STEVE COLE APPOINTED MANAGER OF ROYAL OCEAN RACING CLUB

The Royal Ocean Racing Club has announced the appointment of Steve Cole as their new Racing Manager.

Steve succeeds Chris Stone, who will continue as a consultant to the Race Management team for the 50th edition of the Rolex Fastnet Race as well as the new Nelson’s Cup series in Antigua.

Steve is from Gurnard and has huge experience having been a senior member of the RORC Racing team for the last five years. Prior to joining RORC, Steve was Managing Director of Cowes Yacht Haven for six years and was joint owner of a boatyard in East Cowes.

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As a National Race Officer, he has also previously helped RORC in a voluntary role, including 10 Rolex Fastnet Race starts; he was in charge of the 2022 Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland Race, which was voted Event of the Year at the prestigious British Yachting Awards; he is the Principal Race Officer for Cowes Week and has been involved with Gurnard Sailing Club for many years.

11th January 2023 should be a date to remember for those wishing to enter this year’s Rolex Fastnet Race.

As the clock ticks over at midnight it will be the moment when registration officially opens for the 50th edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s flagship event. Places are usually snapped up within just a few minutes. In the last pre-pandemic edition of the biennial Rolex Fastnet Race in 2019, the entry capacity was reached in just four minutes and 37 seconds.

With the 2023 edition of the World’s largest offshore yacht race marking a special anniversary, demand is expected to be higher than ever, with more than 450 expected on the start line, ranging from maxi monohulls and multis to 30ft club racers and cruisers and everything in between.

Entries are available on a ‘first come-first served’ basis and any latecomers beyond the RORC’s limit will be placed on a waiting list.

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CEO of the RORC, Jeremy Wilton, advises:

“The message is to get your entry in immediately after registration opens, otherwise you will end up on the waiting list. If the Rolex Fastnet Race is going to be the highlight of your 2023 season, why take the risk that you might not get in at this first stage.”

As in 2019, this year’s race is an ‘early one’. Setting sail from Cowes on 22nd July (chosen because of availability in the Cowes marinas as it is outside of Cowes Week and favourable tides on this date) the Saturday start will enable the fleet to complete the 695-mile course, rounding the Fastnet Rock and finishing, once again, in Cherbourg-en-Cotentin, France. For those wishing to do so, there is ample time to return to the Solent for Cowes Week, which starts on 29th July.