You might recall that last year Nigel our MD successfully campaigned Fastrak VII our Sunfast 3200 throughout the summer and both he (and David his co-skipper) and the boat excelled themselves by coming second overall in the Round Britain and Ireland Two Handed race…. This was no mean achievement considering FastrakVII was one of the smallest yachts in the race.
But that was then and Fastrak VII has been sold to Simon Mitchell and renamed Roxanne and she will be based out of Eastbourne. Now it is time to make way for FASTRAK VIII ! She too is a New Sunfast 3200 and she was delivered in March and we are busy preparing her for a season of campaigning. Nigel has joined the SOLO OFFSHORE RACING CLUB this year and will be campaigning Fastrak VIII throughout the club’s summer events.
However in 2012 the plan is to enter FASTRAK VIII the 2012 TWO HANDED TRANSATLANTIC race from Falmouth to Newport Rhode Island. To qualify for this race contestants have the option of completing either the AZAB (Azores and Back race) or the NORTH SEA 1000 Double handed race this year. Nigel and his long term friend and Co-Skipper David Bowdler have chosen the North Sea race which takes place in June this year to test themselves and the boat and make sure that she is tuned and ready for the competition next year.
The North Sea race course starts in Holland and from there the yachts head for Bergen, then to Shetland and back to Bergen ….so it’s a bit more than a jolly round the buoys, and the seas in that part of the world can be quite challenging to say the least!
The Sunfast 3200 is proving to be a tough and competitive offshore racer, we were surprised to see that there are 20 of them entered in the Trans Quadra race this year and they will make a very interesting fleet to follow. Back in the Solent the numbers are growing and this year there are two more 3200s joining the local racing circuits so Nigel is going to get some good competition!
For now though the big decision is what to do with the hull and her decals and colouring. Nigel has it in mind to wrap her in Pearlescent Mirror finish….his theory being that he will appear invisible to the competition until he is close enough to pass them!!! The jury is out on this at present but I suspect he will get his way!
And of course we will be treated to some more gems from the producers of Fastrak TV….can’t wait!
