To The Needles And Around

Avid adventurer BEN FOGLE recounts his tale of this year’s Round the Island Race, which saw some 16,000 sailors taking part

The trepidation for this year’s edition of the Round the Island Race in association with Cloudy Bay began in earnest on a calm Friday in Cowes. Together with guests and crew from far and wide, we assembled on our Farr 52, BOB by Cloudy Bay, to prepare ourselves and hone our skills, and be ready for the start line we would be crossing in the morning.

With a mix of experience on board we soon settled into suitable roles and exceeded our expectations with practice tacks and gybes across the Solent in a light, 10kt breeze and sunny skies. With the nerves alighting and the conversation building, discussion turned to exactly how early did we need to set the alarm to be on board and ready for the 0530 starting gun, fired from the Royal Yacht Squadron?

The answer to that question was 0345. Having sailed a leisurely Round the Island Race a few years ago on a traditional wooden yacht, the IRC class zero start time gave us possibly the earliest alarm call of recent years. Once afloat, it was good to see we were not alone, as Cowes bustled with the early fleets preparing, and the sound of winches, lines being thrown, and sail decisions being made buzzed across the dockside.

With 15 crew aboard BOB by Cloudy Bay – including the enviable tactical skills of Paralympic gold medallist, Helena Lucas – bacon rolls accompanied our briefing, washed down by an essential cup of coffee. The remaining time was spent grinding the main aloft, and selecting head sails for the tight fetch to the Needles and the anticipated downwind work later. We hoped the forecast northwesterly backing westerly would give us the fast ride along the south of the island that would keep us on track for our predicted five and a half hour run.

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