The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC), organizers of the Rolex Fastnet Race, announced that the City of Cherbourg will host the finish of the Rolex Fastnet Race for the 2021 and 2023 editions of the biennial race. The race, first sailed in 1925, had previously departed from Cowes on the Isle of Wight and returned to Plymouth in the UK after rounding Fastnet Rock, off the southern coast of Ireland.
The RORC justified the change by saying that it will open the race to more competitors. The 2019 Rolex Fastnet Race had 388 yachts on the start line from 27 different nations, with a waiting list of 150 yachts.
Plymouth City Council said it was “beyond disappointed”.
BBC quotes RORC Commodore, Steven Anderson, saying: “We have had to limit entries in recent years because of berthing constraints, but Cherbourg offers significant additional berthing and improved facilities for competitors, so we will be able to … give more sailors the opportunity to compete in this very special race.”
Royal Western Yacht Club Commodore Chris Arscott said changing the route made it a different race, which arguably should not be called Fastnet.
Mr. Arscott said his club has hosted the finish since 1925 and added there had been some backlash among competitors.
“To me, it is about the tradition of the whole thing, it is not about the commercialization,” he said.
The move of the finish line to Cherbourg, France will add 90 nautical miles to the previous 608-mile course. The race will also cross the English Channel, which is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.
This is an interesting change and is safer than sailing the English coast on the inshore routes. It follows the routing as laid out in BA Chart 5500. Refer to at the Western Approaches and La Manche charts to see that courses can be sailed to cross southwards after rounding the Fastnet to enter the La Manche/English Channel following the routing system. Happy Thanksgiving and
Good Watch
Madness.
Last year they had the Fastnet before Cowes Week which took at least 30 competitors away from Cowes Week itself. That was £800 a boat of badly needed entry fees following the collapse of the low grade sponsor, Lendy.. What you have to remember is the majority of entrants are UK based and the extra 90 miles takes you even further from returning to the Solent which requires more time and either more leave or more expense in returning crew by ferry/flights and the boat by paid crew.
I am afraid RORC are devoid of joined up thinking.