Fastnet Race Preview

(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- The Solent laid on ‘classic’ conditions for the start of the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s 47th Rolex Fastnet Race. In brilliant sunshine and with brisk westerly winds gusting up to 20 knots, the giant fleet tacked up the western Solent before compressing through the usual bottleneck at Hurst Narrows. A record-sized fleet of 368 boats started the race, 12 more than two years ago, confirming the Rolex Fastnet Race’s position as the world’s largest offshore yacht race.

By mid-afternoon, competitors in IRC Two were favoring the inshore route, closest to St Alban’s Head at 1620 were class favourite Gilles Fournier and Corinne Migraine’s J/133 PINTIA.

The inshore-offshore spread was the great debate amongst the smarter tacticians, strategists, navigators in the fleet.  For example, Joan Vila, MAPFRE’s legendary navigator from Buenos Aires, Argentina, confirmed the forecast: “Once we leave the Solent, the wind will blow at around 20 knots. From there, it will drop until tomorrow morning, with the probability of encountering areas of very light wind. As we get closer to Plymouth, the wind will build again.”

One of the growing classes in many RORC offshore events is the Doublehanded Class.  In fact, some of the boats are so well sailed that they have proven then can win both the doublehanded and open full crew divisions overall!

Thanks to our modern day lifestyles, a frequent problem facing race boat owners is finding willing and available crew. One solution is to sail with less people, an ultimate expression of this being two-handed racing. Therefore, it is no surprise that the IRC Two Handed class in has swelled, with 60 boats entered.

This was also helped by the outcome of the 2013 race, famously won for the first time ever by a two-handed crew - Pascal and Alexis Loison, a French father & son team on a 35-footer.

Dutch two-handed offshore champions, Robin Verhoef and John van der Starre, are entered on the J/122E AJETO! The last three Rolex Fastnet Races they campaigned a J/111, finishing seventh in the 54 boat Two Handed class last time. They acquired their new boat to be optimized for shorthanded racing, with a heavier, deeper keel and less sail area. “To make it easier to sail shorthanded,” explains van der Starre. “And we can adjust the mast while racing, which will be an advantage.”

So why do they race doublehanded? “Why? Because we are both a little bit crazy probably! Robin and I really like sailing shorthanded and it is always a hassle with a big team,” van der Starre explains.

As to how they divide up the labor, generally if one is sleeping, the other goes into solo mode, calling the other on deck for maneuvers. When both are up, they typically play to each other’s strengths: “Tactics is more my part,” says van der Starre. “Robin is little stronger, so he does the heavy stuff, getting jibs up and down and gennakers, etc.”

On board they don’t run a watch system and they do rely on the autopilot. “The first 20 minutes you (the human) is better, but after that the pilot beats you every time,” says van der Starre!

In the huge 60-boat IRC 1 class, two very well-sailed J/133s will be competing for class honors, David Ballantyne’s JINGS and Angus Bates’ ASSARAIN IV.

The enormous 65-boat IRC 2 class has two J/111s (Paul Griffiths’ JAGERBOMB and Sebastien de Liedekerke’s DJINN), six J/122E’s (Chris Daniel’s JUNO, David Richard’s JOLLY JELLYFISH, Andy Theobald’s R&W, Robin Verhoef & John van der Starre’s AJETO, & Chris Revelman & Pascal Bakke’s JUNIQUE RAYMARINE), Gilles Fournier & Corinne Migraine’s J/133 PINTIA (leading class in the RORC Offshore Series), Alain Catherineau’s J/122 LORELEI, and four J/120s (Simon Ruffles’ JAMEERAH, Joost van der Wal’s J-QUATTRO, Elin Haf Davies & Chris Frost’s NUNATAK, & Chris Schram’s MAVERICK).

The IRC 3 Class is composed mostly of J/109s, including top boats like Alain Bornet’s J/109 JAI ALAI
and Chris Preston’s J/109 JUBILEE.  Hoping to spoil that party is Jonty Layfield’s J/11S SLEEPER 11.  YB Tracking video  For more Rolex Fastnet Race sailing informationAdd to Flipboard Magazine.


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