Rolex Fastnet Race: Upwind to the Fastnet Rock, but no headbanger finally

 

Teams that competed in the last two Rolex Fastnet Races and are returning for this Saturday's special centenary edition will be breathing a sigh of relief looking at the long term forecast.

In contrast to the battering they received from the 30+ knot winds at the start and the subsequent gale force winds of the first 24 hours they endured during the last two editions, the long term forecast for this year's race shows more benign conditions.

Regardless of the wind conditions, the Rolex Fastnet Race is never easy as it always involves making best use, of or attempting to avoid, the tide, especially while exiting the Solent and off southern England's famous headlands - St Alban's Point, Start Point, the Lizard, Land's End - and again at the end of the race when all competitors will be affected, for better or worse, by the powerful Alderney race on the approach to Cherbourg.

Along the way it is mandatory that competitors avoid the Traffic Separation Schemes (TSSes). Exiting the Solent the Casquets TSS mid-Channel limits how far south boats can go before they are obliged to tack (although faster classes like the Ultims and IMOCAs often go south of this TSS). Tactically one of the most important lies off Land's End where the shorter passage is between this and the Scilly Isles, but depending upon the state of wind and tide it can also be advantageous to take the longer route between the TSS and Land's End.

Another TSS is immediately south of the Fastnet Rock, acting as a natural spreader mark, separating yachts arriving at the Rock from those exiting it. TSSes also lie to the west and south of the Scilly Isles and there is a further tactical option to leave the former to port or starboard. Finally the Casquets TSS once again comes into play forcing competitors south of it and causing some even to pass south of Guernsey to avoid the worst of the tide (although the Ultim Banque Populaire last year sailed around the north side of the Casquets) en route to the finish line.

While at present the weather for the 51st Rolex Fastnet Race looks like it will be dominated by a giant area of high pressure off to the west and southwest, the shape of this and a micro system that may or may not be spinning up in the Celtic Sea on start day are currently playing havoc with the routing, at least for the bigger boats.

For further information, please go to the race website:-  rolexfastnetrace.com