2015 Rolex Fastnet Race – Team SCA is ready

by Team SCA on 16 Aug 2015 With one day to the start of the Rolex Fastnet Race, Team SCA has their VO65 packed and ready and will spend today taking some downtime before Sunday’s start of the iconic 603-mile race from Cowes, UK to Plymouth, UK via the Fastnet Rock off the southern coast of Ireland.

It has been a busy week for the team, who arrived at the UK’s South Coast last weekend. After some time training in the Solent, the team took part in Thursday’s Artemis Challenge and eased themselves back into racing mode with a win against Volvo Ocean Race rivals Dongfeng Race Team in the VO65 class.

That win was an interesting scenario for team coach Martin Strömberg. Strömberg, who coached the all-female team in the spring and summer of 2013 before joining Dongfeng Race Team for the Volvo Ocean Race, has rejoined the team as a coach during this summer period.

“I have noticed some massive improvements between when I started coaching the team and now coming back and sailing with them. It is hard to pin down what has improved because it is almost like coming in to a whole new team. I would say the biggest things would be the general knowledge on the boat, how to set up maneuvers – they are very good at that, and I think for me, it has been interesting to compare how we do it and how they do it. There are multiple different ways to set up the trim, so it is good to get a different perspective in that sense,” comments Strömberg.

This is a view echoed by the crew of Team SCA, which includes ten women from the original round the world race squad of thirteen sailors.

“The difference from this Fastnet Race to the last is night and day,” confirms Carolijn Brouwer. “Two years ago we were still working on the basics and trying to steer in a straight line and get maneuvers right. We also did not know each other very well either. We had worked together in Lanzarote but we were still in the middle of the selection process.

“Now we are working on very small things, the things that will make a difference. It is these little things that count, and it is what gets you from 95 to 100%. Having Aksel [Magdahl] and Martin onboard coaching will help us get those percentages,” concludes Brouwer.

Strömberg, who was onboard for the Artemis Challenge, added: “Being out on the water racing with Team SCA was good, I was happy because we got to see a bit of competitiveness rather than just training in the days preparing for the Fastnet. It was good to get the pace up in the race conditions and see what we could achieve.”

Team SCA will start the Rolex Fastnet Race at 1340h BST on Sunday August 16. 368 boats have entered the 2015 Race, one of the biggest fleets in its 46-edition history.