The third edition of the Solent Super Series got underway this past weekend with racing off the coast of Cowes, where 9 teams competed in the opening round of the 4-part event.
Now in its third year, the short-handed yacht racing series features a 4-crew format and will continue with rounds in Yarmouth and Lymington, before concluding in Gosport this November.
After a short delay caused by a large container ship transiting the Solent, the opening race began with a 13-nautical mile ‘round the cans’ course in light easterly winds. The Sun Fast 3300 Lord of the Dance led from the start, followed closely by the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s youth team aboard Griffin, a Sun Fast 3600.
Game On suffered an early navigational error but managed to make up ground through the fleet. However, after nearly 3 hours of racing, Lord of the Dance crossed the finish line just 5 seconds ahead of Hair of the Dog on IRC corrected time, with Griffin finishing third, 6 minutes behind.
The second race of the day was abandoned during the start sequence due to fluctuating wind and a strong ebb tide that made progress difficult. Crews returned to Shepards Wharf Marina for an early finish.
Saturday evening’s welcome drinks were hosted by series sponsor Musto at their Cowes High Street store, where competitors had a chance to try on new kit before heading to dinner. A new feature for 2025 saw a prize draw take place, with:
- Hair of the Dog winning a full set of Musto snug fleeces
- Lord of the Dance receiving a wine voucher for Round 2’s dinner
- Panther taking home a Winning Tides Cowes Superzoom tide flow book
On Sunday, racing resumed in 8-10 knot north-easterlies. Race 2 featured a tactical course with downwind sailing past Gurnard and East Lepe. One Way, a Sun Fast 3600 skippered by Cal Finlayson of Unity Sailing, took the win by just 7 seconds ahead of Griffin.
Race 3 followed immediately, a shorter windward-leeward format lasting around 90 minutes. Griffin showed strong downwind performance to take the win by 18 seconds, ahead of Insert Coin and Lord of the Dance. With a 3-2-1 scorecard across the weekend, Griffin claimed overall victory in Round 1, followed by Lord of the Dance in second and One Way in third.
Albert Barber, skipper of Griffin, said:
“This weekend was a great start to the Solent Super Series, we had an awesome time racing short-handed inshore.
“Onboard Griffin we valued the change of pace from our offshore fully crewed [8 crew] youth team where we all met, to this dynamic reduced crew format.
“The committee and events team were well organised and adapted well to the conditions, allowing as much racing as possible.
“A particular highlight was all coming ashore for an enjoyable evening together with all the teams. Thank you for a great start to the series. See you all very soon!”
Thanks have been extended to Musto and Cowes Harbour Commission for their support of Round 1. The second round of the Solent Super Series will take place in Yarmouth later this month, with more racing and prizes to follow.
Full results, images and race tracking are available at www.SolentSuperSeries.com.
