Everything about Fastnet Race totally explained
==Introduction==The
Fastnet race is a famous offshore
yachting race. It is considered one of the classic offshore races. It takes place every two years over a course of 608 miles. The race starts off
Cowes on the Isle of Wight in
England, rounds the
Fastnet Rock off the southwest coast of
Ireland and then finishes at
Plymouth in the South of England after passing south of the
Isles of Scilly.
The prize is known as the
Fastnet Challenge Cup.
History
The first Fastnet race, with seven entries, was won by
Jolie Brise in
1925.
The
International Offshore Rule (IOR) was introduced in
1973, and the yachts and crews began taking sponsorships.
A severe storm during the
1979 race resulted in the deaths of 15 competitors. This led to a major overhaul of the rules and the equipment required for the competition. Several books have been written about the 1979 race, which is notorious in the yachting world.
The race drew further attention from outside the sport in
1985 when the
maxi-yacht Drum capsized after her experimental
keel sheared off. Pop star
Simon Le Bon, co-owner and crew member of
Drum, was trapped under the hull with five other crew members for twenty minutes, until being rescued by the
Royal Navy. The Search and Rescue Diver was Petty Officer Air Crewman (POACMN) Larry "Scouse" Slater of
771 Naval Air Squadron who appeared on
This Is Your Life on
9 April 1986.
The race record is currently held by Mike Slade's Icap Leopard 3 with an elapsed time of 44hrs 18min.
Fastnet since 2005
The
2005 race was sponsored by
Rolex and organised by the
Royal Ocean Racing Club with the
Royal Yacht Squadron and the
Royal Western Yacht Club, Plymouth.
The start of the
2007 race was postponed by 25 hours, due to a severe weather warning. This was the first time this had been done in the race's 83 year history. Overnight gale force winds and, in particular, extreme seas forced many boats to retire, sheltering in ports along the south coast of England, including
Torbay,
Plymouth and
Weymouth
By 1000 on
16 August, 207 boats of the 271-strong field had retired with at least three suffering rig problems.
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Despite the conditions, Mike Slade's
Icap Leopard 3, launched in June 2007, set a new record of 44 hours 18 min, taking almost 9 hours off the previous record set in 1999. Ger O'Rourke's
Chieftain was the overall winner on corrected time.
Winners
Further Information
Get more info on 'Fastnet Race'.
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