Stephen Colbert to sail the high seas

(CNN) -- Call him Captain Colbert. Comedian and TV host Stephen Colbert is headed for the high seas.

Colbert will take part in the 777-mile Charleston Bermuda Race in May, organizers of the event have announced.

"The ocean has had a free ride for too long. Well, it has to deal with me now. Brace yourself, Atlantic!" Colbert, the host of American political satire show "The Colbert Report," said in a statement Friday.

Event organizers have designated Colbert, who is a native of Charleston, S.C., Honorary Captain of the Fleet.

The Charleston Bermuda Race is described by organizers as a "romp through subtropical waters." This year's competition will begin May 21 from Charleston Harbor.

Held every two years, the first-to-finish in Bermuda competition is open to sailors with boats that are at least 30-feet long.

Colbert, who took part in the race in 2005, will compete in one of race sponsor OnDeck's 65-foot ocean-racing yachts.

OnDeck is presenting the race with the South Carolina Maritime Foundation and the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club.