Britain's J.P. Morgan BAR look ahead to Extreme racing in Muscat

J.P. Morgan BAR © Lloyd Images

Fast paced, action packed and pretty challenging is Sir Ben Ainslie's summary of the 2014 Extreme Sailing Series so far as the J.P. Morgan BAR skipper looks ahead to Act 2 - Muscat, Oman.

It's been just under four weeks since their racing debut in Singapore and the British team are ready and looking forward to a steadier, but equally as testing, second event in the Middle East.

"We are all really looking forward to Act 2 and ultimately expecting very different circumstances than that of Singapore. There will be a lot more space for racing and hopefully the winds will be a little bit steadier. For us, being new to the class and a new team, we took alot away from our first event, things to try and improve on and are looking forward to getting back together for a great week of racing.

Looking ahead on what to expect condition wise from the Omani venue, Bowman, Matt Cornwell commented, "The big contrast is that in Singapore we had a very shifty, gusty breeze whereas the breeze here will be coming off the sea so should be a little bit more stable. The forecast is looking quite light at the moment but it could still be a bit tricky and problematic - there are going to be holes out there to watch out for."

Muscat is a familiar venue for many of the 11 elite extreme sailing teams, one of the most competitive fleets so far, with home team, The Wave, Muscat and Act 1 winners, Alinghi offering the toughest competition. "I haven't competed in this venue before, but Paul [Goodison], Nick [Hutton] and Matt [Cornwell] all have so they will be giving direction as they are more familiar with the conditions." Ainslie continued.

For Olympic gold medallist, Pippa Wilson, one of only a handful of female sailors competing on the circuit the event will be her second time ever competing in the extreme 40 "I have never raced in Muscat before, so really excited to get out and get going. In Singapore I really learnt that, as a team and when it's all on, you are under a lot of pressure to make good decisions very quickly, but it's exciting and I love it.

It's a great set up, fast and dramatic, very different from the Olympic sailing I'm used to and I think the ESS platform is great for the sport, its exciting racing and a real spectator arena –there's so much going on."

Alongside their partnership with J.P. Morgan, BAR are supported in their Extreme Sailing quest by their technical clothing supplier, Henri Lloyd, Scorpion Ribs, who supply the team chase and hospitality boats for the series and SOS Rehydrate, a specialised rehydration drink for active lifestyles.

For all the latest J.P. Morgan BAR news and updates and to watch all the action live from Thursday 20 - Saturday 22: 1530-1700 local time / 1130-1300 GMT follow www.jpmorganbarblog.com @JPMorganBAR