Sailing in the snow

Royal Southampton YC's Frostbite series sets sail this weekend

Hardened racing yachtsmen with the Royal Southampton Yacht Club get out on the water this weekend for the start of the Club’s 2010 racing season.

At least 30 yachts are due to line up for the start of the Club’s Frostbite series, sponsored by Doyle Sails, in Southampton Water on Sunday morning.

Next weekend the Club’s cruisers begin their season with the first of three Frostbite rallies.

Doyle's Frostbite racing series is rapidly becoming a flagship event and with no other racing in the Solent at this time, it provides an ideal opportunity to get a new crew up to speed for the season.

There are Classes for IRC, J/92 boats, RSYC rated monohulls and multihulls. Two races of about an hour's duration is a format that is proving to be really popular, with prize giving at the clubhouse in Southampton’s Ocean Village, usually by 1pm. The ten races in the series run through at fortnightly intervals until March with the final race on March 13, acting as a prelude for the neighbouring Warsash Spring Series which begins the following day. In the Club’s Doyle’s Frostbite series the best seven results count for overall rankings.

"Racing conditions are usually excellent with flat water and moderate tides, providing a great environment for racing crews to develop their boat handling," said Race Secretary, Cathy Crawley.