Returning to Cowes again for the fourth consecutive year The Extreme Sailing Series will host more days of racing than ever before in 2010.
This fleet of F1 yachts will be put through its paces over six days, with a mixture of the short, sharp courses the circuit has become renowned for, as well as longer 'classical' Cowes Week type races, stretching the capabilities of the dynamic Extreme 40 catamarans and the tenacity of their crews.
Event organiser OC Events is passionate about making top-level professional sailing entertaining for both sailing and non-sailor audiences. Once again the Extreme Sailing Series Race Village at Egypt Point will have a mix of corporate hospitality, along with bars and food outlets for the general public and in the evening, DJs. "We aim to entertain both on and off the water at every event," commented Gilles Chiorri, Event Director for OC Events. "The visitors last year were fantastic in their support of the teams and were very vocal in their enjoyment of the racing. We look forward to putting on another great show this year."
Friday 30 July will see the only UK leg of the circuit kick off with an exclusive media day, reserved for the visiting national and international media. This non-point scoring racing will give the teams the opportunity to assess each other's improvements in performance and teamwork over the 8 weeks since the opening event in Sète at the end of May.
Every morning from Saturday 31 July to Thursday 5 August inclusive (except for Tuesday 3 August) there will be a long distance morning race, starting from the Royal Yacht Squadron line. Lasting up to 1 hour, the longer races will pitch the teams' boat speed head-to-head on relatively open water.
The short course racing will take place at Egypt Point every afternoon. For the first three days from 3pm and for the final three, the entertainment will begin from 4pm with racing from 5pm, to ensure as many of the Cowes Week competitors as possible can enjoy the top flight action, after the waters are largely clear of the Cowes Week racing yachts.
Several Extreme 40s took part in the J.P.Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race and were some of the first boats home after completing the circumnavigation of the Island proving that these boats can be just as fast in open water as on a short circuit.