A day before the start of the Rolex Fastnet Race and with a forecast for punchy conditions, crews had been putting on a brave face, yet underneath and with the prospect of 450 boats threading their way out of a narrow gap at the end of the Solent many were very apprehensive...and with good reason. The start of the world's biggest offshore race was as brutal as the weather forecast suggested...and there was more to come.
Matt Sheahan reports on the first 24 hours of this legendary race.
He starts from the centre of the action after the start to see the fleet exit the Solent through Hurst Narrows where conditions were wild as the fleet set out on the 689 mile course.