With interest already hotting up and a maximum of 400 visitors hoping to ‘Try Sailing’ for free during Skandia Cowes Week, it’s now possible to secure a place by pre-booking online via the Skandia Cowes Week website but only 100 slots are available – so it’s on a strictly first come, first served basis via www.skandiacowesweek.co.uk.

‘Try Sailing’ is a new initiative and is the idea of the title sponsor, Skandia, who want to open up the Regatta to people who might never have experienced sailing before.

Tim Sewell, Skandia’s sponsorship manager commented: “We get about 100,000 non-sailing visitors to the Event every year and we thought it would be great to give some of them the chance to get out on the water and see what it’s all about. If it goes well this year, we will seriously consider making it a firm fixture for the future.”

Skandia has employed the expert services of the UKSA to provide daily ‘Try Sailing’ taster sessions for the full eight days of the Regatta. Up to 400 people will get the opportunity to sail and anyone over eight years old and who meets a basic fitness requirement can apply for a place.

Bookings can be made at the Event at the Skandia Set Sail marquee on the Parade in Cowes or pre-booked via the Skandia Cowes Week website. Those who sign up will be taken by Rigid Inflatable Boat (RIB) from Cowes Yacht Haven to the designated teaching area. This is likely to vary depending on the wind and tide conditions each day.

Each session will last an hour and will involve the UKSA instructors in three Colgate Keelboats enabling up to 15 people to get a taste of what it’s like to sail.

The sessions will run from 1030 to 1630 from Saturday 30 July to Saturday 6 August. The UKSA will be providing RIB transport, three sail boats, safety cover, tuition, buoyancy aids and insurance, as well as RYA-qualified instructors to run the lessons. The initiative will be promoted to visitors on the Parade for the duration of the event.

For further information about the Skandia/UKSA ‘Try Sailing’ initiative, visit www.skandiacowesweek.com.uk