Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Iconic weather on the Solent

Midday on Day 2 of The 1851 Cup sees a mix of cloud cover and rain. There’s hope for it to clear up this afternoon for the showdown match-race series between BMW ORACLE Racing and TEAMORIGIN aboard our team’s two V5 America’s Cup Class sloops. 

TEAMORIGIN leads the series 2-0 after taking yesterday's heats. Today, weather permitting, Principal Race Officer Harold Bennett plans to run three races this afternoon. The first warning signal won't be issued before 3:20 pm Cowes local time, with a start set for 3:30. Team meteorologist Chris Bedford presents this discussion on the weather.

FORECAST DISCUSSION: W/WSW at 15-20 this morning backing to WSW at 15-20 with gusts 20-25 through early afternoon. During the early afternoon, squalls with some strong gusts and right-shifting breeze. Wind becoming NW by mid-afternoon and, after a short lull, building back up to 15-20 for the latter half of the afternoon/early evening. Very gusty and shifty – lulls 12 and gusts 24 possible through evening.

WEATHER: Partly sunny early, increasing clouds through late morning with a slight chance of showers by midday. Good chance of showers, squalls, and possibly a thunderstorm in the early afternoon. Some partial clearing from about mid-afternoon through evening, but still a chance of showers through sunset.