It was August 2003, the second week, when my boys and I decided to go for a sailing weekend with our sailing boat “ELLINIS” in the near by coast of East Chalkidiki (Northern Greece). We agreed that we go for pure sailing, without the use of motor at all, even on no wind conditions. The weather forecast was typical for summer, in this area, Variable light winds, sunshine, and temperatures in the area of thirty centigrade (86 F). We left our berth at Thessaloniki Yachting Club, early afternoon, that Friday, and we Sailed towards Cape Megalo Emvolo, nine miles West South West from our home base. Our intention was to sail to Kalikratia fishing port and spent the night there. My younger son, Praxitelis, was well equipped for fishing, his intentions was to fish as much as possible.

The area we were sailing is called Thermai Gulf. Is the area between the East side of Chalkidiki Peninsula and the famous mountain Olympus, the home of the twelve Gods of the ancient times.

As we were out of the tiny Yachting Club Marina, I hoisted the main, a whole 800 square feet of canvas, actually Kevlar, with the coffee grinder. Well it always takes ages to do so, and I have to make couple of intermissions in order to complete the job. Finally I did it. She started to run smoothly on the light afternoon breeze. Then the head sail. We hoisted the number 3 as it is easier to handle with only three on board. The wind was from South-South West and we were sailing about 25 degrees off at a close reach that very few sailing yachts can do. But “ELLINIS” was capable to sail as close as 20 degrees in the wind. We were doing seven knots already towards our first way-point.

“ELLINIS” ex “UNIBANK II”,is a one off racing yacht, built in Sweden in 1991, mostly out of Kevlar and Titanium, to participate in the World Cup 1992 race, where she finished second place. She was very well equipped for racing, but her accommodation was spartan which is common for racers. She had six hammocks for births in a a very confined space stern side while the bow was a storage for her twenty four sails. Amidships it was a small salon to accommodate six persons at the most. The head was situated on the port side divided with a plastic curtain. Her mast was seventy five feet tall, and her overall length was forty five feet.

She was a fine sailing yacht, and very fast even under very light winds. Under a fresh breeze she would easily make fourteen knots, and sailing in a force seven, on a voyage from Turkey Black Sea to North Aegean Thermai gulf, she averaged seventeen knots, her speedometer showing several times twenty three knots when she was in the down slope of the waves. She was good! Of course for racing she needed a crew of twelve. When I bought her late 1999, from a classmate of mine who decided to quit racing, I had no intention to continue racing myself, actually I was looking forward to convert her interior in to a decent cruiser yacht accommodation. The sail handling was an issue though, in order to achieve the most of her capabilities on the least possible crew. But what I finally did with her will be on another article.

We spent Saturday, sailing, swimming and fishing. Sunday morning we decided to sail back the 30 miles to our home port. We sailed on an average of six knots until we reached abeam Michaniona, a fishing village 11 miles away from our destination, where the wind almost died. We were doing between 1 and ½ to 2 and ½ knots. It was already 16:00 and we were sailing for over eight hours. We had the main sail up as well as number three head sail, our usual configuration when less than the optimum crew was on board. The deck was a mess as aluminum beach chairs were there the cool-box, the portable stereo, fishing rods and stuff, a folding sun awning, you name it. But I was tired to fix the place. My older son Loukas was on the helm, while my younger son Praxitelis was fishing out of the stern. I told them that I will take a nap below-decks and I made myself “comfortable” on one of the hammocks. The sweet rolling of the boat made me to sleep in no time. Some time later (it was 17:30 actually) my younger son emerged from the hatch and shouted “dad, Loukas asks you to come upstairs and see something!!”

The moment I was on deck and looked forward, I see it. A small dark cloud hanging alone in the otherwise cloudless summer sky, approaching us, the sea beneath the cloud dark and disturbed. A micro-burst I thought instantly, and I started shouting, “Take the main down, NOW, helm in the wind, clear the deck”, in the meantime as I was shooting orders, I was throwing through the hatch chairs, fishing stuff, the cool box, everything that was lose on deck. Loukas on the helm was talking on his cellphone, and Praxitelis was collecting his stuff in a leisure manner, when the wind stroked on us. The anemometer repeater on the mast showing two miles of wind speed, climbed to twelve, twenty four to rest finally on thirty six. I was speechless. Within seconds, we rolled to the side and the main was flat on the water, the boat leaning ninety degrees, water flooding through the open hatch below decks. My older son was hanging from the helm, while the younger one was holding from the rails half his body in the sea. I was holding one of the winches. The boys were shouting, “what to do, what to do?”. I shouted back “hold and I will manage it”. I crawled toward the main sail sheet, and I released it. Instantly the boat leveled herself. I grabbed the helm,started the motor, and steered in the wind, the boys already working to take down the main which they did in record time.

I continued steering few degrees off the wind, and I kept the head sail only. The sound of the wind through the rigging was deafening, the sea was flagellated the deck, but we were already wet. It lasted for twenty minute. That's all. The wind ceased to five-six miles speed and the sea was calming down rapidly. The storm was heading South at flank speed. I realized that we were very lucky that no one was overboard, and that we were not dis-masted. Serious injury was the least we would have suffer.

The rest of the trip was uneventful, we arrived at our birth and we moored. The next thing was to have some drinks in the Yachting Club pub. Time for debriefing. All three, we are qualified sailors, we all graduated the sailing school, and we took exams with the Coast Guard. I personally hold certificates for both sail and motor yachts. Both my sons started sailing on dinghies at the age of five. Later they attended the Sailing School, both for cruising and for racing. My older one, was on the helm of our first boat since the age of seven, and we have sailed the three of us, until the day of this incident, for fifteen years. Well I did not expect experience from my boys but I would expect experience from myself. My first mistake was not to lose the sheets of both the main and the head-sail, the moment I was on deck. It would have saved us from rolling, of course we were in danger to have the boom crashing on our head but this is another story. Second, we were not wearing our life jackets. Although I had a rule for being on a life jacket and a life line with the boat on night passages, and at all times when the weather was rough or were single-handed, I did not have such a rule when sailing on day time in calm weather short handed. Too much confidence on sea is not a good advice.

The sea gives the yachtsman a great pleasure, provided that the yachtsman respects the rules of the game. There are no professionals and amateurs in the sea. We respect the rules, period. The first rule we disregarded was a good overall look around. Sudden storms (they call them micro-burst) like the one we had, is a common phenomenon, in our waters. It happens every two or three years, and several fishermen on dinghies lost their lives because they were unprepared. If I was on deck, I am sure I would have given us plenty of time to prepare the boat for the upcoming. But I wasn't. Thanks God we did not suffer any injuries, and it was a good lesson for all of us on what we should do in the future when on the sea. Now, seven years later, several friends of mine are blaming me for being overcautious when we are sailing. When short-handed I don't hoist a lot of canvas, and I always insist that nobody should leave the security of the cockpit without a life line and a life vest. I always sacrifice speed for security. Lesson Learned.