordable.”
For more information or to enter the race, go to http://tinyurl.com/PDN-Alaska.
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Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
