HOME :: Travel-and-Leisure / Sailing Four Top Sailing Regattas In British Waters

Britain has some excellent regattas available for the sailing fraternity. The first and probably most famous is Cowes Week. An amazing week of high quality sailing in the Solent waters off the coast of the Isle of Wight. Cowes Week is a definite highlight in the sailing calendar and has been running since 1826, making it the world's longest running sailing regatta, as well as being one of Britain's biggest annual sporting events. Over 8000 competitors race in yachts in 40 classes in varied 'round-the-cans' courses. Entrants are local, national and international and range from being complete novices to World and Olympic champions. There is a packed racing schedule with just over 30 races every day for the full 8 days. Aside from the racing, there is a vibrant social scene that caters for everyone's taste, with a wide variety of excellent shops, pubs and cafes to choose from. There is plenty to do day and night, with live music, a magnificent firework display, the Honda Dream Team air display and the renowned Guinness and Pimm's tents!

Our second recommended regatta is the Round the Island Race once described as 'the Grand National of sailing', the annual Round the Island Race is extremely popular in the sailing world. The amount of publicity it attracts raises a huge amount of money for its official charity: Prostate Research Campaign UK. Take part in the 50-mile race, sailed anti-clockwise around the Isle of Wight, alongside competitors from all around the world, and make a difference in the medical world by raising funds for the fight against prostate cancer. The race was first started in 1931 with only 25 entries. Today there are over 1700 yachts competing for the beautiful Gold Roman Bowl. Entrants range from being complete novices sailing in the smallest offshore categories, to very accomplished competitors sailing in maxi-yachts. Sir Edward Heath is among the most notable of contestants having won the race 4 times! Despite the record winning time standing at just over 3 hours, most entrants cross the finishing line in late afternoon! The race takes place on the 3rd of June, but all entries must be in by May 6th.

The third regatta is the Winter Hamble Series which involves 8 competitive races on 'round the cans' courses on the Solent, and take place from the beginning of October to the early part of December. If your staff or clients are in need of some team building then these races are the ideal environment for developing that competitive spirit whilst maintaining a sense of fun. Every race goes towards the final result of the series, and the winners get a prize...a great incentive for any team! The experience is guaranteed to boost morale and make life in the workplace a lot more effective.

Our last regatta to recommend is Fastnet 2006. Fastnet Rock is on the Southern tip of Ireland, over 600 miles away, and takes teams up to 5 days battling against tricky tides and high winds to get to. The course starts in the Solent and then heads West following the coast to Lands End before heading out to the famous rock and then finishing in Plymouth. The race was born in 1925 and is now one of the Worlds greatest offshore races with over 200 competitors taking part. Join us in this great challenge and we will train your team to a standard capable of winning and nothing less!

Chris Laas runs a yacht charter company in Southampton in the United Kingdom.

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