First major offshore powerboat marathon for 40 years launched by people behind the Round Britain Race
The organisers of the 2008 Round Britain Race have announced plans to stage a race between Cowes and Monte Carlo in the summer of 2013.
Eighteen racing crews lodged their support within 24 hours of the announcement of the event, which will also feature a separate rally for fast domestic cruisers.
The cruiser rally should attract considerable interest as it will have an entirely different set of rules to the racing event, allowing competitors to run within their own parameters.
While the pure racing boats will be restricted to set courses ending each day at a predetermined venue, cruisers will have no restrictions in choosing their own fueflling stops and will be allowed to run through the night.
At 2,400 nautical miles Monte Carlo 2013 will be slightly shorter than the only other event of its kind run in 1972.
That race began in London, but racing on the Thames tideway is now forbidden, so a starting point off Cowes has been selected.
The 1972 race was won by the three-year-old Don Shead-designed, Souter-built HTS, driven by Mike Bellamy and London dentist Eddie Chater.
HTS beat Richard Lawson’s Jaffa Orange Juice, specially built for the race, by a wide margin while second place was filled by a Monaco-entered Riva runabout driven by Renato Mussolini.
A meeting open to all parties is to be arranged in January where further details will be discussed in open session. The date will be announced shortly.
