A different place to sail
 
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Chichester Harbour Race Week 2017   21-25 August

Hello from the Race Week promotion team

Every sailing venue is individual. Each has its good points and its bad. But Chichester Harbour is somewhere special. If it isn't where you normally go afloat, Race Week is your opportunity to try something different.

Chichester Harbour has the largest area of water of any of south east England's Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, making it a beautiful, fascinating and rewarding place to sail. Its series of creeks open out into a broad stretch of water which then funnels out into the English Channel, so there's plenty of space for high-speed reaches and tactically challenging beats. The racing isn't simply about speed and port-starboard tactics, though. There is tide to contend with, winds influenced by the surrounding land, shallows which spread as the water ebbs. Even the experts get caught out, and you don't have to be a local to win.

But it's not an intimidating place for newcomers. Safe land is never far away, waves don't build to threatening levels, there are always other sailors around to give support. And racing is never dull, even if the wind is light. So why not be part of the harbour's biggest event of the year?

The Race Week website can help in lots of ways if you're not already a harbour sailor. There is information about host Hayling Island SC, suggestions of places to stay, ideas for non-sailors who want to do more than watch the racing from the club's balcony or laze on the beach, plus - importantly for all new competitors - links to advice on how to sail as well as the locals do.

Race Week courses use marks specially laid for each day's racing conditions, but the chart below (courtesy of Chichester Harbour Conservancy) shows the standard racing marks and gives an idea of the opportunities this special place offers to sailors.

Experience how special the harbour is by joining in Race Week 2017 - and remember to enter by June 30th for early-bird fees.  
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