#roundireland – The countdown has begun for Sunday's Round Ireland Yacht Race where NUI Galway is supporting the first ever university-backed entry into the 700-mile  race. Ten NUI Galway students and graduates will be on the start line in Wicklow this Sunday at 12 noon.

The race is a non-stop circumnavigation of Ireland by sea and will take anything from anything from four to six days. The NUI Galway crew is one of the youngest teams to ever compete in the event. Sailing together in the NUI Galway sailing club over the past few years has built up the trust and camaraderie which they will rely on during the race. The team have loaned a 38-ft racing yacht for the race.

The past few months have been very busy for the NUI Galway crew says skipper Cathal Clarke: "We have been following a tough training plan, attending safety courses and getting professional coaching. We recently competed in our first offshore race as a crew across the Irish Sea from Wales to Wicklow and were very happy with a second place result. The aims of this campaign are high, with a lot of experienced sailors on board; we will certainly be looking for good results."

Pat Morgan, Vice-President for the Student Experience at NUI Galway, said: "The determination and drive of this crew is to be admired, especially given that they are one of the youngest crews to participate in the race. They have worked very hard and displayed incredible determination and dedication over recent months in their preparation for the race. The University actively promotes leadership and team building skills and is delighted to support this crew to further develop these attributes as they compete in the Round Ireland Race. We wish them every success."

#roundireland – Round Ireland race organisers have confimed Ireland's former entry in the Volvo Ocean Race, 'the Green Dragon', will sail in Sunday's Round Ireland yacht race from Wicklow Sailing Club as one of the biggest entries in the race.

Wicklow SC say the 70-foot sloop will be raced by an 'amateur crew' but any other details of arrangements for the race are yet to be made public. Afloat.ie understands Green Dragon's crew are made up of a consortium of Dun Laoghaire yachtsmen.

In a post on its race website Wicklow officials say the Volvo 70 had arrived in Dun Laoghaire marina from Alicante in Spain to finalise preparations for her Round Ireland competition against an international fleet of 36 yachts, many from the UK.

The Reichel Pugh designed canting keel yacht was built in 2008 and competed in the 2008/09 Volvo Ocean Race under British skipper Ian Walker where she finished fifth out of seven starters.

Wicklow Sailing Club Commodore John Harte said: 'It will be great to have such an iconic yacht such as the Green Dragon in the Round Ireland Yacht Race. She will be a very impressive spectacle on the start line'.

The yacht has been stored in Galway since the end of the last VOR race before being moved to the continent for a number of promotional engagements including the VOR Legends Regatta.

Green Dragon is set to be involved in a number of initiatives as a youth academy boat.

#roundireland – There will be more British than Irish entries in this month's Round Ireland race that has been boosted by a number of last minute entries.

Only last week race organiser Dennis Noonan told the Irish Times Sailing Column he expected only 33 entries but a surge of entries at the weekend has brought that figure tantalisingly close to the 2010 fleet size of 40. 37 boats are now entered and Noonan says there is a prospect of at least two more by the race start on Sunday, June 24th.

There are only 12 Irish boats compared to 18 English entries. The balance of the international fleet is made up with two boats from Northern Ireland, two from France,  the defending champion from Holland and one from the USA.

Among the Irish starters is last week's winner of the ISORA race from Pwllheli to Wicklow, the yacht Lulabelle is being sailed as a double-handed entry by Liam Coyne and Fireball dinghy champion Brian Flahive.

Coyne and Flahive will count victory in last weekend’s Lynxmet mast-sponsored race as a major boost. Lula Belle is one of a handful of double-handed entries for the Round Ireland Race.

