On the morning of June 21st I watched the start of the 2008 Round Britain Powerboat Race, which began at Southsea Castle, situated half way along the south coast of England. I was among a crowd of enthusiastic spectators and it was an exciting event to watch. There was a commentary box on the esplanade and, for display purposes only, a second world war gunboat patrolling the sea.
I learned that this is not a speed race but an endurance test. All the boats taking part are racing round the coast of Britain in eight long stages. Boats compete against others in their class, and success depends on the navigational skills of the crew as much as the power of the boats. It is the world's most testing powerboat event, covering over 1,600 nautical miles. Competing crews will have to face some difficult weather conditions and rough seas. The last race took place in 1984.
There were two starts to the race, the first being for older boats. Among the historic boats taking part were two forty-year-old cabin cruisers which had taken part in the first ever Round Britain Powerboat Race, back in 1969. The second start to the race was for the newer faster speedboats, most of which have been specially designed for racing at high speed.
Before the start of the race the crowd was entertained by an amazing helicopter display. Two large helicopters flew in formation over the boats, dipping and rising, twirling and hovering, even flying backwards at one point, and largely drowning out the voice of the commentator who was doing his best to keep up a commentary on the passing boats, as they sailed towards the start line.
Following a short delay, a flag was finally raised from a signal vessel and the boats began their adventure by speeding up the Solent, a narrow sea channel between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight. Waves from their wakes splashed against the seafront where people had gathered to watch them pass.
The second start to the race took place about half an hour later. For this I walked up to South Parade Pier, and at the end of the pier I was much closer to where the speedboats were lined up for the start of the race. When the signal was given the water was again streaked with white spray from all the speeding boats as they raced off into the distance and out of sight.
