In the second part of our Winning the Fastnet series, top navigator and meteorological consultant Mike Broughton walks and talks you through the 608-mile course of the Rolex Fastnet Race...

Mike Broughton first did the Fastnet Race as a 17-year-old. It was 1979, the year that severe storms battered the fleet and 15 lives were lost. Like most of the fleet, Mike didn’t reach the Fastnet Rock that year, but he was undeterred and has competed in virtually every Fastnet since then. Mike offers some advice not just on navigation but on the many different areas of preparation that a team should undertake before embarking on the Rolex Fastnet Race. Most of his advice applies to competing safely and successfully in any offshore race.

The central Solent has a reputation as being a complex place in which to sail, but many of the local wind effects are not difficult to figure out. Rupert Holmes looks at Solent Sea Breezes and Norris Nadgers.

A downwind or reaching leg across the tidal stream is sometimes an inevitable part of Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week courses which requires a couple of simple techniques to ensure the minimum distance is sailed, as Rupert Holmes reports…

What are some of the common mistakes made when racing at Aberdeen Asset Management Cowes Week and what does it take to be a winning team? Rupert Holmes gets the low-down on a 5-point plan from Matt Alexander and John Raymond who won the Redwing Class and White Group overall in 2012 with Harlequin....

In the summer, thermally driven breezes play a significant part in coastal weather. In this series of articles on sea breezes, meteorology expert Fiona Campbell looks at the essential facts that every sailor needs to know about sea breezes, why and when they happen, and how they can affect your strategy on the race course.