36 Entries at June 10th

ENTRANT	CLUB	NAME	TYPE	SAIL NO
Peter Hall	NYC	Adelie	First 34.7	IRL 9631
James Tyrrell	Arklow SC	Aquelina	J 122	IRL 1281
Ian Hickey	RCYC	Cavatina	Granada 38	IRL 3861
Steven Anderson	RORC	Cracklin’ Rosie	Corby 40	GBR851R
Nick Martin	RORC	Diablo-j	J 105	GBR 9205R
Catherine Pourre	SNT (France)	Earwen	Class 40	FRA 88
Payne & Young	Poolbeg BC	English Mick	Beneteau First 47.7	GBR 4771R
Rod Stuart	CCC	EOS	Elan 10	GBR 9192R
Diarmuid Good	RCYC	Exhale	X362 Sport	IRL 8991
Nigel Colley	Guernsey YC	Fastrak VIII	Sunfast 3200	GBR 4690R
Nicholas Bate	Army SA	Fujitsu	Archambault A40RC	GBR 1429L
Laurent Gouy	Clifden BC	Inis Mor	Ker39	FRA 35439
Ronan O’Siochru	DMYC	IOSS- Desert Star	Sunfast 37	IRL1397
Andrew Sarratt	RIYC & RStGYC	Jedi	J109	8088
John Maybury	RIYC	Joker 2	J109	IRL 1206
Neil Eatough	R St.G YC	Lancasrtian	Starlight 46	GBR 7682T
Coyne /Flahive	WSC	LC Tyres Lulabelle	Beneteau 36.7	IRL3607
Adrian Lee	RORC RStG	Lee Overlay Partners	Cookson 50	IRL
Paul Egan	RStG	Legally Blonde	Beneteau 31.7	IRL 3175
Julian Metherell	R Thames YC	Maxvmg Fortissimo	Akilaria Class 40	GBR 97
Peter Dunlop	Pwllheli SC	Midnight Mojito	Elan 350	GBR 1549R
Tom Sperrey	RORC	Nightfall	Arcona 430	GBR 6643
Sir Geoffrey Mulcahy	RTYC/RSYC	Noonmark VI	Swan 56	GBR 5698R
Cathal Clarke	WIORA-NUIGSC	NUI Galway	Reflex 38	7386
Mike Jaques	RORC	Nunatak	J120	GBR9604R
Floate & Norton	IOM YC & WSC	Ocean Tango	Dehler 34	GBR 6848T
Jerry Collins	RStG	Persistance	Sigma 38	IRL 8237
Kirsteen Donaldson	RORC	Pyxis	X332	GBR 5963T
Michael Creedon	NYC	Sarina	S & S	IRL 2260
Stephen Tudor	CH Pwllheli SC	Sgrech	J109	GBR 9319R
A, B & J Douglas	Carrickfergus SC	Spirit of Jacana	J 133	IRL 1335
Dan Walsh	American YC NY	Team Wild Goose	OwenClarke Class 40	GBR 38
P W Vroon	RORC	Tonnerre de Breskens 3	Ker 46	NED 46
T. Fair & D. Fletcher	Ballyholme YC	Twister	Beneteau 31.7	GBR 1505R
Sailing Logic	RORC	Visit Malta Puma	Reflex 38	GBR 7383R
Paul Jackson	RORC -JOG	Wild Spirit	Jeanneau 40SO	GBR 8799T

#SAILING – Schull Youth Team from West Cork won the Under 21 Trophy at the Wilson Trophy in West Kirby in the UK yesterday and it represented a sweet revenge for the teenage three boat team.

Dublin's Ger Owens and Scott Flanigan final chance for Olympic selection at the 470 World Championships in Barcelona got off to a flying start yesterday with the double Olympian Owens finishing fifth in the opening race. It is an early boost for one of 7 remaining places left in the Summer Olympics.  Ross Hamilton is also trying to qualify in the Finn class, he lies

It may have been 'gutting' not to come away with a medal at the Star world championships where Peter O'Leary and and David Burrows finished fourth overall but it was nevertheless a fantastic performance for the London qualified pairing who were third overall for most of last week.

Ben Duncan continues his domination of the SB3 class with a win in the 2012 Eastern Championships yesterday at the National Yacht Club who celebrated its yacht club of the year award last Wednesday.

There was success for Class III champion Supernova plus results from all 19 DBSC classes on Saturday in Dublin Bay.

Cork Harbour's Patrick Crosbie and Grattan Roberts were 420 dinghy winners at Galway Bay Sailing Club.

Offshore American Kenny Read and Team Puma is in back in the USA, a Volvo Ocean Race Win on the home waters of Miami all the more satisfying. The race will finish in Galway at the end of next month.

Billed as one of Europe's major yacht racing events, the 2012 Round Ireland Race starts on June 24th and an international fleet has been announced with UK entries at an all time high for Ireland's top offshore fixture.

Offshore sailing is on a high thanks largely to the pioneeing work of Peter Ryan with the Irish Sea fleet and why shouldn't we be our exploiting our offshore assets, sure don't we own 220 million acres? The third ISORA Race this weekend will feature virtual marks on the way to the Howth finish.

The title holder's absence may be Hong Kong's opportunity at the 2012 Commodore's Cup. Where is Team Ireland as Hong Kong builds up for the cup in just two month's time?

And in two week's time Howth Yacht Club report they have reached the magic number of 100 for the ICRA Cruiser Nationals at the North Dublin venue.

#SAILING – It will be coast-to-coast coverage for Galway sailing in late June, as global interest starts to focus on the western port city and the finish of the Volvo Ocean Race in early July, while the student sailors of Galway University are making a strong pitch for the Round Ireland Race starting from Wicklow on June 24th.

