THE Royal Western Yacht Club was both pleased and relieved last week when able to make the long-awaited, and much hoped for announcement that their new look Transatlantic race has found a title sponsor.
One of the Plymouth's leading businessmen Michael Hockin, who is the chairman of London and Westcountry Estates, has stepped forward with the funds to become the title sponsor and the race will now start under the new name of The Faraday Mill OSTAR 2005.
Keen to keep the name which had become synonymous with the race while the Observer newspaper had its name at the front for many years, the committee have cleverly swapped that for the identity "Original", which indeed it is.
The historic race, which has been held every four years since 1960 when the now legendary bet between Blondie Hasler and Sir Francis Chichester of half a crown for the first one across the Atlantic took place, is in fact responsible for all the shorthanded sailing we watch today.
The eleven previous editions of the race have seen dramatic changes in the boats that take part and the modern day racers have evolved beyond recognition along with the status of the people who sail them. And, that is where the main problem lay for the Royal Western, who have been responsible for organising the race all these years. It was very much theirs and Plymouth's race but professionalism brought with it increasing costs as well as sponsorship and marketing expertise which, in fairness, a yacht club does not possess.
The wise decision to split the race in two was made and earlier this year the professionals, under the expert organisation of Ellen MacArthur and Mark Turner's Offshore Challenges, sailed the familiar Open Class 50 and 60ft race boats across the 3,000 mile course in times only dreamed of in those early years.
The Royal Western, though, was keen to return to the Corinthian spirit of the original race and retained the rights for the 30 to 50-footers which will mainly be sailed by amateurs with some hopeful semi-professionals trying to stamp their mark on the sport in this prominent event.
Speaking at the launch, the new sponsor, Michael Hockin, said: "I have closely followed this prestigious international event for the last 30 years and our association with this race reflects the company's enthusiasm to ensure that part of Plymouth's historic maritime tradition is maintained.
"We also consider that the sponsorship of this event will be of benefit to Plymouth and will encourage international growth within the city and promote the Spirit of Adventure into the 21st century. It will also raise Plymouth's maritime profile and provide a vision which will assist the city in becoming one of the world's major waterfront cities."
Race director Chris Arscott commented: "The RWYC are delighted to have a local company as title sponsor for this event which helps secure the future of this internationally famous race. With the level of interest already shown by both competitors and media it promises to be a great success."
The level of interest so far has been extremely encouraging. Already 40 to 50 serious enquiries have been made and to date they have 20 firm entries from five different countries including the UK, France, USA, Belgium and the Netherlands. Chris Arscott said they were hopeful the fleet would reach 40 boats but if things keep going the way they are it's possible there could be many more than that.
The race starts on Sunday, May 29 2005 and the first boats are expected to arrive in Newport, Rhode Island having; completed the course in about 18 days, with the smaller boats anticipated to finish in four to five weeks.

Please visit www.faradaymillostar2005.co.uk