The 9th of August saw the start of The Rolex Fastnet race and the end of the Cowes week regatta. The Rolex Fastnet is a sailing yacht race from Cowes to Plymouth via the Fastnet rock off the South coast of Ireland.

Currently in and out of light winds since the race began it has proved trying for most crews with even the more high tech boats like the open 60 'Hugo Boss' with Alex Thomson having to drop anchor to hold ground over the English channel tides, you can watch the full story and the rest of the race here Alex Thomson onboard 'Hugo Boss' Open 60 as the Open 60 'Hugo Boss' is transmitting live coverage every 3 hours of the race adding a new perspective for sailing fans and curious cats the world over.

Half way across the Irish Sea, Nigel Passmore’s Plymouth based TP 52 racing yacht, Apollo, is at the head of their class on handicap but may loose some places as the mini maxis have the downhill speed back to Plymouth.

One of the great features of the Rolex Fastnet 2009 is the race viewer allowing you to track who's winning or where your friends and family are and how there doing. click here for up to date positions its a very easy to use and interesting sight to see so many boats out there virtually really does give you a feel for how popular the Rolex Fastnet race really is.

The fleet will be finishing in Plymouth where the local Boatshed yacht brokerage, Boatshed Plymouth, will be on hand to wave the flags, sound the horns and welcome them in to Sutton Harbour Marina and then the bar for a delightful beer.

Bon chance!