Their campaign is shaping up very well, as they've chartered Martin Breen's Reflex 38 which – as Galway Harbour – was overall winner of last year's main offshore event, the Dun Laoghaire-Dingle Race. The west coast sailing community have a good record in the biennial round Ireland, their most recent overall winner being Aodhan Fitzgerald skippering the First 40.7 Ireland West in 2008.

For this year's event, the status of the race has been up-graded – it now has the same standing in the RORC points championship as events of comparable length such as the Fastnet, and the Middle Sea Race. But in fact the 704-mile Round Ireland already has a special place among Europe's more discerning offshore sailors, and the current defending champion is Piet Vroon of the Netherlands with his Ker 46 Tonnere de Breskens.

Leading French offshore racing crews also like to record at least one bash at this classic circuit in their CVs, but as ever the bulk of the entries will come from Irish club sailors who see the Round Ireland as a rite of passage.

However, it is the west coast which has pioneered a new approach with this first university-based entry. The crew of 10, who represent many different areas of study and research in NUIG, will be skippered by Cathal Clarke, and already - despite the late arrival of some pleasant sailing weather - they have been actively training together on the boat.

Pat Morgan, Vice President of the Student Experience at NUI Galway, has voiced the University's active support for the challenge, which accords well with the college's approach to team-building skills and leadership development. The crew lineup is Cathal Clarke (skipper and trimmer), Ben Scallan & Eoghan McGregor (helmsmen), Joan Mulloy & Mark Armstrong (trimmers), Conor Kinsella & Ruaidhri de Faoite (mainsail trimmers), and Eoin Breen & Louis Mulloy (bowmen).

It's back into action for the Volvo Ocean Race boats this weekend at Itajai in Brazil, with the shore crews of damaged contenders working right down to the wire to be ready for today's in-port race. The International Jury have rejected a protest against the sails being carried by overall leader Telefonica, whose skipper Iker Martinez is keen to get on and get the programme completed, as he has recently confirmed that as soon as the Volvo is over in Galway, he is switching attention to becoming Spain's 49er helmsman in the Olympics just four weeks later – he won gold in 2004 and silver in 2008.

The narrowest window of repairs opportunity is being used by Ian Walker's Abu Dhabi, which has Ireland's Justin Slattery as bowman. Having been put aboard ship at Puerto Montt in Chile after sustaining structural damage in the murderous conditions racing across the Southern Ocean from New Zealand, the Walker boat Azzam was only offloaded in Brazil just two days ago. Amateur crews often use hair dryers to speed up the chemical curing of repairs to modern plastic construction, but even in sub-tropical Brazil, this job will have needed several industrial heaters.

W M Nixon's sailing column is in the Irish Independent on Saturdays 

#ROUND IRELAND YACHT RACE – A crew of NUI Galway students and graduates are, for the first time ever, entering this year's Round Ireland sailing race. The race is a 1400km non-stop circumnaviagtion of Ireland by sea. The NUI Galway crew, ten in total, is one of the youngest teams to ever compete in the event.

The Round Ireland race is held every two years and considered one of Europe's top offshore races.  This year, the start gun goes at 12:00 on Sunday, 24 June and the boats will finish from four to six days later, depending on weather conditions. The race begins and ends in Wicklow Bay.

The NUI Galway crew is made up of students and graduates from various disciplines including engineering, science and commerce. Sailing together in the NUI Galway sailing club over the past few years has built up the trust and camaraderie which will be relied upon during the race. The team have chartered a 38-ft racing yacht for the race.

The NUI Round Ireland crew front row left to right Ben Scallan (helm), Eoghan McGregor (helm), Joan Mulloy (trimmer), Mark Armstrong (trimmer), Cathal Clarke (trimmer), Back row (left to right) Eoin Breen (bowman), Conor Kinsella (Mainsail trimmer), David Fitzgerald, (bowman), Louis Mulloy (bowman) and Ruaidhri De Faoite (mainsail trimmer)

Pat Morgan, Vice-President for the Student Experience at NUI Galway, said: "The University actively promotes leadership and team building skills and is delighted to support this crew to further develop these attributes as they compete in the Round Ireland Race. Their determination and drive, especially given that they are one of the youngest crews is to be admired. We wish them fair winds and following seas."

One of the main aims of this project is to promote the home-grown sailing talent in Galway. Boat skipper, Cathal Clarke says: "The vision of this project is to prove the wealth of sailing talent here on the west coast and to encourage the next generation of Volvo Ocean Race sailors to get out there and get sailing. We aim to inspire other sailors from the region to undertake such projects in the future."

