Imagine waking up at 5 a.m. on a Sunday for a wind powered only journey to Alaska.

That's what at least nine Seattle crews will be doing on June 14 the Race to Alaska competition (R2AK), a 750-mile, engine-free slog to Ketchikan where first place pays $10,000 cash and second place earns a set of steak knives.

R2AK bans motors and outside support. The route begins in the cold waters of Port Townshend and threads through tidal rapids, orca habitat, and powerful currents, with the race warning that rescue can be days away in remote stretches.

This year's field drew more than 80 applications, filling available slots faster than any prior year and forcing the first-ever waitlist in the race's history, according to organizer Northwest Maritime. Seventeen racers are going solo. A dozen teams plan to row or paddle the entire distance without a single sail.

Seattle entries range from Team Casuals (Brian Arnold, Mike Miller, Glenn Manchett, Chris Luce, and Tom Eschak on a Melges 32) to Team Norn to be Wild, an all-female squad of four racing a Santa Cruz 27. Team Much Ado About Muffin fields a six-person crew on a 1978 Santa Cruz 33. Eric Strickler of Bainbridge Island is attempting the full 750 miles on a custom stand-up paddleboard.

"The water at 4:30 AM strips away whatever philosophy you had under the work lights in your two-car garage," wrote Race Boss Jesse Wiegel of Northwest Maritime in a pre-race preview. "A solo stand-up paddleboarder, parked on the wet rocks of Restoration Point after an hour and a half trying to win an argument with a whirlpool, is rarely thinking about the indomitable human spirit. She is thinking about coffee, dry socks, and future mitigation of the specific set of bad choices that led her to this exact barnacle."

The race runs in two stages. Stage 1, the Proving Ground, covers roughly 40 miles from Port Townsend to Victoria, B.C. Teams that finish within 36 hours advance to Stage 2, a Le Mans-style start at noon Wednesday, June 17, from Victoria to Ketchikan. The only required waypoints are Seymour Narrows and Bella Bella. Otherwise, teams pick their own route through the wilderness.

Download the YB Races app for live GPS tracking, or sign up for email updates at nwmaritime.org. The pre-race Ruckus party in Port Townsend is Saturday, June 13, with live music and a chance to see the boats up close.

R2AK is a project of Northwest Maritime, a Port Townsend nonprofit. Race proceeds fund programs that expand public access to the water.