15:00 SUNDAY 24TH

ROPES have been checked, food stowed away and liferafts packed, writes Will Carson from Plymouth.

All that was left for the 36 skippers in the Original Singlehanded Trans-Atlantic Race to do was to try to get some last minute rest, a good sleep and think about the task ahead.

With the sun beating down on Queen Anne’s Battery in Plymouth, the marina was a hive of activity today as competitors checked their yachts for one last time and spectators came to show their support.

Watching the action on the pontoons safely from the Royal Western Yacht Club were Hampshire ocean racing stars Mike Golding and Brian Thompson, both of whom recently competed in the Vendée Globe round the world race.

For the county’s up-and-coming solo sailors Katie Miller, Oscar Mead and Hannah White, it was a time for reflection and 11th hour preparations.

Before the 3pm skippers’ weather briefing, Katie was busy loading her boat with countless bottles of water.

Oscar issued last minute instructions to his dad to “nip off to Currys” after his iPod died just one day before setting off alone for three weeks.