Sailing at Skandia Cowes week you will find yourself one of 8,500 competitors, on one of the 1,000 keelboats and yachts, in one of 40 classes of boat. Add to this confusion the unusual eddies of tidal waters in the Solent and unpredictable weather. Then, set the 30-odd races per day  in the middle of one of the world’s busiest commercial shipping channels, and there you have it.

The success, and sheer enormity, of Cowes Week could not have been foreseen back in 1826, at the time of its conception. Seven yachts raced at the first Cowes Regatta. Fast forward 180 years, and Cowes Week is a world-class, prestigious sailing regatta. The racing has been run, since 1964, by Cowes Combined Clubs, a committee of 10 yachting clubs that play an active role in organising the racing.

‘Sailors are there to win the silverware [trophies]’, says Peta Stuart-Hunt, Cowes Week spokesperson. Therefore, skippers are picky about their crews and competition is stiff to crew aboard one of the yachts sailing in the regatta. It helps to be an experienced racing crew and well-connected, although it is not impossible for the uninitiated to get a taste of taking to the water during racing. The best way to do this is to sign up for a Try Sailing session, on board an Artemis 20ft yacht with highly-qualified UKSA (United Kingdom Sailing Academy) instructors.

There is also plenty for spectators to do: watch the starts and knuckle-whitening finishes, enjoy the carnival atmosphere, eat, drink, and be merry. Dates are 4-11 August 2007.
www.skandiacowesweek.co.uk