THE traditional Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) Easter Challenge returns to The Solent over this forthcoming Easter bank holiday weekend.

Three days of racing begins on Friday, March 29.

Organised by the RORC for more than 20 years, the event offers crews the chance to get in some vital pre-season training and fine tuning.

The highlight of the event is the availability of experienced, world class coaches on the water, to assist teams with getting back up to speed.

Combined with the popular debriefs after each day’s racing at the RORC Cowes Clubhouse, and prizes of Easter eggs, the RORC Easter Challenge is the perfect way to tune up for the coming season.

The fleet is normally divided into three IRC classes, with windward, leeward and round-the-cans courses.

“The overall aim is to improve the performance of any team — regardless of their skill level," said RORC race manager, Steve Cole.

"We want the sailors to gain from it. The coaches have been chosen especially with that in mind. 

“For this regatta we also try to put boats together that have similar training requirements. This makes the best use of the coaches at the regatta. The coaching system is very interactive.”

Mason King will once again lead the coaching team, with Ian Walker and North Sails experts providing on-the-water coaching.

With the redevelopment of the RORC Cowes Clubhouse, this year’s regatta is supported by the Royal Yacht Squadron.