Cathal added: "A busy few months lie ahead for us, with training on and off the water, safety courses and coaching lined up. But the aims of this campaign are high, with a lot of experienced sailors on board, we will certainly be looking for good results."

Encouraging the students was Cillian McGovern, project manager of Green Dragon who says: "The camaraderie and team work displayed by this young team is to be admired. What an opportunity to freshen up the sailing circuit in Ireland."

#SAILING–Wicklow Sailing Club's Round Ireland Yacht Race departs from Wicklow Bay at 12 noon on Sunday 24th June 2012, leaving Ireland and all its islands to starboard.

2012 mark's the 32nd anniversary of Ireland's premier off-shore sailing event, organised by Wicklow Sailing Club in association with Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC).

It is the longest race in the Royal Ocean Racing Club calendar, comparable to similar Offshore races such as the Fastnet, Malta Middle Sea, Sydney-Hobart and China Sea races.

The first race took place in 1980 with only thirteen boats. Since then, held biennially, the fleet has grown steadily, and up to 60 yachts have competed in some past editions of the race.

The backbone for the 2008 race was Tonnerre de Breskens III, owned by Dutchman Piet Vroon. The crew arrived in Wicklow with a brace of RORC victories, leading RORC's offshore table, and went into the race as favourites. The first twist in Tonnerre's plot came before the starter's gun, when Vroon ended up in hospital, from where he would follow the race as his crew sailed on without him.

However, that would be the only bump in their road. Tonnerre led from start to finish, both on the water and on handicap. Vroon's crew brought home the trophy for their ailing skipper in the race's happy ending.

Sailing around Ireland poses many challenges for boats and crew, with open ocean on the south and west coasts, tidal challenges on north and east coasts apart from all the off lying rocks and sandbanks to keep navigators on their toes and not forgetting the vagaries of the Atlantic weather systems.

This is very much a sailors race but armchair spectators can follow the race on their computers, thanks to our modern race tracker technology.

A Round Ireland Sail Fest (Thur 21 - Sun 24 June) will complement the race preparations and add a welcome level of fun and entertainment for all coming down to Wicklow for the Race start.

ROUND IRELAND YACHT RACE 2012 on SUNDAY 24TH JUNE

NOTICE OF RACE

ORGANISATION

The Race is organised by Wicklow Sailing Club in association with the Royal Ocean Racing Club.

CONDITIONS The race will be sailed under the Racing Rules of Sailing 2009-2012, the ISAF Offshore Special Regulations, the Irish Sailing Association (ISA) and RORC Prescriptions and amendments and the additions detailed below:

1. This Notice of Race, the Entry Form and the Sailing Instructions.
2. The Race is ISAF Offshore Special Regulations Category 2.
3. IRC Rules Parts A, B, & C – 2012 Rules.

In the event of conflict the Sailing Instructions shall prevail.

START The start will be at Wicklow on Sunday, 24th June 2012.

COURSE Leave Ireland and all its islands excluding Rockall to starboard. The distance is approximately 704 nm.

ENTRIES To: Wicklow Sailing Club, C/o. Dennis Noonan, "Dunmore", Sea Road, Newcastle, Co. Wicklow. The closing date for entries is 8th June 2012. Exceptionally late entries may be accepted, for which there will be a late entry fee. Entries will be from IRC (Endorsed) rated yachts of LOA 9.15m/30 feet and over, with a minimum SSS of 28 or STIX of 32 combined with an AVS minimum of 130-0.002 x M (where M is minimum sailing weight in kg). STIX and AVS data is required for boats with a series date of 1995 and later.

ENTRY FEE LOA: 30-39.9 feet €400  40-49.9 feet €450  50-59.9 feet €500  60 feet and over €550.

LATE ENTRY Late entries will be subject to the relevant fee above +50%. No entry will be accepted after Thursday, 22nd June 2012.

CANCELLATION POLICY Cancellations can be accepted either:
(1) before the closing date, when a refund minus €50 may be claimed or
(2) between the closing date and the start, when 50% of the fee may be claimed.

ENTRY The Race Committee reserves the right to decline an entry.

ENTRY LIMIT The number of starters shall not exceed 75.

CLASSES Racing will take place under IRC. Classes will be allocated according to the number and type of entry. Classes for classic and one design yachts will be subject to the number of entries. Yachts may enter as a team, but RRS Appendix D, Team Racing Rules, will not apply. Details will be provided on application.

