Tarbert on the West Coast of Scotland may not be the epicentre of sailing in Britain, but the Scottish Cowes week equivalent has drawn competitors from all corners of the UK with one thing in common? to race and party as hard as possible over five days, with some of the finest and most dramatic scenery the British coastline has to offer as the backdrop.

The penultimate day of the annual event has been blessed with a low pressure system providing an ideal wind for racing, the flipside is that as each front passes over the fleet, it brings with it a not so welcome sheet of rain and cloud that envelops the participants. However, the sun has made a regular appearance throughout the day, the weather is mild and to go with which, shorts seem to be the order for the day.

As the 200-strong fleet eagerly make their way back into Tarbert’s natural harbour to see the results and be first at the bar, it begs the question of where the mass of boats are going to berth? Shoreside, a party atmosphere is progressively developing with the arrival of more and more competitors, and the normally quiet fishing village is rapidly becoming a vivid display of multicoloured oilskins.

The race fleet is made up of five IRC classes, a sportboat class, Sigma 33s, Sonatas and the very competitive Cork 1720s. Results have yet to be confirmed by the race organisers and may be subject to change. However later this evening the organisers promise to have available full overall results for all the classes on their website: www.scottishseries.org