Fastnet Race - the first few hours

Mike Broughton's essential reading for anyone taking part in RORC's classic offshore race

The Start Line to St Alban's Head

New Prohibited Area off Cowes - Due to the extra moorings off Cowes for the Jubilee Regatta this year, beware getting caught sailing into the prohibited area off Cowes Green (see diagram). Treat the northern most line of buoys as a 'continuing line of obstruction' - which is right in some of the best tide! Also don't get caught out going inside Gurnard Buoy (northerly cardinal buoy), which is a new mark of the course (less than 1 nm from the line).

Beware the Escape Route - Beating against Sunday's predicted southwesterly, along the Green with a close fleet can easily end in tears! You may be in great shape, as you race in on starboard tack, in clear air, with the fleet lined up on your starboard hip, but you have to be able to plan your escape! If you have larger faster boats inside you, it can be very tricky and if you have a poor tack, you could well end up dipping a lot of sterns as you exit on port tack.

If the fleet is close up to you and you approach the shore and have to call for water, start the dialogue early. The boats close by inside may also be trapped on starboard by other boats on their hip. The fifth boat in may not have anticipated the pending problem, as she merrily continues on starboard tack, leaving you sweating as the shore fast approaches. It was here that one Fastnet Race favourite ended their race damaged after only 200m, while another boat sailed the whole course, thought they had won, and later got disqualified for an infringement after only 55 seconds of racing.

Initial Strategy - Plan to aim for Sconce buoy where you can make the most of the favourable tidal slingshot just to the west of Yarmouth. Continue in the fast moving current towards Hurst Castle then take the area of best current close to the Shingles, prior to peeling off to round Needles Fairway buoy (new mark of the course). Work really hard to get clean air off the start line and if it is looking busy where you want to start, try and pick a much larger/smaller boat to start next to. This will enable you to get clean air sooner, once the larger boat has extended ahead.

Pick you lanes carefully to maintain clear air particularly in this large Fastnet fleet. Don't be happy to sit in dirt unless there is a compelling reason to do so.

A Bit of Geometry -The actual start line is 1.2 nm long (from the Royal Yacht Squadron (RYS) to West Bramble). In simple geometry terms, the shortest distance to Sconce is the perpendicular (rhumb line) to the buoy and is not in the middle of the line, but just a quarter of the distance up the line from the RYS. Starting close to West Bramble is a whole 200m further than at the perpendicular point. There are often good reasons to start else where, depending on the wind, tide and the main body of the fleet, but always remember that extra 200m if you are aiming for Sconce and starting near West Bramble buoy.

The Best Transits - The RYS start line transits and high intensity lights are difficult to see on a busy Fastnet Race start, in the final 25 seconds to the start gun, as other boats invariably obscure them. Brief your bowman to also be aware of the transit of the RYS Flag Staff, in line with the top window in the tower of Osborne Court apartments. This transit is usually visible above the height of other boat masts. Note also that the inner limit is Skandia Life Cowes Week buoy Alpha (yellow buoy), which is often difficult to see in the final minute due to the density of traffic. It will probably be actually over the line start line, so be warned.

West Bramble buoy (outer limit mark) will probably also be just over the line, but note the position of the RORC Committee boat 3Cs which you can rely on being smack on the line and I have used to good effect several times to get a good start. There are also three RORC RIBs on the line (carrying Red Flags to assist in identifying OCS boats), the position of these boats may well help as an additional visual cue to get you on the line for a good start.

The Best Tidal Stream - Once the ebb has gained momentum, flowing west the strongest area of tidal stream, will be found around 400m north of the Cowes Green. Look in particular for 'Micky’s Tidal River'. This is a local river of water that looks brown and flows at 0.8-1.4 knots faster than the rest of the ebb. It is actually a layer of 'fresh water' that is usually only 400m across and sits on top of the more dense salt water. It runs west, just north of Gurnard buoy, prior to swinging over towards West Lepe Buoy and then swinging back towards Yarmouth and merging with the strong tide off Sconce.

Note the local mini tidal race just inside Black Rock buoy, as the tide sluices round a mound on the seabed (don't hit Black Rock itself, 200m south of the buoy). As you approach the area, note the position of Yarmouth West Fairway Buoy. This is a new Solent limitation for the Race and you must pass it to north (this is to keep boats out of the area of moorings just to the west of Yarmouth harbour entrance).