Race to Alaska Explained
Stage 1 Race start: June 5, 2023, 5:00 AM, Port Townsend, Washington
Stage 2 Race start: June 8, 2023, High Noon, Victoria, BC
Application deadline: Tax Day baby! April 15th
The inside passage to Alaska has been paddled by native canoes since time immemorial, sailing craft for centuries, and after someone found gold in the Klondike the route was jammed with steamboats full of prospectors elbowing each other out of the way for the promise of fortune.
It’s in the spirit of tradition, exploration, and the lawless self-reliance of the gold rush that Race to Alaska was born. R2AK is the first of its kind and North America’s longest human and wind powered race, and currently the largest cash prize for a race of its kind.
This isn’t for everyone
It’s like the Iditarod, on a boat, with a chance of drowning, being run down by a freighter, or eaten by a grizzly bear. There are squalls, killer whales, tidal currents that run upwards of 20 miles an hour, and some of the most beautiful scenery on earth.
R2AK is based on the hardest kind of simplicity
You, a boat, a starting gun. $10,000 if you finish first, a set of steak knives if you’re second. Cathartic elation if you can simply complete the course. R2AK is a self-supported race with no supply drops and no safety net. Any boat without an engine can enter.
In 2022, 41 teams were accepted and 19 finished.
Learn more about Race to Alaska >>
Team Tres Equis getting ready to roll in this years Race to Alaska.
Team members: Chad Wilson, Ken Wolfe, Bill Hardesty
Hometown: Dickinson, TX, USA
Race vessel: Corsair 880 Sport
LOA: 29′
Human propulsion: Flywheel
An insurance lawyer, a Rolex Yachtsman of the Year, and someone who is probably a dentist walk into the Race to Alaska…
Honestly, we don’t know what happens next. We stopped listening to our own joke a while ago. There’s some punchline there somewhere, but given the set up we’re pretty sure that at least one of them is going to be named Chad.
Stay with us: theoretically, if an insurance lawyer does a 750-mile adventure race from Port Townsend to Ketchikan, should the race host or his insurance company be concerned?
Again, hypothetical here, if you had the 2011 Rolex Yachtsman of the Year on your boat, would you have them captain the boat, or would you choose the safety first insurance lawyer to be the captain?
What if—just saying—the insurance lawyer, the Yachtsman of the Year, and some other guy had all served in the merchant marine as deck and engine officers, sailed ships around the world, and put in time in the U.S. Naval Reserve as officers assigned to the logistics fleet?
And—play along with us here—they bought a brand new boat and packed it full of their trophies, medallions, and “You Qualified for the Olympics!” certificates and maybe did Race to Alaska an adventure race that may or may not be filled with bears?
We’re about to find out.
We sat down with Chad T. Wilson, head legal counsel and captain of Team Tres Equis over a tureen of creamed corn and two oversized spoons to talk about accidental death and dismemberment, “world championships,” and whether or not Bill’s decision to R2AK is more worthy of the “Casio Yachtsman of the Year” than what he’s currently sporting.
What are the necessary components of a good adventure?
Unfamiliar territory, unplugged, heightened level of risk, challenging, coffee.
What’s a lesson you learned the hard way?
Passports don’t come loaded with visas.
What’s your favorite kind of bracket?
Box bracket.
What’s your claim to fame?
3 talented kids who fall in the “good people” category; 3-time Olympic Team Trials qualifier in sailing.
It’s drizzling, freezing cold, and you’ve missed the tide. The cabin is leaky and the stove won’t light. How do you keep the good vibes going?
Uplifting music, bad music, recorded sounds of whales, repetitive counting.
Forget the 10k or the steak knives. What does success look like for you and your team?
3 crew start, 3 crew FINISH and get home safely; no insurance claims [R2AK HQ: Classic lawyer talk].
Blank space, baby. Share some things:
I am looking forward to R2AK with two guys I haven’t sailed with since Kings Point in 1997. I am proud that Bill said yes to R2AK and Ken’s wife said yes to R2AK for Ken.
SO what’s happening before the race? SEVENTY48
Just ask yourself, “Self, what could I do to test my mettle the weekend before the R2AK?” If you answered, “A burly, pre-race to R2AK—where the greatest competition for yourself is yourself. A race super accessible to compete in. A race that is tough but still lets me update Instagram,” we’d say, “Hell yeah. You nailed it.”