A weak, dying front across southern Ireland and the Celtic Sea combined with an absence of isobars anywhere in the UK made it a most frustrating night for the 350+ crews still competing in the Rolex Fastnet Race. The GRIB files for the race area at present are showing winds of no more than 5 knots between the Fastnet Rock and Start Point…
Progress overnight in the Rolex Fastnet Race has been better than expected with the majority of the fleet having been lured out into the middle of the Channel following the temptation of stronger winds. At 0800 this morning the leading multihulls had passed Land’s End and were tackling the south side of the Traffic Separation…
Giant crowds packed the Cowes and Western Solent shoreline this afternoon as a record-sized fleet of 356 set off on the 90th anniversary Rolex Fastnet Race, organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club. With a complete lack of wind in the central Solent, the boats ghosted across the start line starting their 600 miles voyage…
The penultimate day of Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week delivered more interesting and challenging racing, with most of the action taking place in a light north westerly wind. Today’s races for Black Group yachts were the last in their series for the overall prizes in the regatta. A number of classes had clear winners with…
This morning at the RORC’s new Cowes clubhouse, a select cross-section of competitors in this Sunday’s Rolex Fastnet Race shared their observations about the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s biennial 600 mile flagship event. By way of introduction, RORC CEO Eddie Warden Owen said he was delighted with the record-sized fleet of 370. “We thought that…
A damp morning, with challenging winds around the rain clouds, failed to squash spirits at Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week today. The weather cleared during the afternoon, giving competitors a chance to dry out while enjoying post-race drinks and a display by the RAF’s Red Arrows aerobatic team brought to the event by Artemis Investment…
Today was a beautifully warm day with a stable east-north-easterly air flow over the Solent area that mostly averaged 9-11 knots, with a few stronger gusts, making for excellent racing conditions. The day saw the first racing for the five 60-72ft yachts in the IRC Big Boat Class, which had a downwind start from…
With no wind predicted for the Solent area today racing for all classes was abandoned. “It was really unfortunate to lose a day’s racing,” says race director Stuart Quarrie, “but with no wind there was no other option. We waited until 1100 to see if any zephyrs from the north-east might build into a sailable…
With Cowes Week in full swing and with a 2nd and a 3rd already in the bag, the racing duo of Pip Hare and Ashley Harris are feeling buoyed up on board Cazenove Capital Management. The weather last weekend was amazing and the blistering hot sunshine has left the pair without much of a thought as…
After two brilliantly sunny days this morning saw increasing cloud over the Solent, accompanied by a band of rain that provided competitors with interesting and challenging wind shifts. While Black Group yachts in the Western Solent saw winds of up to 17 knots, the smaller White Group dayboats that were competing in the eastern Solent…
