Cowes Week – Mid-week Report

It sure is the biggest sailing summer ever round here. The Olympics just finished – and now Cowes Week has started up.

For those who don’t know, Cowes Week is the UK’s biggest annual regatta (save the Olympics of course) and one of the country’s yearly social highlights. 

It ‘is one of the longest-running regular regattas in the world. With 40 daily races, up to 1,000 boats, and 8,500 competitors ranging from Olympic and world class professionals to weekend sailors, it is the largest sailing regatta of its kind in the world. Having started in 1826, the event is held on the Solent…made tricky by strong double tides’ *.

It’s not just a rocking’ regatta – it’s also a great festival, complete with endless parties, street concerts, vendors, prizes and stalls. 

Fun if you are watching the action from land or from the deck of a high performance racing machine.

  

The Can Opener and I were lucky enough to be invited to race on a J122. And lucky enough to be on a great team that’s on a winning streak. Nothing like crossing the line first and getting the gun! 

All credit to the J122’s great skipper – the same nice guy from the Red Tabby Yacht Club who invited us to join him.

View from the J122’s bow

–Captain Cat 

(transcribed by the Can Opener)

* wikipedia