1979 Fastnet Race

The 1979 Fastnet Race was the 28th Royal Ocean Racing Club's Fastnet Race, a yachting race held generally every two years since 1925 on a 605-mile course from Cowes direct to the Fastnet Rock and then to Plymouth via south of the Isles of Scilly. In 1979, it was the climax of the five-race Admiral's Cup competition, as it had been since 1957.

A worse-than-expected storm on the third day of the race wreaked havoc on the 303 yachts that started the biennial race, resulting in 19 fatalities (15 yachtsmen and four spectators). Emergency services, naval forces, and civilian vessels from around the west side of the English Channel were summoned to aid what became the largest ever rescue operation in peace-time. This involved some 4,000 people, including the entire Irish Naval Service's fleet, lifeboats, commercial boats, and helicopters.

Build-up

The 1979 race started on 11 August. The BBC Radio Shipping Forecast, broadcast at 13:55 that day predicted "south-westerly winds, force four to five increasing to force six to seven for a time." By 13 August, winds were reported at Force 6, with gusts of Force 7. Forecasters were predicting winds of Force 8. The leading boat, Kialoa, trailed closely by Condor of Bermuda, was on course to break the Fastnet record set eight years earlier.

Meteorological history

A large depression, known as "low Y", formed over the Atlantic Ocean during the weekend of 11–12 August. On 13 August it began to intensify rapidly and turn northeastwards, reaching about 200 nautical miles southwest of Ireland. By the 14th, the low was centred over Wexford. Land-based weather stations reported gale-force winds, with the strongest winds out to sea over the race area. The Meteorological Office assessed the maximum winds as Force 10 on the Beaufort scale; many race competitors believed the winds to have reached Force 11. The lowest pressure was 979 hPa.

Disaster and rescue mission

Over 13–14 August, of the 303 yachts that started, 24 were abandoned, of which five were lost and believed to be sunk, due to high winds and severe sea conditions. The Daily Telegraph (15 August 1979, p. 1) described the situation, where "Royal Navy ships, RAF Nimrod jets, helicopters, lifeboats, a Dutch warship HNLMS Overijssel and other craft picked up 125 yachtsmen whose boats had been caught in Force 11 violent storm strength gusts midway between Land's End and Fastnet". The effort also included tugs, trawlers, and tankers. Rescue efforts began after 6:30 am on 14 August, once the winds had dropped to severe gale Force 9.

Fifteen sailors died, at least 75 boats capsized and five sank. Adopting heaving to as a storm tactic proved to be a good preventive of capsize and turtling during the race. Lin Pardey wrote that none of the yachts which hove to were capsized or suffered any serious damage, but the official inquiry makes no such conclusion. One Fastnet participant, John Rousmaniere, wrote that

If there is a fault in this debate, it is that the factions sometimes say that one tactic or piece of gear is always right, regardless of the boat and the conditions. There is nothing always about a storm at sea except its danger.

The disaster resulted in a major rethink of racing, risks and prevention.

The coastguard requested support resulting in a Nimrod aircraft from RAF Kinloss being ordered to the scene to act as the Scene of Search Coordinator. As the scale of the disaster became apparent other rescue assets were requested and HMS Broadsword was ordered to the scene taking over as the Scene of Search Coordinator on arrival at 17:30 on 14 August.

Finishing yachts

The handicap winner was the yacht Tenacious, designed by Sparkman & Stephens, owned and skippered by Ted Turner. The winner on elapsed time in the race was the 77-foot SV Condor of Bermuda, skippered by Peter Blake, which gained around 90 minutes on the leader, the SV Kialoa, after rounding the Fastnet rock, by the calculated risk of setting a spinnaker sail in the high wind conditions. Jim Kilroy of the Kialoa had broken his ribs and there was damage to the yacht's runners. SV Condor of Bermuda broke the Fastnet record by nearly eight hours (71h 37m 23s).

Handicap results all classes (first three in each class)

Notes

Vessels that did not finish

Of the 303 starters, only 86 finished. There were 194 retirements and 24 abandonments (five of which were "lost believed sunk").

Early press reports were often confused. The Daily Telegraph (16 August 1979, p. 3) reported that 69 yachts did not finish.

Polar Bear was abandoned but remained afloat and raced again. She is berthed in Plymouth.

Craft that assisted the rescue mission

Over 4000 people aided in the rescue efforts. The Royal Navy coordinated efforts to find around 80 vessels and rescue 136 crew members.