Classes will be as follows:

IRC Class CK – 0.850 and greater
IRC Class Z - 1.276 and greater Class 5 – Cruisers, Hull factor 7.5 or less
IRC Class 1 - 1.275 – 1.101 Class 6 – Classics Class (pre 1987)
IRC Class 2 - 1.100 – 1.051 Class 7 – Sigma 38 to Class Rules
IRC Class 3 - 1.050 – 1.007 Class 8 – Two-handed Class
IRC Class 4 – 1.006 - 0.850 Class 9 – TBA

RULES ALTERATION

The Race Committee reserves the right to alter the rules and conditions of the race at any time. Changes will be posted on the WSC website at www.wicklowsailingclub.com. Yachts whose entries have been accepted will be advised directly.

EXPERIENCE QUALIFICATION
The Round Ireland Yacht Race is not a race for novices. Every crew member must have experience of sailing a yacht offshore and be prepared to encounter heavy weather. Competitors may be required to provide evidence of offshore experience.

The skipper and at least half the crew must have completed, in the yacht in which they will race the Round Ireland Race, in the 13 months preceding the start, either:-

1. 300 miles of offshore racing * or
2. Non-stop passage of at least 300 miles.
3. Other qualifications similar to 2. above to be proposed to and agreed by WSC/RORC by 31st May 2012.

* To qualify as offshore racing a race must be at least 75 miles duration and include at least one night at sea.

TRAINING It is the skipper's responsibility to ensure that the following criteria are met and that a certificate or letter of attendance from an establishment recognised by the ISA/RORC should be provided on completion of the following:

1. At least 30% of the crew, including the Skipper, shall have undertaken training to Section 6, (Appendix G) of the ISAF Offshore Special Regulations.

2. In the case of two-handed entries, both crew members must complete training to Section 6, (Appendix G) of the ISAF Offshore Special Regulations.

3. In addition at least one member of the crew shall hold a current Senior First Aid Certificate or equivalent (in accordance with OSR 6.05.2) and should be familiar with the management of medical emergencies that may occur at sea, including hypothermia, and radio communications operations for obtaining medical advice by radio.

4. The above training must have taken place after January 2007. Copies of these certificates should be lodged with WSC prior to the start of the race.

CREW LIST A full crew list with names, addresses and telephone numbers of competitors and their next of kin to be lodged with the Race Office on Registration at Wicklow Sailing Club.

INSPECTIONS Yachts shall assemble at Wicklow Harbour no later than 1200 hours on Friday, 22nd June 2012 for Special Regulations inspections. Deep draught yachts may be inspected at Dun Laoghaire, by agreement with the race organisers.

RORC SPECIAL REGULATIONS CHECK-LIST
Each entrant must complete an ISAF Offshore Special Regulations Check List. The completed Check List must be submitted to Wicklow Sailing Club prior to the start of the race and a copy must also be retained onboard the yacht.

ADVERTISING Advertising will be acceptable under conditions to be provided on application. Yachts may carry advertising according to the Racing Rules of Sailing and their class or rating authority. Yachts will be required to fly a race flag and may be required to apply a race sticker to each side of the hull.

TRACKING It will be mandatory for yachts to carry a Tracker Unit for the duration of the race. A refundable deposit, which may be set against a credit card, may be required.

AIS TRANSPONDER All yachts must be equipped with an operational AIS Transponder, which must be switched on and transmitting and receiving for the entire duration of the race.

TIDES Wicklow Harbour, Sunday 24th June 2012. Times are local and are approximate.
HW - 1432hrs

RATING CERTIFICATES
All competitors must apply to the RORC Rating Office as early as possible prior to the race, in order to obtain their current Endorsed Certificates in good time. Please note, STIX and AVS data is required for boats with a series date of 1995 and later. The cut-off date for amended Rating Certificates shall be Thursday the 21st June 2012.

PUBLICITY Entrants should include, with their entry, two recent photographs of the yacht for the programme and for publicity purposes.

Galway Bay Sailing Club has announced details of a new Irish offshore yacht race, the  Round Rockall Race 2012 that will start on the same day as Wicklow's biennial Round Ireland race and a week before the Volvo Ocean Race calls to Galway Port on July 5. Both the Round Ireland and Round Rockall races are of similar length, around 700 miles each. An entry limit of 40 boats has been put on the inaugural race. The 2010 Round Ireland race attracted a fleet of 36.

The new offshore race is organised by the Galway Bay Sailing Club (GBSC) and the Round Rockall Race Committee. The start will be from inner Galway Bay on Sunday 24th June 2012 at 1800hrs.

The course will be from a start line in inner Galway Bay and around the islet of Rockall in the North East Atlantic and to a finish
line back in inner Galway Bay. Marks of the Course will be defined in the Sailing Instructions yet to be published. The approximate distance is 652 Nautical Miles.

Entries will be from IRC rated yachts of LOA 9.15m/30 feet and over.

