The AC international competition was hosted first in 1986 where the USA invited a French team to compete in the USA. 2 years later the competition was held in Doarnenez France, where also Denmark and Ireland were invited. After 1988, there is held competitions every even year. The competing nations rotate hosting the steadily growing event.
The Bantry Boats 200 year anniversary was celebrated in 1996 in Bantry Ireland, where the Danish boat won the competition, and therefore the hosting of the competition in1998. Roskilde Viking museum island was used as main base that year. The latest competition was held in Genoa Italy.
In 2008 the competition will be held in Finland Jakobstad, from the 27th July to the 3ed of August, with 16 teams from 14 countries.
Before the founding of AC Roskilde, the participation of the boat was a successful cooperation between Roskilde Rowing Club, Roskilde Sailing Club and the Viking museum. This was a combination of a cultural and two sport clubs, all a part of Roskilde Harbour. In May 2005 the association AC Roskilde was founded, to be run as an independent association around the boat "Solidarité".
The ide behind the competition, is to culturally support the international and local understanding of Seamanship, by letting young people form different countries meet to compete in a friendly battle between nations.
The competitions include challenges in manoeuvrability under sails and ors, rescue exercises, sailing-boat race, navigation, robe and knot work. It is not always about being the fastest, but also to complete the task securely and elegantly, by good teamwork and by making the right choices in critical moments. This shows good seamandship. As expressed by the founder of AC int. Lance Lee:
At sea it is what you do
when you dont know what to do
that makes all the difference.
The competition is carried out in a replica of a French Longboat, from the French navies pride frigate La Resolue, that attacked southern Ireland in Bantry Bay in 1796 with the French navy. They were caught in fog and bad weather – the attack failed. La Resolue collided with another ship, and recivede so excessive damage that it had to give op returning to France by own propulsion. It ankered just outside Bantry bay, and the long boats were sent ashore to get help. Yet when the longboats came ahore, they were attacked by the Irish, and the boat was taken as a war prize.
Today this boat can be seen at The National Maritime Museum in Dublin and the Danish boat Solidarité is an exact replica of the original boat, built in 1990 and is the boat used by AC Roskilde to compete at Atlantic challenge competition. The reason to use this boat type is that the exciting history and it’s qualifications as a school ship. It is a lightweight and elegant ship, yet hard to mauve with the complicated rigging of 3 sails and 10 ors. This demands a great deal of teamwork form the crew.
The Danish crew consists of 20 crewmembers, from 16 to 35. All interested in maritime activities like rowing and sailin- including other young people with a drive to give 120% for the team.
