Cowes week - advice please

timmygobang

timmygobang

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Hello all,

I'm taking a week off to go sailing with friends this coming weekend, which unfortunately for me falls on Cowes week.

I have no real concept of just how busy its going to be, or what marinas are likely to fully booked.

Are there parts of the solent that are fractinonally less busy than the rest? I'd prefer not to get mown down by any angry racers if at all possible.

I'll be coming out on Chichester on Saturday...

Many Thanks

Tim
 
The Central Solent will be a more difficult than usual to traverse and the racers will expect you to give way and will show no quarter. If you don't want to exit the Solent on the first day , I would suggest ringing a Lymington marina or Beaulieu to see if they can fit you in. Proceed directly to Studland, Poole and points West. Who knows, Yarmouth, Newtown may be accessible. It is an option to go South around the IOW but if you have the tide with you then I think it's faster to go West through the Solent.
 
WestwardBound said:
The Central Solent will be a more difficult than usual to traverse and the racers will expect you to give way and will show no quarter. If you don't want to exit the Solent on the first day , I would suggest ringing a Lymington marina or Beaulieu to see if they can fit you in. Proceed directly to Studland, Poole and points West. Who knows, Yarmouth, Newtown may be accessible. It is an option to go South around the IOW but if you have the tide with you then I think it's faster to go West through the Solent.
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This is sound advice.

Poole, Studland, Weymouth and beyond should be places to go, both to avoid the racing and have a great sailing week. I do understand that Lulworth may be busy (Is it Camp Bestival at Lulworth this week?)

Have a great week.
 
I've sailed through the Solent during the Week and the racing and never had a problem. Most of the racing happens outside the main channels and it is fairly easy to see where the courses are. Even when we have sailed near the racers it has been easy enough to keep out of their way, and places like Lymington have not been busier than usual.
 
WestwardBound said:
The Central Solent will be a more difficult than usual to traverse and the racers will expect you to give way and will show no quarter. If you don't want to exit the Solent on the first day , I would suggest ringing a Lymington marina or Beaulieu to see if they can fit you in. Proceed directly to Studland, Poole and points West. Who knows, Yarmouth, Newtown may be accessible. It is an option to go South around the IOW but if you have the tide with you then I think it's faster to go West through the Solent.
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Bit alarmist if I may say so.

Regarding marinas only Cowes itself will be affected by the race fleets. There are boats that stay in Hamble etc during the week, but that's their home berth, so no impact on visitor berths. You will however not get a berth in Cowes!
There will be large race fleets out, but contrary to what you might think from reading scuttlebutt, the vast majority know and understand COLREGS, and their obligations. My advice would be to keep a good lookout, and be prepared to give way where you should, and stand on where it is sensible to do so. I would also say that if you're normal practice is to navigate by buoy hopping, that this is unwise during Cowes week, as just about every mark in the Solent will be used as a racing mark during the week and it would not be good for the heart rate to be passing close to a mark when a large fleet is using it as a rounding mark.

The starts run off the Squadron from about 1000 until about 1245. There are 2 lines, one actually off the castle, and one from committee boats just south of the Brambles. Both lines are roughly north/south in orientation, and the racers will head either east or west from these lines, not north or south. The committee reserve themselves a lot of rights to move things around according to the conditions, but in general I expect the larger boats to be starting off the line just south of the Brambles and the smaller dayboats to start off the castle. If you are transiting this area during that time period then I would advise an especially good lookout, as that clump of boats that's milling around might just be about to start and come straight at you. Be aware that unlike most racing the racing at Cowes does not always start into the wind, but could go either way... There is also a separate start boat in use every day which can be anywhere in the Solent and will have about 5 fleets of larger boats starting from it. It will be broadcasting it's location on VHF 22 from about 0930. This location will take the form of a 2 digit code for one of the marks. The key to cracking this code in in the sailing instructions which are easily downloaded from the Cowes week website. It's the black group ones that have the complete list.

It's probably worth mentioning here that mass pileups of loads of different fleets coming together for mark roundings or finishes at Cowes are actually a pretty rare event in recent years, and the course setters do a great job with some pretty sophisticated software to spread the fleets out and even now have 3 finish lines that they can send competitors too. One at the castle, one just north of the Shrape (hate that line), and one just south of the Brambles - where their start line was earlier. I think that the benefit of this to other water users during the week hasn't really be communicated at large, but what it means is that it's now far less likely that you'll be met by more than one fleet at a time, which significantly simplifies things.