Indicative Class bands which may be modified based on entries received are:

Class 1 : IRC 1.055 - 1.149
Class 2 : 1.00 - 1.054
Class 4 : Two-handed Class
Class 5: Single-handed class
Class 6 : Cruiser Class

Organisers stipulate in the notice of race that 'The Round Rockall Race' is an open ocean race. Every crew member must have experience of sailing a yacht offshore and be prepared to encounter heavy weather. Competitors will be required to provide evidence of offshore experience.

View Larger Map

The full Notice of Race is below.

Round Rockall Race 2012 - Notice of Race

1. ORGANISING AUTHORITY
The Race is organised by the Galway Bay Sailing Club (GBSC) and the Round Rockall Race Committee.

2. RULES
2.1 The race will be sailed under the Racing Rules of Sailing, the ISAF Offshore Special Regulations, and the additions detailed below:
2.1(a) This Notice of Race, the Entry Form and the Sailing Instructions.
2.1(b) The Race is subject to ISAF Offshore Special Regulations Category 1 with the exceptions/ amendments listed in this Notice of Race.
2.2 In the event of conflict the Sailing Instructions shall prevail.

3. START
The start will be from inner Galway Bay on Sunday 24th June 2012 at 1800hrs.

4. COURSE
The course will be from a start line in inner Galway Bay, Ireland and around the islet of Rockall in the North East Atlantic and to a finish line in inner Galway Bay, Ireland. Marks of the Course will be defined in the Sailing Instructions. The approximate distance is 652 Nautical Miles

5. ENTRIES
5.1 Entry forms can be completed online at www.roundrockallrace.com or by post to: Larry Hynes, Caherfinesker, Craughwell, Co. Galway, Ireland.
5.2 The closing date for entries is 1st June 2012.
5.3 Late entries will be accepted, for which there will be a late entry fee.
5.4 Entries will be from IRC rated yachts of LOA 9.15m/30 feet and over, with a minimum SSS of 34 or STIX of 32 combined with an AVS minimum of 130-0.002 x M (where M is minimum sailing weight in kg). STIX and AVS data is required for boats with a series date of 1995 and later.
5.4 A yacht which meets the entry requirements but does not have an IRC rating may enter the Cruiser Class.

6. ENTRY FEE
E250

7. LATE ENTRY
7.1 Late entries will be subject to the entry fee +50%.
7.2 No entry will be accepted after 1st June 2012.
roundrockallrace.com
[email protected]
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8. CANCELLATIONS
Cancellations can be accepted either:
(1) before the closing date, when a refund minus E50 may be claimed or
(2) between the closing date and the start, when 50% of the fee may be claimed.

9. ENTRY
The organisers reserve the right to decline an entry.

10. ENTRY LIMIT
The number of starters shall not exceed forty.
11. CLASSES
11.1 Racing will take place under IRC. Classes will be allocated according to the number and type of entry.
11.2 Classes for cruiser and one design yachts may be assigned subject to the number of entries.
11.3 Indicative Class bands are as follows, (these may be modified based on entries received)
Class 1 : IRC 1.055 - 1.149
Class 2 :1.00 - 1.054
Class 4 : Two-handed Class
Class 5: Single-handed class
Class 6 : Cruiser Class

12. RULES ALTERATION
The organisers reserve the right to alter the rules and conditions of the race at any time. Changes will be posted on www.roundrockallrace.com.
Yachts whose entries have been accepted will be advised directly.

13. EXCEPTIONS AND AMENDMENTS TO THE ISAF OFFSHORE SPECIAL REGULATIONS CATEGORY 1
The following exceptions and amendments to Category 1 regulations apply:
Regulation 3.21.1(ii) not applicable (two separate water tanks not required)
Regulation 3.29.1(n) not applicable (AIS not required)
Regulation 4.08.1 a first aid manual of type listed in (b) is acceptable
Regulation 4.11.2 Reserve Navigation System Clarification: a separate handheld GPS is acceptable as a reserve form of navigation system.

14. EXPERIENCE QUALIFICATION
14.1 The Round Rockall Race is an open ocean race. Every crew member must have experience of sailing a yacht offshore and be prepared to encounter
heavy weather. Competitors will be required to provide evidence of offshore experience.
14.2 The Skipper and at least half the crew must have completed, in the yacht in which they will race the Round Rockall Race, in the 24 months preceding the start:
1. 300 miles of offshore racing* or
2. Non-stop passage of at least 300 miles.
3. Other qualifications similar to 2. above to be proposed to and agreed
2/4
by the organisers by 1st May 2012.
*To qualify as offshore racing a race must be at least 75 miles duration and include at least one night at sea.

