Richard Matthews, founder of Oyster Yachts and a veteran of countless offshore campaigns, took to the stage at the Cowes press conference on Friday in the build-up to the centenary Fastnet Race. He spoke openly about his long relationship with the event and the appetite for competition that has never left him.
“I’m looking forward to it with the same enthusiasm as my very first,” he said. “Today’s boats are very different—this one sails like a big dinghy—but at least we’re competitive with the other 50-footers. And in a breeze, we’re fast off the wind. If we’re lined up with the TP52s, we should have an edge…but that remains to be seen.”
Oystercatcher XXXV is far from a conventional offshore racer. Conceived by Carkeek Design Partners and launched in 2021, the 52-footer was built to be lighter, stiffer, and more powerful than a standard TP52, freed entirely from the constraints of the traditional box rule. Fibre Mechanics handled her construction, with Fox's Boatyard in Ipswich completing the fit-out. She carries a carbon fibre hull, twin rudders, wheel steering, and a water ballast system calibrated for lean offshore crews of around eight.
Her debut season made an immediate impression. Across the East Anglian Offshore Racing Association (EAORA) series and beyond, Oystercatcher XXXV collected wins and podiums at a consistent rate, taking out the EAORA Class 1 Championship, the Walker Challenge Cup, and Class 1 honours at Ramsgate Week. In the 2021 Rolex Fastnet Race she finished 10th overall and 3rd in IRC 0. Health setbacks for Matthews have restricted her racing programme in the years since, yet she remains one of the most capable offshore designs afloat. She is currently listed for sale at £1.35 million, offering a prospective owner access to a high-specification, IRC-optimised yacht with a proven record.
For the moment, though, Matthews has his attention fixed firmly on the race itself. Among his fondest Fastnet memories is a passage aboard his SJ35 Oystercatcher X, when word came through that they were leading both class and fleet.
“That felt pretty good,” he said. “Though we had to kedge a mile from the finish and lost the overall, we still won our class.”
The race has not always dealt in good fortune. Matthews was on the water during the catastrophic 1979 edition, which claimed 15 lives and left its mark on everyone who experienced it.
“We always hold a one-minute silence aboard before the start,” he said, “to remember those we lost.”
Matthews lines up once again this year with a strong crew and one of the most formidable boats in the fleet. Whatever the result, his record in and devotion to the race that did so much to define offshore sailing are without equal.