If you do see a large fleet coming towards you, and you are confident that you understand where they are going and can manoeuvre to avoid tangling with them without causing yourself any undue hardship, then I would say this was generally a good idea. However, if you do find yourself in amongst a fleet, just sail to colregs. That is all the racers ask of you. In fact I would say it is better to stand on on Starboard than to give way when amongst a fleet. Meeting a single racer is different, and if you felt like giving way early to a port tack racer then please rest assured that it is appreciated, but not expected.

There are of course prats in all walks of life, and I apologise in advance on behalf of the vast majority of considerate sailors at Cowes for the occasional prat that is sometimes found towards the back of a fleet shouting at cruisers.
 
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We have cruised the Solent that week and found it a bit quieter than usual for high season, apart from Cowes itself obviously. Perhaps the reputation of Cowes week puts people off?

If you phone ahead to check, places like Portsmouth, Beaulieu, Lymington and Yarmouth should have space during the week. As for on the water, it is normally fairly clear where the fleets are massed, and there some impressive boats for see if you don't get too close.
 
Hi all,

Thank you very much for all the info and the detailed response flaming.

I can't quite stress how much I appreciate all the help and advice.

I have to admit that as someone that isn't a racer, and hasn't experienced Cowes week before I do find the prospect quite daunting, but these responses have helped quell my nerves :D
 
I have Cruised the solent a few times with a young family crew during this period and it has been fine.

Keep a good lookout, try and spot where fleets are going (usually obvious), and avoid the central bit just outside cowes at the start times and you will be fine.

Getting a berth in Cowes is a challenge at this time, but other areas usually ok (Hamble/Warsash can be busy).

I find it no harder than a busy Saturday/Sunday when regattas are on.
 
That's an excellent answer and I think it represents the racing community very well. It does contradict my own regular experience of racing in the Solent but racers will have a quite different tolerance of CPA to that of lightly crewed cruising boats.
 
The bulk of the racing is over by mid afternoon as well. If you do fancy a stop off in Cowe, the Folly is generally quiet during Cowes Week and you can jump in the water taxi to get down to Cowes...
 
Hopefully you'll feel comfortable about transiting the solent during cowes Week but if still nervous, try and get well clear of Cowes before 9 am or after 6 pm and you won't even know there is an event on. Even if you just drop down to Yarmouth / Lymington that day you will be well clear of the fleets when setting off the next day
 
l'escargot said:
The bulk of the racing is over by mid afternoon as well. If you do fancy a stop off in Cowe, the Folly is generally quiet during Cowes Week and you can jump in the water taxi to get down to Cowes...
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Ah thats great to know! I did wonder if the Folly would be heaving as well.

I was contemplating Bembridge, and then taking a taxi to cowes. I'm on a bit of a lads jolly so trying to give them a pleasurable sailing experience :D
 
jac said:
Hopefully you'll feel comfortable about transiting the solent during cowes Week but if still nervous, try and get well clear of Cowes before 9 am or after 6 pm and you won't even know there is an event on. Even if you just drop down to Yarmouth / Lymington that day you will be well clear of the fleets when setting off the next day
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Cheers Jac. Perhaps I've built this up too much in my mind :D
 
It's a few years since I was a regular at Cowes Week but Flaming is spot on with his description from my memories of it. Start / Finish lines have changed by the sound of it but not much else. For a few hours each day there are crowds of boats heading in similar directions and it is obvious what they are doing. (I think avoiding the area from 9 - 6 is overkill. Not many boats come out before 10 and most days they are safely back into Cowes by about 3).If you try to stay out of their direct path you will see some wonderful sights. If you do get into a fleet the vast majority of them will follow colregs and only a few idiots, usually towards the back of the fleet, will be silly. Just ignore their antics provided you are doing the right thing. It will be obvious to all that you not a racer as you will (presumably) fly an ensign and not have a racing pennant. I think all the racing fleet also have large stickers on their bows and a fleet number in the lifelines making them conspicuous.
As already said Cowes will be packed and worth avoiding. The rest of the Solent probably quite quiet for the time of year.
Enjoy your cruise and don't forget the camera!
 