15. TRAINING
It is the Skipper's responsibility to ensure that the following criteria are met and that a certificate or letter of attendance from an establishment recognised by the ISA/RORC should be provided on completion of the following:
1. At least 30% of the crew, including the Skipper, shall have undertaken training to Section 6, (Appendix G) of the ISAF Offshore Special Regulations.
2. In the case of two-handed entries, both crew members must complete training to Section 6, (Appendix G) of the ISAF Offshore Special Regulations.
3. In addition at least one member of the crew shall hold a current Senior
First Aid Certificate or equivalent and should be familiar with the management of medical emergencies that may occur at sea, including hypothermia, and radio communications operations for obtaining medical advice by radio.
4. Copies of these certificates must be lodged with the organisers prior to the start of the race.

16. CREW LIST
A full crew list with names, addresses and telephone numbers to be lodged with the Race Office on Registration.

17. INSPECTIONS
Yachts shall assemble at Galway Harbour no later than 1200 hours on Friday, 22nd June 2012 for Special Regulations inspections.

18. SPECIAL REGULATIONS CHECK-LIST
Each entrant must complete an ISAF Offshore Special Regulations Check List and entrants must submit their completed copy to the organisers prior to the start of the race and retain a copy onboard.

19. ADVERTISING
Yachts may carry advertising according to the Racing Rules of Sailing and their class or rating authority. Yachts will be required to fly a race flag and may be required to apply a race sticker to each side of the hull.

20. TRACKING
It may be mandatory for yachts to carry a Tracker Unit for the duration of the race. A refundable deposit, which may be set against a credit-card, may be required.

21. TIDES
Galway Harbour, Sunday 24th June 2012. Times are local and are approximate.
LW: 02:36 1.0m
14:51 1.3m
HW: 08:58 4.5m
21:11 4.7m
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22. RATING CERTIFICATES
22.1 Where necessary, all competitors must apply to the RORC Rating Office
as early as possible prior to the race, in order to obtain their current Certificates in good time.
Please note, STIX and AVS data is required for boats with a series date of 1995 and later.
22.2 The cut-off date for amended Rating Certificates shall be the 1st June 2012.

23. PHOTOGRAPHS
Entrants should include, with their entry, two recent photographs of the yacht for publicity and safety purposes.

24. RADIOS, COMMUNICATIONS & TRACKER SYSTEMS
24.1 If required, entrants shall fit the satellite tracker provided by the organisers.
24.2 The organisers shall be authorised to claim payment for the cost of the tracker if it is not returned at the end of/retirement from the Race.
24.3 Entrants shall have a satellite communication system that allows two way communication throughout the duration of the race (eg Satcom C, mini M, Iridium).

25. SKIPPERS / OWNERS RESPONSIBILITIES
25.1 The safety of each Skipper and boat and her entire management is the sole and inescapable responsibility of the Skipper.
25.2 The Skipper and crew must be physically and psychologically fit to start and continue the Race in the worst of conditions encountered in the North Atlantic.
25.3 The boat must be insured, be of appropriate design and construction,
adequately maintained, equipped and provisioned to meet these conditions.
25.4 Neither the establishment of the Notice of Race, its use by the organisers

or any Sponsoring Organisations, nor any spot check of the boat, under the NOR in any way limits or reduces the complete and unlimited responsibility of each Owner/ Skipper.

25.5 It is the sole and exclusive responsibility of each Skipper and crew to decide whether or not to start or continue to race.

26. DISCLAIMER
26.1 Notwithstanding any other rule and condition, the Organising Authority, Race Committee and Race Sponsors, if applicable, jointly and severally are providing this Race on the understanding that they or their representatives bear no responsibility for any loss, damage, injury, or inconvenience
to boats or persons howsoever arising directly or indirectly from their rules, policy, or rulings before or during the Race or related activities.
26.2 By participating in the Race each Skipper and crew agrees to release the Organising Authority, Race Committee and Race Sponsors from and against all claims, damages, costs, torts, suits at law or in equity or otherwise, arising out of or in any way relating to the Race. This release shall be binding upon each entrant and their heirs, beneficiaries, representatives,
and estates of each entrant.

27. INSURANCE
The Skipper / Owner shall have Third Party Liability insurance cover to a minimum of euro E1,250,000.00 or equivalent.
4/4

The Royal Ocean Racing Club season continues to be extremely popular with another bumper entry for the De Guingand Bowl Race starting on May 14th. Over 75 yachts are expected on the Squadron Line this Saturday morning, ranging from cutting edge custom yachts to traditional cruising yachts. Boats from all over Europe will be competing for class prizes and overall honours. The third race in the RORC Season's Points Championship starts and finishes in the Solent and exemplifies the variety of courses in this year's RORC Seasons Points Championship.

