Your questions answered

Why start so early?

“It’s a 50-mile course, so it can be a very long day on the water. We try to give everyone the best possible chance of finishing, even in very light winds. The whole race is based on tides – we try to get people out through the Western Solent and Hurst Narrows with maximum tide behind them. In a year with a good breeze most boats will get round fairly quickly, but on a very light wind day boats can struggle to make the tidal gate at the Needles and many others won’t be in until late evening. There are so