Further to my last reply, I would say that a day or two in the Solent during Cowes Week is actually well worth aiming for. On a good sailing day the racing fleets make a fine spectacle and on our last visit I was able to take some good photos, if I say so myself. On one occasion I was able to position myself just outside the gybe mark for a fleet of Xs and get plenty of action with the sun shining through the sails. On the only occasion a fleet got around us, they were going so fast it was over in a flash.
 
I'm not sure it's entirely correct to say that the Folly is usually quiet during Cowes week. You may well get a visitor's berth, but many racing crews take advantage of the water taxi to come up for a meal. The queue for food can be lengthy, and the pub very crowded.
 
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StormNorm said:
I'm not sure it's entirely correct to say that the Folly is usually quiet during Cowes week. You may well get a visitor's berth, but many racing crews take advantage of the water taxi to come up for a meal. The queue for food can be lengthy, and the pub very crowded.
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I was referring to the berthing rather than the pub - the pontoons are generally quieter because the race boats don't use them and cruisers tend to stay away thinking it will be full of racers or not wanting to come through the melee at Cowes.
 
flaming said:
Bit alarmist if I may say so.

Regarding marinas only Cowes itself will be affected by the race fleets. There are boats that stay in Hamble etc during the week, but that's their home berth, so no impact on visitor berths. You will however not get a berth in Cowes!
There will be large race fleets out, but contrary to what you might think from reading scuttlebutt, the vast majority know and understand COLREGS, and their obligations. My advice would be to keep a good lookout, and be prepared to give way where you should, and stand on where it is sensible to do so. I would also say that if you're normal practice is to navigate by buoy hopping, that this is unwise during Cowes week, as just about every mark in the Solent will be used as a racing mark during the week and it would not be good for the heart rate to be passing close to a mark when a large fleet is using it as a rounding mark.

The starts run off the Squadron from about 1000 until about 1245. There are 2 lines, one actually off the castle, and one from committee boats just south of the Brambles. Both lines are roughly north/south in orientation, and the racers will head either east or west from these lines, not north or south. The committee reserve themselves a lot of rights to move things around according to the conditions, but in general I expect the larger boats to be starting off the line just south of the Brambles and the smaller dayboats to start off the castle. If you are transiting this area during that time period then I would advise an especially good lookout, as that clump of boats that's milling around might just be about to start and come straight at you. Be aware that unlike most racing the racing at Cowes does not always start into the wind, but could go either way... There is also a separate start boat in use every day which can be anywhere in the Solent and will have about 5 fleets of larger boats starting from it. It will be broadcasting it's location on VHF 22 from about 0930. This location will take the form of a 2 digit code for one of the marks. The key to cracking this code in in the sailing instructions which are easily downloaded from the Cowes week website. It's the black group ones that have the complete list.

It's probably worth mentioning here that mass pileups of loads of different fleets coming together for mark roundings or finishes at Cowes are actually a pretty rare event in recent years, and the course setters do a great job with some pretty sophisticated software to spread the fleets out and even now have 3 finish lines that they can send competitors too. One at the castle, one just north of the Shrape (hate that line), and one just south of the Brambles - where their start line was earlier. I think that the benefit of this to other water users during the week hasn't really be communicated at large, but what it means is that it's now far less likely that you'll be met by more than one fleet at a time, which significantly simplifies things.

If you do see a large fleet coming towards you, and you are confident that you understand where they are going and can manoeuvre to avoid tangling with them without causing yourself any undue hardship, then I would say this was generally a good idea. However, if you do find yourself in amongst a fleet, just sail to colregs. That is all the racers ask of you. In fact I would say it is better to stand on on Starboard than to give way when amongst a fleet. Meeting a single racer is different, and if you felt like giving way early to a port tack racer then please rest assured that it is appreciated, but not expected.

There are of course prats in all walks of life, and I apologise in advance on behalf of the vast majority of considerate sailors at Cowes for the occasional prat that is sometimes found towards the back of a fleet shouting at cruisers.
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Very informative and sound advice to cruising sailors. I have been crew on board cruising boats a couple of times where the skipper chose to take the contrary approach and neither time did it make for a more enjoyable sail.
 
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