Key contributors to the rescue

Coastguard

• Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre, HMCG Lands End, UK
• MRCC Falmouth, UK
• MRCC Shannon, Ireland
• MRSC Brixham, UK
• Cross A, France

Royal Navy

• HMS Anglesey, Island class patrol vessel
• HMS Broadsword, frigate (Scene of Search Coordinator)
• HMSTY Dasher, yacht
• HMS Scylla (Leander class frigate)
• RMAS Rollicker A502, ocean-going salvage tug
• RFA Tidespring, fast fleet tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary
• 15 Royal Navy helicopters from RNAS Culdrose and RNAS Prestwick, including
• Westland Sea Kings, 25 sorties for 110 hrs 45 mins,
• Westland Lynxes 10 sorties for 20 hrs 55 mins and
• Westland Wessexes, 27 sorties for 62 hrs 35 mins

Royal Netherlands Navy

• HNLMS Overijssel, destroyer (race guardship)

Irish Naval Service

• LÉ Deirdre (P20), Deirdre class offshore patrol vessel

United States Navy

• USS Holland (AS-32), submarine tender, Holy Loch, Scotland

Lifeboats

These RNLI lifeboats spent 75 hours at sea in 60-knot (110 km/h) winds:

• RNLB Guy and Claire Hunter, St Mary's Lifeboat, Isles of Scilly
• Baltimore Lifeboat, County Cork
• RNLB Ethel Mary, Ballycotton, County Cork
• Courtmacsherry, County Cork
• Dunmore East, County Waterford
• Lifeboat Solomon Browne

Royal Air Force

• Three helicopters
• Four Nimrods from RAF St Mawgan in Cornwall

Irish Air Corps

• Beechcraft Kingair maritime patrol
• Alouette helicopter

Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC)

• Morningtown, Rodney Hill's Oyster 39 acted as the RORC escort and radio relay boat and was responsible for relaying the positions of the racing fleet.

Yachtsmen killed

The Fastnet Race Memorial at Holy Trinity Church, Cowes, Isle of Wight lists 19 fatalities: the 15 above and Olivia Davidson, John Dix, Richard Pendred, and Peter Pickering who were aboard Bucks Fizz, a yacht shadowing the fleet to view the race. Denis Benson and David Moore were lost from Tempean, which was not a competitor. Their names were added to the Fastnet memorial at Cape Clear Island harbour.

See also

• 1998 Sydney to Hobart Yacht Race

References

Notes

Sources

• Tregoning, Martin, Acting District Controller, Senior SAR Mission Controller HMCG Lands End.
• Corin, John; Farr, Grahame (1983). Penlee Lifeboat. Penzance: Penlee & Penzance Branch of the Royal National Lifeboat Institution. pp. 120. ISBN 0-9508611-0-3.
• Fairchild, Tony (14 August 1979) Kiaola heads for Fastnet record The Daily Telegraph, p. 26
• Fairchild, Tony (15 August 1979) Killer wind gives Condor record The Daily Telegraph, p. 29
• Fairchild, Tony (16 August 1979) Fastnet may be limited to fewer Yachts The Daily Telegraph, p. 3.
• Forbes, Sir Hugh; Laing, Sir Maurice; Myatt, Lt. Col. James (1979). "1979 Fastnet Race Inquiry" (PDF). Royal Yachting Association, Royal Ocean Racing Club. Retrieved 3 July 2012.
• Knox, John A.; Frye, John D.; Durkee, Joshua D.; Fuhrmann, Christopher M. (1 February 2011). "Non-Convective High Winds Associated with Extratropical Cyclones" (PDF). Geography Compass. 5 (2): 63–89. doi:10.1111/j.1749-8198.2010.00395.x. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 April 2013. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
• Rais, Guy and Bramwell, Christopher (15 August 1979) 10 die in yacht race havoc The Daily Telegraph, p. 1 & 32.
• Rousmaniere, John (1980). Fastnet, Force 10: The Deadliest Storm in the History of Modern Sailing (Paperback). New York: W. W. Norton & Company (17 April 2000). p. 304. ISBN 978-0393308655.
• Rousmaniere, John (January 2000). "Revisiting Lessons from the Fastnet". SailNet.com. Retrieved 25 November 2013.
• Roy, Amit (17 August 1979). "Last of the Fastnet race yachts found". The Daily Telegraph.
• Siggins, Lorna (2004). "4". Mayday! Mayday! Heroic Air-Sea Rescues in Irish Waters. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan. pp. 51–52. ISBN 0-7171-3529-2.
• Ward, Nick (2008). Left for Dead: The Untold Story of the Tragic 1979 Fastnet Race. A & C Black. ISBN 978-0-7136-8936-5.
• Wettern, Desmond (20 August 1979) Fastnet race rescue operation involved 4,000 people The Daily Telegraph, p. 2.

Further reading

• Mayers, Adams (2007). Beyond Endurance: 300 Boats, 600 Miles, and One Deadly Storm. McClelland & Stewart.
• Rousmaniere, John. Fastnet, Force 10.
• Ward, Nick. Left for Dead: The Untold Story of the Tragic 1979 Fastnet Race.

External links

• "1979: Freak storm hits yacht race". BBC News. Retrieved 24 November 2013.
• "Fastnet 79". yachtingworld.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
• pjwellsify (28 September 2012). "The Fastnet Yacht Race Tragedy of 1979" (Video). YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
• "Racing a performance Dazcat catamaran in the Rolex Fastnet... Fastnet Race 1979 Yacht Grimalkin". Stories from the 1979 Fastnet Race Storm. YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
• US Sailing (29 September 2011). "The 1979 Fastnet Race Storm – YouTube" (Video for fastnet race 1979 YouTube? 2:12). YouTube. Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2015.