Only One Week Until The Volkswagen Touareg King of Cowes

Action from the Volkswagen Touareg King of Cowes 2007 © Richard Langdon / www.oceanimages.co.uk

With just over a week to go before the first race of the 2008 Volkswagen Touareg King of Cowes at Skandia Cowes Week, the activity levels of the participating teams are reaching fever pitch. Virtually all of the owner helm pairings have finalised their crew configurations and some have been able to get some practice time in on the Solent.

The King of Cowes event uniquely matches the winning helms of the major classes at the 2007 Skandia Cowes Week with a randomly drawn pool of experienced Laser SB3 owners, for a one off regatta to decide who will be crowned King of Cowes for 2008. Aside from the kudos of securing the overall title, the winning helm will be presented with the keys to a brand new Volkswagen Touareg car and the boat owner will be rewarded with a fantastic Mark Warner family sailing holiday.

Last year, TV sports presenter Gaby Logan was the lone celebrity competing amongst the experienced sailors. This year we have three household names getting their first exposure to the cut and thrust of one-design sportsboat racing. 110-metre hurdler Colin Jackson will be racing with Multihull Class winner Philip Cotton aboard Tim Cork's Bathstore.com. Colin Jackson is, without a doubt, one of the greatest athletes that Great Britain has ever produced. He called time on his outstanding athletics career in 2003, after more than a decade spent at the very pinnacle of his sport. Since then Jackson's role as a BBC sports pundit and presenter has made him a familiar face in living rooms across the UK.

Fellow athlete and triple jumper Jonathan Edwards rounded out a spectacular sporting career with a Gold Medal at the Sydney Olympic Games in 2000. Edwards made his last competitive appearance at the World Athletics Championships in Paris in 2003. Now also working for BBC Sport, he remains one of the best loved British athletes. For King of Cowes, Edwards has been paired with Simon Anink, winner of IRC Class 3, and will be sailing aboard the SB3 of Nick Jackson.

TV Presenter Kirsty Gallacher will be racing with Adam Gosling aboard the Navy's SB3 Sail Navy. Gosling earned his King of Cowes place by winning the IRC 7 Class. Gallacher began her TV career on Sky Sports and has gone onto to present Gladiators for Sky, Ant and Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway for ITV1, The National Lottery for BBC1 and The Games for Channel Four. Daughter of former Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher she is also a keen sportswoman herself and is said to be looking forward to taking on the challenge of the King of Cowes regatta.

It is crystal clear that all three celebrities are fully focused on pulling off a King of Cowes victory. Experienced SB3 helm Jono Shelley, who ran an intensive day's training for the trio a few weeks ago, told us how struck he was with their enthusiasm. 'It was clear from the moment they arrived that they were hugely up for this. They are all fiercely competitive and when we went afloat the banter between the three of them started immediately.

When we showed them a video of last year's regatta I think they were surprised at just how close the boats get to each other whilst racing'. Shelley was also impressed with how the three celebrities coped with being dropped into the alien environment of sailing a twenty-six foot sportsboat. 'When we took them out in the boats for the first time the conditions were pretty full on. The wind was blowing at around eighteen knots, so when they pulled up the gennakers for the first time they were straight off planning at full chat. We had a few broaches during the day but nobody seemed to be phased by it all'.

Kirsty, Colin and Jonathan are all said to be very fired up and looking forward immensely to competing for real. Kirsty in particular seems keen to maximise her chances on the big day and rumour has it that she will be joining Adam Gosling in Cowes for a practice session on the eve of the event. It seems unlikely that Adam and Kirsty will have the Solent to themselves for their training. Some of the other teams have been able to get in valuable sailing time together over the last couple of weekends but most seem to have earmarked the Thursday before the event for practice.

David Palmer, winner of the Dragon Class, told us that he and tactician Jamie Lea have not been able to sail together in an SB3 yet, but planned to launch in Hamble next Thursday morning in order to work out their crew manoeuvres on the sail over to Cowes. Whilst Palmer is no stranger to victory on the Solent, having won Cowes Week in the Swallow, Sigma 33 and Dragon classes, he claims not to have designs on the King of Cowes title. 'I am thrilled to be able to take part in an event like this and hugely looking forward to competing. However this is a young man's game and I am sixty seven so I think my reaction times will be a problem'.

For Alistair Evans, representing the IRC 5 Class aboard Pieter Hien's Go Hard or Go Home, the event will be tinged with sadness. Alistair's father, Harry Evans, sadly died of cancer just a few weeks ago. Harry was a hugely popular character and a legend in the yachting community. Over many years his series of racing yachts, all called Alvine, were a familiar sight at the UK's major regattas. Just a week or so before he died, he told close friends how delighted he was that Alvine had earned the right to sail at King of Cowes and that he was very keen for Alistair to represent him there. Alistair and his crew Duncan McCarthy, who ran Alvine for Harry, will be racing in Harry's memory at the King of Cowes regatta and we are sure it will be an emotional day for all concerned.

Double Etchells World Champion, Simon Russell, secured his place at this year's King of Cowes by virtue of a win in the in the XOD Class. 'I am looking forward to competing' he told us. 'I don't entertain hopes of winning because I have so little experience in the SB3. I am sailing on Simon Lossie's boat Twerk and have recruited Richard Lovering to sail with us, so hopefully we will be able to set the boat up OK'. Russell played down his Solent experience as being of any advantage. 'It counts for nothing. All the skippers have won their class at Skandia Cowes Week and you don't do that without knowing your way around the Solent'.

Yachts and Yachting's online editor Mark Jardine is looking after one of the Laser Performance works boats and has Hayling Island's Ian Andrews on the helm. Ian won the RS Elite Class and says he is pleased to be part of King of Cowes but is concerned about his lack of time in an SB3. 'We are hoping to sail together the day before because our diaries have prevented us getting together sooner'. Jardine believes that the winner of the overall title will depend upon a number of factors. 'If it is windy then anyone with asymmetric experience will have a big advantage. The start lines are going to be crowded so it is vital to get away cleanly. If the wind is more moderate then local knowledge about sailing in the Solent will come into play'.

Giles Peckham, winner of the Daring Class, will be sailing with former Laser SB3 European Champion, Craig Burlton, who also competed in the 2007 King of Cowes event and testifies to its appeal. 'Last year there were some obvious candidates for the top slot and when you looked at the results afterwards, they had all done well. This year it's different. The field seems pretty open so it is very hard to predict a winner'. Craig believes that like any regatta, the key to success will be consistency. 'With only three races it is really about who makes the least mistakes. Getting off the start lines in good shape will be crucial'.

All the teams need to complete registration at Shepard's Wharf between 1700 and 2100 on Thursday 31st July. Final crew weighing will take place between 0800 and 0845 on Friday 1st August. The first race is scheduled to start at 1100 with races two and three being run back to back. The winners will be announced around 1730 at the Prizegiving Cocktail Party in the Cowes Yacht Haven.

Those not lucky enough to be in Cowes on the day will be able to follow all the action online. Traxu will be providing live position tracking for all the boats so you can watch the racing as it happens on your computer at www.traxu.com. The Daily Sail Website will also be giving live updates from the racetrack via their King of Cowes Live Blog which can be accessed through www.kingofcowes.com