Following a disappointing cancelation of the first day’s racing events at the Royal Yacht Squadron’s Bicentenary International Regatta, day two turned out to be a challenging day on the water, with strong winds and choppy conditions.
Gusts of up to 30 knots were recorded as yachts were getting ready at the start line. The race kicked off with a downwind leg, with some boats reaching up to 24 knots’ boat speed as they crossed the line. "We had a great race, and it was all down to how the guys handled the boat. The Solent is a challenging place to sail,” said Terry Hutchinson, tactician onboard the Class 1 winner, Bella Mente.
The star of the show however was the carbon racer Rambler, who overshadowed the entire fleet with the highest recorded speed of the day and managed to take the lead during the first leg, and went on to complete the 22 mile course in one and a half hours.
The classic yachts of Class 3 managed to keep a steadier pace as they sailed around the course, and felt the weather conditions to suit their type of vessel rather well. "It was not too windy for us," said Argyll's captain Alexis Bordessoule, "We were rolling a bit downwind as were most of the others around us, but we set our asymetric kite to get us down to the forts and managed to stretch a lead on the water."
Today's Race Around The Island will take yachts on an endurance course around the island and is set to test the skills of the sailors over the extended course.
Follow the race here.