The Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race started today and you can follow the progress of the boats live on line. Just go to the tracking page and watch as the boats make their way around. The racers are currently clearing the Channel and heading into the North Sea.
Eddie Warden Owen, chief executive of the race, reported from the start: “It was a magnificent start, 25 knots from the southwest with gusts of up to 30 knots coming out of the Medina River. Spanish entry Telefónica was an impressive sight, the Volvo 70 is built to race at full tilt around the world and she carried her enormous spinnaker to blast past the 100-foot Leopard at more than 25 knots. It was a really impressive sight to see these huge machines blasting down the Solent leaving the rest of the 27-strong fleet in their wake.”