And then there is real world Harry. Harry Carstensen, 64, a traffic inspector in the DSB. He fell in love in 2004, but in a 30 meters long Viking ship.
“I have always been attracted to water. As a child I grew up by a lake, where I sailed and fished a lot. In 1965/1966 I helped a group of scouts build a large wooden raft that had a square sail measuring about 10 square meters. We sailed it quite a bit on Roskilde Fjord, and the raft created attention and was often mentioned in the press. The raft was approved by the Maritime Authority for navigating inner Danish waters, and that was pretty unusual. Besides, I have not sailed boats with sails much, but I do own a small motorboat and a sea kayak, and I completed the ‘Certificate of Competency’ for sailing”, Harry Carstensen says.
From raft to viking ship
The issue of not having adequate sailing experience, Harry Carstensen is severely recompensing: Today he is on board the world’s largest reconstruction of a Viking ship with 112 square meters of sail cloth to drive the whole thing forward on Nature’s own vigour.
Often with Harry Carstensen situated right at the front, as a look-out in the fore. The fore, taking pride in bragging that they are always ahead of the rest of the crew, a claim which is hard to deny.
“I have always been curious about the Viking period and took an interest in the building of the Sea Stallion. When I heard of the plans about sending the Sea Stallion to Dublin, I thought it sounded terribly exiting”.
Harry applied to join the crew and has taken part in almost every trip since the launch in 2004.
Fascinated by sea and weather
But really, why?
“I have always fancied active vacations – like fishing or hiking in mountains around the world. I want challenges and to test my self. And I saw a huge challenge in taking part in sailing the Sea Stallion from Roskilde to Dublin. I am sure that the voyage to Dublin will grant me tremendous personal satisfaction, and that it will present many, many escapades and challenges”, Harry Carstensen says.
“And I am very fascinated by the sea and weather, the bond between the ship, the crew, the sea, and the hard weather, but also when the weather gods reveal a gentler side. The light, the sun reflected in the clouds and the water surface, yes, the strange clouds can be very amazing when they build up – typically in fantastic forms and shapes – and when they dissolve. Not forgetting sunrises, sunsets, and the moon and stars of the night sky”.
”I also enjoy the sight of the sea birds, we meet underway. Gannets and fulmars told us that we had reached the open sea for real. The most special parts of the summer trip were the crossing of Kattegat in pretty tall waves and the kind of ghostlike nightly passing through the archipelago by Lysekil and onward to Basholmen”.
Without food and rest
What is the worst part of sailing with the Sea Stallion?
“There has been no condition so irritating or taxing that I thought ‘this is more than you can cope with’. But one night, when it was outright cold and wet at the front, it was a little bitter, because it was almost impossible to find another place to sleep”.
“I have also been somewhat annoyed by the way we distribute the hot meals at times. It is awfully irritating that we from the fore have to move the full length of the ship to get seconds from the galley in the aft and then keeping the balance with the stacked plate all the way back across thwarts, crew, rope, and oars”.
Hard weather OK
What are looking forward to the most?
"I have two highlights. The fist – and biggest – is the crossing of the North Sea and the second is the arrival to Dublin, but I also think that going through the tumultuous straight between Scotland and the Orkney Islands will be exiting and challenging”.
What do you fear the most?
“At the time of year when we are sailing, sudden unexpected storms are rare, luckily, but the thing I would like to experience the least, is a run-in with a regular storm. Hard weather is completely OK, but storm I would not be happy about. If I fear anything else, it must be a serious injury”.
What does the family say?
”I am not married, but I actually think that my three grown children all are just a little proud of their old dad… and that of course is all right by me,” Harry Carstensen explains.
In fact life aboard becomes him so well that he has already signed on for the return journey of the Sea Stallion in 2008 from Dublin to Roskilde.