Press splitter July 27th 2006

GORCH FOCK and other Navy sailers at the 16th Hanse Sail
The 16th Hanse Sail is also marked by the 50th anniversary of the German Navy. That is why, the sail training ship GORCH FOCK that was commissioned five years ago, will act as the flagship of the big and colourful fleet of barks, schooners, brigs and barkentines. Further Navy sailers are the Yawl TAIFUN (16.43 m, 122 m² sail surface) as well as the sloops ASTA (16.31 m, 148 m² sail surface), BRILLIANT and OPAL, (both 10.52 m, 64,4 m² sail surface). The Polish Navy Yachts DRAGON and KOGA and the sail training ships of the royal Swedish Navy SWANEN and THYRA (19.81 m) take part as guests of the German Navy.

Maritime paintings from Lithuania in the Gallery Mönchentor
Seafaring and fishing, sailor’s every day life on board and the architecture of the harbour cities of their home at the Baltic Sea are presented by eleven Lithuanian artists in the Mönchentor. On the occasion of the 16th Hanse Sail they take 30 works of art into the Rostock Gallery. The exhibition “Maritime pictures of Lithuanian artists” will be opened on the evening before the Hanse Sail begins (August 9th) at 4.00 pm. The laudation is given by the sculptor Wolfgang Friedrich as he is the president of the art association of Rostock. The major of Klaipeda will be present, as well.
Edvardas Malinauskas und Vladimir Bogatyriov are considered as "living classics" of maritime painture. Both belong to the eleven artists, who predominantly come from Klaipeda and are members of the art association of Lithuania. Their maritime paintings are exhibted in Rostock until September 22nd 2006. Since years Klaipeda and Rostock has kept close cooperation relationsships and especially worked together for the Baltic Sail, an amalgamation of Baltic cities with maritime big events.

Twelve machines at the 6th sea plane meeting
Dietmar Knauer, director of the Clipper Aviation explains: “Right from the start we had been dedicated with our sea planes, we liked it very much.” For the cause of the 6th sea plane meeting during the 16th Hanse Sail the company will arrive the coast with the three captive water planes. Beaver DHC 2 and the Cessnas 206 and 172. „ We wanted to support the sea plane meeting by our participation, offering sightseeing flights and were pleased about the great reception just at the Weekend”, says Knauer, who flies the Cessna 172 to Rostock. In total twelve water planes and two helicopters from Sweden, Norway, England, the Netherlands, Austria and Germany have applied for the 6th sea plane meeting. Also the Swedish Cessna Carawan 208 that can take 9 passengers on board with Thomas Hammerlund in the cockpit is again present. As president of the Austrian water plane association Gustav Z. Heldose personally flies the brine LA 200 to the coast. Peter Kumpart summaries that among others, two further Cessnas 206 for four guest passengers at a time, a Piper from England and two helicopters will come to Rostock.

Will ABORA II be followed by III?
The reed boat ABORA II that is already very famous in Rostock will also be registered as an official participant of the Hanse Sail 2006. It will be exposed ashore next to the main entrance to the Sail-peer and announce of the work of the Dominique Görlitz Verein für experimentelle Archäologie und Forschung e.V. (association for experimental archaeology and research). During the windjammer festival Görlitz and his comrades introduce their new experiment ABORA III. Increasing indications and scientific evidences show that human beings had crossed the Atlantic Ocean and traded intercontinental probably already before the Vikings and Columbus. That happened 14.000 years ago and even before the last ice age. Görlitz and his crew want to cross the Atlantic Ocean from New York to Tenerife with the help of the new reed boat ABORA III and so they want to proof that overseas seafaring was already possible before the ice age.

"Chairman by seniority" of the 16th Hanse Sail
Three ships from Germany are on the top of the vote for the "Chairman by seniority" in the Sail-fleet 2006. This year the Nordic racing yacht NORDEN has the longest ship’s life of all participating ships under its keel with an age of 136 years and moreover it is still briskly on its way with the 260 m2 sail surface. Only one year younger is the gaff ketch ATLANTIC, whose courses are defined by 340 m2 cloth for nearly all big sailer’s meetings in the Baltic and North Sea. The third in the list of the seniors is the galleass FRIDTHJOF, whose year of construction is quoted 1881 in the ship letter. Altogether there are 26 ships from Germany, Denmark, Great Britain and the Netherlands in the armada of round about 280 Hanse Sail ships that are 100 years and older. In a few days you could already drink to the schooner ARON from Denmark and the lugger VEGESACK BV 2 from Bremen with an original Rostocker Doppelkümmel (schnapps). This summer both old timers under sails carol with a lucky number as they are 111 years old.

"Macht die Anker fest" („Moor the anchor“)
Olaf Straube from Rostock presents the new song for the Hanse Sail 2006
The Hanse Sail always keeps for surprises, even a musical one in 2006. The composer, interpreter and producer from Rostock, Olaf Straube, musically stages the Hanse Sail with its requests and messages under the title "Macht die Anker fest". During the Hanse Sail the CD with the song will be available in the city harbour and in Warnemünde, but presumably also in several shops in Rostock.
Olaf Straube, who is also very successful as a singer with his own concerts throughout Germany, would like to support the Societät Rostock with every sold CD. The major of Rostock, Roland Methling, embraces Straube’s intention: “I’m very pleased with this Engagement. Therewith the song not only carries out the messages of the Hanse Sail into the world, but also supports a museum that is close to the Rostocker’s heart at the same time.” Olaf Straube will be seen live on stage in the city harbour on Friday (August 11th) and at the passenger quay in Warnemünde on August 13th.

What about a trip on cogs?
For centuries seafaring and maritime trade in the Baltic area have been affected by cogs. Those paunchy merchant ships of the time of the Hanseatic League illuminated such cities like Rostock and Lübeck, turned traders into wealthy and influential citizens and trained the seamanlike championship of captains, mates and crews. Still today cogs exude a special fascination to the visitors of maritime big events – as true to original reproductions.
So far no harbour festival around the Baltic Sea could present five cog replicas as guest ships at the same time. The 16th Hanse Sail in Rostock can do that and places a highlight of its fleet from August 10th to 13th. Visitors of the Sail can experience seafaring on cogs live. On board of WISSEMARA, UBENA v. BREMEN, KIELER HANSEKOGGE and ROLAND v. BREMEN still not all seats are taken for trips from the city harbour into the sea area in front of Warnemünde and back.

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