THE YACHTING YEAR 2018 | 43
100ft supermaxi CQS
owned by Lude
Ingval will be
gunning for honours
in the Solent in 2018ROUND THE ISLAND RACE
A RACE FOR ALL
A cornerstone of the British yacht racing calendar, the
Round the Island Race in association with Cloudy Bay, is
taking place a little later than usual this year on 7 July, to
avoid a clash with the Isle of Wight Music Festival. e
rst start is a relatively leisurely a air this year, set at 0630;
entries open in January.
As many as 1,400 boats – that’s around 15,000 sailors- will race the 50nm course heading westwards from
Cowes, which pits Corinthian sailors against the
professionals alongside celebrities; last year’s event
ambassador was TV adventurer Ben Fogle. Whatever size
of boat you sail, whether fast or slow, there’s truly a sense
that this is a ‘race for all’, making this event a rm
favourite.
Could we see records tumble once again? Last year saw
the MOD 70 Concise 10 steal the multihull record by one
minute, to set a new record of 2 hours, 22 minutes and 23
seconds. Irvine Laidlaw’s 82 Highland Fling XI followed a
notch under two hours later as the rst monohull across
the line, and Adam Gosling’s JPK 10.80 Ye s! in IRC1 won
the coveted Gold Roman Bowl.
CORK WEEK
VENTURE OVER AND ‘BUILD YOUR
OWN REGATTA’
2018 sees Volvo Cork Week take place between 16-21 July.
As ever, this biennial regatta promises top class racing on
the water topped with a good dose of Irish hospitality
onshore, making it a not to be missed event. A er
attendance numbers took a dip when the recession hit
Ireland hard, the event has been working in recent years to
deliver exactly what sailors want. A big part of that response
will be delivered in 2018 in the way of a brand new format,
which includes three or ve day racing options and exciting
combination of inshore and coastal racing for 12
competitive classes. is ‘build your own regatta’ concept
could well be a revolutionary move.
On shore, the parties are set to span all six nights, with
up to 10,000 visitors to the regatta site expected. Sounds
like a winning combination and a superb excuse to venture
over the water and sample some of this regatta’s legendary
hospitality!COWES WEEK
SIMPLY UNMISSABLE
With its legendary racing and unrivalled social scene, if
there’s one must-do regatta for many, it’s Cowes Week.
Sponsored once again by Lendy and running 4-11 August,
2018’s event promises to bring all the excitement once
again, drawing boats from around the world.
Following last year’s spectacular debut big boat series,
the Sevenstar Triple Crown event, a 25-strong eet
including a dazzling appearance by the Volvo Ocean Race
eet, competed for three prestigious and historical
trophies. On a memorably windy round the island race,
the record tumbled as VO65 Mapfre set a new record of
3 hours, 13 minutes and 11 seconds.
is year’s event will undoubtedly see another collection
of the biggest and most advanced cutting edge race
machines on the water, as well as thousands of keel boats
sailed just as expertly and just as ercely. Of particular
note this year will be the Squib class’s celebratory
anniversary regatta, held as part of Cowes Week, with the
class hoping to beat the XOD’s usual claim to having the
largest eet at the week. Cowes Parade will be buzzing
again, with bands, burgers and banter aplenty.R O U N D T H E
I S L A N D R A C EC O W E S W E E K
8
The annual pres-
tigious Yachts &
Yachting Awards
highlights the very
best sailors, boats,
kit, events and rac-
ing achievements,
as voted for by
Y&Y readers. From
dinghies to o shore
record breakers,
and everything in
between. Could your
class or event be
shortlisted? Find out
when the nomina-
tions are revealed
and voting goes live
with the December
issue of Y&Y. In 2018,
Y&Y is joining forces
with the Royal
Yachting Associa-
tion to recognise the
achievements of
local clubs.XXX XX XX XX XINGRID ABERYTYY4 Year ahead Y&Y.indd 43 04/12/2017 15:14