Talking about competitors in the OSTAR, there are quite a few promising names to keep an eye on, besides the great performance of Hannah White.

Young Katie Miller (pictured right) is a determined competitor with her sights on doing the Vendée Globe in 2016. That’s a long way off, but she says she’s being realistic about a proper apprencticeship and the time it will take to raise sponsorship.

The OSTAR began days after the last exam of her university finals – she has been studying yacht production and surveying at the Southampton Solent University. It’s been an incredibly hectic year for her trying to fit everything in, including buying and working up her Figaro 2 (she has to pay friends and family back in five years) and winning her first solo race, the BluQube 1000.

Then there’s Oscar Mead, who’s only 18. He and Katie are friends – Oscar is at the same university but in his first year, and he likewise finished his last exam a few days before the start. Oscar is sailing his father’s J 105 King of Shaves and his upbeat blogs clearly show someone who has the right attitude to do really well in solo sailing.

And of course there’s Pip Hildesley, who has been writing regular blogs on the Yachting World website. An erstwhile cruiser with tens of thousands of miles experience, she’s taken to solo sailing (and writing) like a natural. She, too, has said she’d like to do a round the world race, and with determination like hers I’m sure we will see her on a start line in a few years.

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