The starting gun for the Artemis Transat race was fired at 1400 BST from the deck of HMS Argyll in Plymouth, England, on May 11, 2008, marking the beginning of this year’s 2,800-mile race across the North Atlantic between Plymouth, England, and Boston, Mass.
Sir Francis Chichester and Blondie Hasler created the race in 1960 and for the last four decades it has been one of the world’s most challenging solo yachting events. Formerly called the OSTAR until 2004, the race is now run every four years.
This year’s international fleet is comprised of two classes of 11 and 13 boats each in Class 40s and Open 60s respectively. The racers will compete against each other and the clock to beat the race record of 12 days, 15 hours, 18 minutes and 8 seconds. The race lineup includes sailors of six nationalities with more that 270 Atlantic crossings between them.
You can follow all of the action in real time by visiting www.theartemistransat.com.
The site features race history, videos feeds from the boats, live position reports, boat speed and heading, standings, and real time wind direction and speed for both divisions.
