Solo Offshore Racing Club Channel Race

SORC Channel Race © James Hardiman

SORC Offshore Series race 5 was a tactical race through the night heading offshore east of the Isle of Wight and into the Channel. Starting from Gurnard at 1800 on Friday 8 August, it would test the solo skippers with night sailing conditions. It was billed to last anywhere between 12 and 20 hours and take boats around 6 marks offshore, which made the most of the tides. An exciting tactical race was on the cards!

With a 12 to 15 kt wind from the south west, wall-to-wall sunshine and an emptying Solent, it was lining up to be one of the most perfect starts to a Solent-based race that I've enjoyed in 15 years of racing here. Spinnakers were hoisted across the fleet shortly after crossing the line and Chris Morton's J88 'Jester' started sailed through the fleet with a large A4. The tide seemed to suck Jester a little north & east of the perfect transit around Ryde sands and down to our first mark at Bembridge Ledge. This made way for Stephen Scholefield's J111 Mustigo II to creep ahead in the light winds around Ryde and to be the first boat around the first mark. As the fleet closed in on Bembridge most enjoyed some useful 15-18 Kt gusts to liven things up. Always fun when skippers are trying to get lines set up for rehoisting spinnakers.

Mark 2 was Pullar buoy, a 10-12 mile spinnaker run north and east. Soon after it was rounded, darkness closed in and a full moon accompanied the fleet through most of the night, giving enough light to see silhouettes of shipping as we sailed close hauled and tacked our way south down to mark 3 on an 18-20 mile leg to a virtual point off Saint Catherine's. This was a leg where positions were traded between boats opting for a route closer to the island versus one a little more offshore, the latter being the favoured option.

Once round the mark, it was 10 miles south-east to another virtual point and favoured skippers who hoisted a decent size kite as the wind was a steady 12-15kts and 150 degrees. The time was now about 01.00 - 02.00 and competitors were more easily identified by the glow of head torches than nav lights as skippers scrambled with sheets and poles to get boats set up for this next leg!

After rounding the final offshore mark, it was a 20 mile beat back to Bembridge and skippers enjoyed glorious sunrise, steady winds and smooth waters for a few hours in their 'happy-place'. It's a feeling we all get after racing through the night, right?

However, it wasn't over yet and no time to relax as realisation dawned into tired skippers that the wind was dropping and the tide was turning! It was always going to be stressful to get back up to Bembridge and cross the finish line west of Gosport before the tide turned foul, but coupled with such a significant drop in the wind, the last mile to the finish was an extremely frustrating hour and emotions were further exaggerated after a night of no sleep!

First over the line and first overall was Stephen Thomas's Azora; in second place was David Bright's Archambault 31 Kitty; third was James Hardiman on Elsa; and fourth Stephen Scholefield's Mustigo II with seconds between all four boats on corrected time.

Visit the SORC website for the full results, a longer version of the report and details of the SORC race to St Vaast on Friday 22 August, open to both solo and double handed boats.