Round the Island Race 2008 from Blackgang viewpoint

Yachts racing during Round the Island Race 2010 5

The Round the Island Race is an annual

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

race Race, RACE or "The Race" may refer to: * Race (biology), an informal taxonomic classification within a species, generally within a sub-species * Race (human categorization), classification of humans into groups based on physical traits, and/or s ...

around the

Isle of Wight The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...

. It starts and finishes in

Cowes Cowes () is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked by the Cowes Floa ...

, and is organised by the Island Sailing Club. The course is about long. It was first held in 1931, it was sponsored by

JP Morgan Asset Management JPMorgan Chase & Co. is an American multinational investment bank and financial services holding company headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. As of 2022, JPMorgan Chase is the largest bank in the United States, the w ...

from 2005 but in 2017

Cloudy Bay Te Koko-o-Kupe / Cloudy Bay is located at the northeast of New Zealand's South Island, to the south of the Marlborough Sounds and north of Clifford Bay. In August 2014, the name Cloudy Bay, given by Captain Cook in 1770, was officially altered ...

took over as the Presenting Sponsor, the 2019 race was sponsored by Helly Hansen, Raymarine, MS Amlin and Chelsea Magazines. The race is generally chosen to be the Saturday in June with the most favourable tides; a date in late May or early July may be chosen if there is no suitable date in June.

History

The race was the idea of Major Cyril Windeler, who commissioned a gold Roman-style bowl as prize for the winner. The first race, in 1931, had 25 entries. The silver bowl second prize was introduced a few years later when Chris Ratsey impressed Windeler with his good sportsmanship. The last race before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, in 1939, attracted 80 entries. In 2008 a total of 1750 boats took part. In 2022, more than 1100 boats took part.

Course

The course runs all the way around the Isle of Wight, with a total distance of . The course has varied slightly with buoys tried at

the Needles The Needles is a row of three stacks of chalk that rise about out of the sea off the western extremity of the Isle of Wight in the English Channel, United Kingdom, close to Alum Bay and Scratchell's Bay, and part of Totland, the westernmo ...

and a requirement to leave

No Man's Land Fort No Man's Land Fort, also referred to as No Man's Fort, is a sea fort in the Solent, near Portsmouth, England. It is one of the Palmerston Forts built between 1867 and 1880 after the recommendations of the 1859 Royal Commission. It is 200 f ...

to port.

Race record

Multihull/outright race record

It was in 1961 that multihulls first entered the round the island race and the record has since fallen considerably.

Monohull race record

Outright record

The outright record as recognised by the World Speed Sailing Record Council on behalf of

International Sailing Federation International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

has in the past also been the race record.

Gallery

Image:RoundTheIslandRace2010.jpg, Some of the 1700 boats in the 2010 Round the Island Race. Image:Yachts racing during Round the Island Race 2010.jpg, Yachts flying

spinnaker A spinnaker is a sail designed specifically for sailing off the wind on courses between a reach (wind at 90° to the course) to downwind (course in the same direction as the wind). Spinnakers are constructed of lightweight fabric, usually n ...

s during the 2010 race Image:Round the Island Race 2009 off St Catherine's Lighthouse.jpg, The fleet rounding

St. Catherine's Lighthouse St Catherine's Lighthouse is a lighthouse located at St Catherine's Point at the southern tip of the Isle of Wight. It is one of the oldest lighthouse locations in Great Britain. Origins The first lighthouse was established on St Catherine ...

in 2009 Image:Round the Island Race 2009 off The Needles.jpg, The 2009 race, with yachts seen racing off The Needles Image:Round the Island Race 2009 off The Needles 5.jpg, The 2009 race, with yachts seen racing off The Needles Image:Round the Island Race 2009 off The Needles 4.jpg, The 2009 race, with yachts seen racing off The Needles

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Round The Island Race Recurring sporting events established in 1931 Sailing competitions in the United Kingdom Sailing in England Sport on the Isle of Wight Single-day sailing competitions