Calais Round Britain returns

New features for next year's Open 60 race

Despite being in the middle of the Vendée Globe but the 2005 Open 60 calendar is already filling up. In May, the IMOCA fleet will return to the Opale coast in northeastern France for the second running of the Calais Round Britain Race. However this time the race will be significantly different as it will be sailed double-handed.

"In addition to making the Calais Round Britain Race a classic début to the season, we wished for it to be double-handed," says Luc Talbourdet, President of the IMOCA Class. The move shows an increased trend within the IMOCA class to include challenging shorthanded events in their calendar.

The Calais Round Britain Race is once again organised by the Royale Production company, alongside the Calais Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the fourth consecutive year the famous ferry port has hosted one of the French ocean racing fleets.

A little over three months after the finish of the Vendée Globe, the Open 60s will take the start line of the second Calais Round Britain Race on 22 May 2005 for a clockwise 1850 mile non-stop lap around the British Isles (including the Shetlands). While being a race of oceanic distance, the course is a tough one as it is mostly coastal with plenty of tidal effects, headlands and obstructions to negotiate. "It's a great course from a technical and a tactics point of view," explains organiser Philippe Facque.

The last race started in July when it was largely a light airs race. Moving the start date forward the organisers hope will make for a more lively forecast.

The race will have a coefficient of two towards the annual IMOCA World Championship ranking and it is likely it will continue in the calendar biennially. 8-10 boats are expected to take part.

Once again, part of the race will be the record passage between Dover and Calais - the final leg of the race. The best time for the best time for 19 mile cross of he English Channel at its narrowest point was set by Objectif 3 on Charles Hedrich who took 1 hour, 18 minutes and 50 seconds, at an average speed of 14.62 knots.

Calais Round Britain Race 2005 Programme

18 May: All the monohulls in the port of Calais
20-21 May: Exhibition races for the public and the press
22 May between 1100 GMT and 1300 GMT: Start of the Calais Round Britain Race
Around 29 May: first arrivals expected