Cowes Week, Famous 8-Day Yacht Regatta

The Annual Sailing Event that is the Wimbledon of the Yachting World

Jul 4, 2009

First held in 1826, the eight days of yacht racing off the Isle of Wight coast at the end of July is the regatta no self respecting yachtie will miss.

Cowes Week begins on the Saturday after the final Tuesday of every July. It is when the small town of Cowes on the Isle of Wight off the south coast of England plays host to one of the UK’s most famous sporting events. It is to the sailing fraternity what Wimbledon is to the tennis world. Upwards of 8,000 sailing hopefuls, from Olympic experts to weekend novices, compete in up to forty daily sailing races.

The Royal Yacht Squadron Control Centre

The main control centre of the racing is the Royal Yacht Squadron (or Yacht Club as it was originally known back in 1826). The Club’s base is the imposing 16th Century Squadron Castle on the Esplanande in West Cowes. Originally called Cowes Castle, it was built in 1539 by Henry VIII to help defend England from attack by the French and remodelled in the early 1700s.

Most races begin from the squadron line in front of the Castle, the start being marked by the firing of a gun. The starting gun sounds, generally, every five minutes from 10 a.m. onwards. Boats are divided into two classes. The white group is for small sporty boats and the black group is for larger boats. Each race course is decided on the day and takes into account the tide and weather conditions.

Cowes Week Coveted Prizes

The top prizes of the week are the coveted Queen’s Cup and Britannia Cup. The Queen’s Cup was presented to the Royal Southampton Yacht Club by Queen Victoria in 1897 and is awarded to the winner of a particular race on the first Saturday. The Britannia Cup was presented to the Royal Yacht Squadron by George VI in 1950 and is awarded to the winner of a particular race on the Wednesday of the week.

As well as the sailors and the accompanying media crews, thousands of spectators make the short trip across the Solent to jostle and fight their way through the tiny streets of the town. They are there not just to watch the racing but join in the social events and, of course, drink the obligatory glass of Pimms.

Cowes Regatta Entertainment and Hospitality

The spectators arrive because, of course, Cowes Week isn’t just about the sailing. It’s also socialising and entertaining from black tie, charity fundraising, balls to flip flops and shorts in beer tents. It has been said that each day’s sailing is as much about recovering from the hangover from the partying the night as it is about racing.

A visitor can spend as little as the cost of the foot passenger ferry fare from the mainland up to thousands of pounds for hiring a boat to watch the action from the water. Opportunities for corporate sailing and marketing events abound. Many a publicly listed company has used regatta week to hire a yacht and invite their best clients for a bit of corporate hospitality in the hope of clinching that lucrative deal.

The copyright of the article Cowes Week, Famous 8-Day Yacht Regatta in Sail Boats is owned by Elaine Findlay. Permission to republish Cowes Week, Famous 8-Day Yacht Regatta in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.