As the gale force winds batter the southcoast of England, Cowes is in lock-down this Saturday.
The SailGP Cowes event for Saturday is cancelled and they will attempt to put together a race programme for Sunday, 11 August, when the strong winds are expected to drop to managable levels.
Latest news is that three fleet races will be attempted on Sunday from 15:10, but this will depend on how the weather pans out!
The Friday practice racing was moved to Thursday, together with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge hosted King’s Cup event. This charity raising event was sailed in Fast-40s and was a win for the team of Bear Grylls.
The SailGP teams took the chance to get in some practice racing head of the strong winds, and also launched SailGP Inspire when they joined the maiden group of youth participants for the program aimed at using sailing as a force for good.
SailGP Inspire is comprised of three innovative programmes – Learning, Careers and Racing – giving young girls, boys, women and men (ages 9-23) from all backgrounds life-changing opportunities on and off the water.
For the program’s launch SailGP Inspire partnered with the United Kingdom Sailing Academy and the Royal Yachting Association.
For the Cowes event, nine local sailing clubs each selected one boy and one girl (ages 13-15) from the RYA South Zone regional performance clubs to participate in the Rippers racing in front of the SailGP Race Village and Grandstand.
Meanwhile, 11 young adults from the Isle of Wight College and other local universities are shadowing some of the most fascinating careers within SailGP – boat building, rigging and hydraulics; on-water management; media operations and communications; and hospitality.
The Racing program is set to launch in 2020 and will be an intermediate program geared toward young competitive sailors with an interest in hydrofoiling and racing.
Each season, one girl and one boy will be funded to compete at the International WASZP Games to further broaden their experience.
Finally, £2 from every ticket sold to Cowes SailGP is being donated to UKSA.
In addition, UKSA is auctioning four major experiences for winners to collect over the weekend, including a Guest Chaser Experience package, a private tour and meet & greet with the Great Britain SailGP Team, tickets to see SailGP’s European debut, and the ultra-exclusive Sixth Sailor Experience that includes a ride onboard the revolutionary F50 catamaran.
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