The Adriatic – Connecting Three Nations

The largest trans-Adriatic regatta “The Route of Coasters,” held for the first time in 1985, did not stop even during the Homeland War, nor when the cloud of Chernobyl wafted over the Adriatic. Skippers did not even mind snowflakes the size of a walnut which surprised sailboats in the middle of the Adriatic in May 1987.

- Praise the sea, but keep on land, a few bystanders commented eight attractive sailboats from the Rovinj waters setting sail along the longest trans-Adriatic regatta “Rovinj - Pesaro - Rovinj.” Skippers and crew members faced the difficult task to connect as fast and as deftly as they could the two Adriatic coasts, carried on by wind and waves, where wooden ships – coasters – once cruised. We later found out the task is not easy at all, and that the rough commentary has been justified, along with the piece of information that the record is held by the Slovenian Olympic athlete Mitja Kosmina, who took seven hours to sail the Adriatic. Most crews need double and frequently three times the amount of time. This year’s record of sailing the Adriatic, nine hours and 24 minutes, was achieved by the sailboat “Shining Umago Maxi,” in the maxi class, with Zvan Uroš as its skipper, from the club of Fiandra 1975 from Umag.

How Rovinj Stole the Regatta from Lošinj

This year’s anniversary regatta was an ideal occasion to recollect on its beginnings.
- When one is idle, all things come to mind. In case of skippers, the most “dangerous” time is the dead sea, explains Silvio Brunelli, a sea wolf from Rovinj, who skilfully provoked the white sails over to Rovinj waters.
- During the Lošinj regatta in 1984, we were caught in a twelve hour dead sea. I lowered the sail, moved about the kitchenette and was mostly bored quite a lot. Along “Alba,” the first sailboat from Rovinj that could boast sports results, there was “Pisarium” from Pesaro, steered by the owner Paolo Morsiani. I yelled such a thing could never happen in Istria. Suprising him thus with my statement, I had nothing left but invite him to Rovinj to have him convinced there is always some wind in western Istria. This was arranged and done. At the end of the season, a group of people from Pesaro came to Rovinj. Both sides literally threw the hook and anchored the organisation of the regatta in the restaurant called “Anchor.” It was arranged that the regatta be called “The Route of Coasters” in order to remind us of Adriatic connections between the two towns in the times when Pesaro was part of the Papal State, and Rovinj belonged to Venetian Doges. We selected the Labour Day for sailing it, because as a rule most employed people are free then on both sides, says Brunelli.

Two and a Half Decades of Continuity

The regatta dedicated to the tradition of bridging the two coasts by coasters was held for the first time in 1985, when 27 sailboats competed. Year in and out, the number of boats increased, and accordingly a record was achieved last year with 105 boats and about 800 sailors. Along with competitiveness, the regatta from the very start also had a wider social significance. Apart from numerous friendships being forged during sailing, the town folk of Pesaro proved especially worthy to their neighbours when they sent humanitarian aid during the Homeland War to Rovinj, not stopping the race in solidarity with their neighbours.

The regatta was not interrupted even during the disaster of Chernobyl, when the radioactive cloud wafted over the Adriatic, and not even in 1987, when skippers were caught in a major storm in the middle of the sea i.e. under snowflakes the size of a walnut. The connections between the two towns were strengthened even further by their ports becoming twin ports in 1999, as well as through tourist campaigns.

Centuries Old Friendship Crowned by Treats

Rovinj folk brought cheese, prosciutto, salt anchovies, great Istrian wine and a stack of promotional materials to their counterparts in Pesaro. Tasting gastronomic treats was organised on the town quay, just next to anchored sailboats, while the response from the folk was once again huge, as expected. The veterans of the basketball club Rovinj were quite busy, for they were in charge of transporting food and drink, as well as the employees of Maistrini - Slavko Janko, the chef of the Hotel Petalon in Vrsar, in charge of finely hand sliced prosciutto, and Mauro Tonelli, the chef of the restaurant in the castle on Crveni otok, who did not allow the glasses containing quality Istrian wine be empty.

The employees of the Tourist Association Rovinj were entrusted with the matters of presentation and enough copies of brochures and leaflets, and questions relating to arrival and accommodation in Istria, the association of which was simultaneously one of major sponsors of the regatta. The friends from Pesaro favoured Rovinj folk back by organising a marching band concert and a folklore ensemble, with traditional Labour Day dinner the evening before – with fresh broad beans with sheep cheese and pork meat rolls. It should be pointed out the organisers of the longest trans-Adriatic regatta are from the Maestral-Ronhill club from Rovinj, and from Lega Navale, a state club with head office in Pesaro, which reflects the history of Italian sailing. The regatta always starts in Rovinj for our sailors. During the return from Pesaro they are joined by Italian sailors, who then return to Pesaro alone. The regatta this year saw the participation of 90 sailboats with crews from Croatia, Slovenia and Italy.