Zhik Clothing and Crew Kit partner with the RWYC Lonely Rock Race

The Dongfeng Race Team kitted out in Zhik offshore sailing gear © Bu Duomen

Lonely Rock Race 2020 © RWYC

The first RWYC Lonely Rock Race will set off from the vicinity of Ryde in the Eastern Solent on 16 August 2020. The course will leave the Isles of Scilly to Port, round the Fastnet Rock to Port, pass the Isles of Scilly once again to Port and finally finish in Plymouth Sound.

The Royal Western Yacht Club have announced 'Zhik' as their Official Clothing Partner for the Lonely Rock Race and 'Crew Kit' of Cowes as their Official Branding & Clothing Provider for the race.

Chris Arscott, Commodore of the Royal Western Yacht Club and Race Director of the Lonely Rock Race 2020 said: "We are delighted to be using quality clothing brand 'Zhik' and also 'Crew Kit' for the official race clothing supply for this event. These are companies at the forefront in waters sports apparel and names synonymous with style, performance and service."

Zhik and Crew Kit have developed a stunning range of quality Race Clothing to celebrate this unique event. Boats will compete to win the Zhik Overall Line Honours Trophy which includes a prize of kit worth over £600. All boats entering will be given a branded laptop case to keep those all-important race documents or the navigator laptop safe onboard.

Simon Payne, Zhik Sales Director said: "Zhik are delighted to be appointed as the Official Race Clothing Partner, and to be supporting the spirit of the Lonely Rock Race. Many sailors are inspired by the tradition of rounding the Fastnet Rock, and this wonderful event gives Corinthian club sailors the opportunity to experience this epic offshore challenge."

Jo Bowden, Crew Kit Owner said: "Crew Kit are thrilled to be the Branding Partner for the Lonely Rock Race. We relished the opportunity to create a contemporary graphic identity for the race which is bold and distinctive. We worked closely with Zhik to create a Race Collection, an essential set of premium race branded kit which can be proudly worn before, during and after the race during the celebrations onshore in Plymouth."

Zhik is a dynamic Australian based apparel brand, at the forefront of innovation, pushing the boundaries in design and fabric technology for all sailors. Founded in 2003, Zhik's range of wetsuits and dinghy gear completely changed the design approach for performance clothing and have been rapidly adopted by sailors across the globe. Since then Zhik has taken the same 'clean sheet' approach and is pushing strongly into the yachting apparel, from coastal cruising to extreme ocean range, and also into paddling and water sports. Tested and proven, Zhik gear is the winning choice of numerous Olympic and World champions. Zhik is the official supplier to the Australian, New Zealand, Singapore and Danish Olympic teams, as well as many renowned, top level international sailors, Extreme 40s, America's Cup and Vendee teams. Zhik was the technical clothing partner for Team AkzoNobel and the Dongfeng Race Team in the Volvo Ocean Race 2017-18 and is the Official Technical Clothing Supplier to Alex Thomson Racing for the 2020 Vendee Globe Campaign. For more information see website www.zhik.com or contact Tristan Hutt, UK/IRL & NL Manager . Sign up to the newsletter: email.zhik.com/h/i/45B18CE869A18B18

Crew Kit are a Cowes based company specialising in producing high-quality branded team clothing for sailing crews, regattas and yacht clubs. Their studio offers an in-house solution to design a unique logo or graphic to make crews stand out from their competition. Each item is individually branded in their studio on The Parade in Cowes, to deliver an excellent quality product. For more information see website www.crewkit.co.uk or contact Jo Bowden .

Chris Arscott, Commodore of the Royal Western Yacht Club and Race Director of the Lonely Rock Race 2020 said: "Whilst we are fully aware of the increasingly difficult and worrying times ahead with COVID-19, we feel it is important to have something to look forward to and we continue to plan for the Lonely Rock Race for now or in the future should this be necessary. We continue to monitor the situation closely."