2010 Round Ireland Race winner Piet Vroon's custom Ker 46, Tonnerre de Breskens, returns to RORC racing after winning her class at this year's RORC Caribbean 600. The sky blue flyer, which was RORC Yacht of the Year for 2010, has undergone some rig and sail modifications in Breskens before arriving in Hamble this week to continue their racing programme, leading up to the Rolex Fastnet Race this August.

Chaz Ivill's Grand Soleil 54, John B, won IRC One in last month's Cervantes Trophy Race. "John B will be competing in six RORC races this year, including the Rolex Fastnet Race," explained Chaz Ivill. "Competing in the De Guingand Bowl is just part of this year's offshore program. The core crew has been very successful and has been together for five years, this will be our third Fastnet campaign on the trot. However, John B has a blend of youth and experience and we have three sailors new to offshore sailing. Sam Cooper is just 18 and a student, Nathan Hanley is 22 and a sailmaker and Matt Mills has just finished University and is the son of regular crew, Tim Mills. Also William Broughton will be joining us this week for his first race on John B, William is eighteen and studying at Plymouth University."

RORC Commodore Andrew McIrvine's First 40, La Réponse, won class in the Cervantes Trophy Race. McIrvine's crew are all friends with no professionals on board. "Jason Owen will be the skipper for the De Guingand Bowl Race, fresh from winning the Etchells Class in Bermuda," commented Andrew. "Jason is highly experienced but not all of the crew are; Tame Welsh has done very little sailing but has rowed across the Atlantic and Indian Oceans and is also a PhD nurse." McIrvine's La Réponse can expect a close battle with another First 40, Guy Prest's Tarka II of Hamble, which should provide a close duel. Neil Kipling's J/122, Joopster, is also in fine form.

IRC Two also contains several First 40.7s, including Trevor Drew's Blue Juice, representing the Civil Service Offshore Racing Club.

"The CSORC has a long history as a club, with one of its first races being the 1979 Fastnet," explained Trevor Drew. "The emphasis is on having fun, with a friendly atmosphere. There is no minimum level of experience to sail with the club but the offshore crew has now completed the RYA Sea Survival and the ISAF Offshore Safety Course. We've been out on Blue Juice, getting in some team practice in the Solent and offshore. Our aim is to learn as much as we can and hopefully winning will come later."

Two-handed racing is becoming an extremely popular discipline within the RORC Season's Points Championship and fourteen yachts will be competing this weekend. Racing short-handed requires an all-round sailing ability and the class attracts a wide variety of people.

Kirsteen Donaldson and Judith Eastwood make up the all-girls team on X 332, Pyxis. Between them they have racked up thousands of sea miles including races from The Solent to La Trinité and Santander but Kirsteen is happy that the De Guingand Bowl Race will finish in the Solent.

"Previously, I would have preferred races that could be used as a feeder for a holiday. However, my sailing partner's husband is not keen on sailing and my 'other half' is not keen on long passages home, so finishing near where we started allows us to get a good sail into a weekend most diplomatically!"

Frederic Waniart and crew are the two-handed team in form, having won the Cervantes Trophy Race last time out. Vim is one of the oldest boats competing but has been meticulously prepared by the French team. The legendary Paul Elvström designed the Aphrodite 101 in 1977.

"We will be racing the De Guingand double handed, as part of our season racing with RORC and also the UNCL double handed series," explained Frederic Waniart. "One lawyer and one surgeon who have been sailing friends for quite some time. As for experience, it is my fourth season with the RORC in double handed sailing. I love racing with the RORC because there is a real competition, and the courses are very well organised."

The Royal Ocean Racing Club's Season's Points Championship consists of a testing series of races, which attracts an international and varied fleet. For the serious offshore sailor, trying to win the Season's Points Championship is a real challenge. The Season's Points Championship this year includes the tactically and physically challenging Rolex Fastnet Race, the oldest and most prestigious offshore yacht race in the world.

A win is a win, there and then. But when sail boat racing is first-past-the-post, there's only one plotline to follow, whereas the likes of the Round Ireland Yacht Race never fails to produce sub-plot after sub-plot, races within races. It is Ireland's greatest floating soap opera, and it's full of cliffhangers.

Before the race got on the water, the scene was set onshore with a storyboard lifted from Galway '09. In a bid to mirror the Volvo Ocean Race stop-over, the Round Ireland was smartly enmeshed with a successful town festival in Wicklow, drawing in thousands of non-sailing civilians, many of whom hung out on the cliffs to watch one of the best-attended starts in years.

The backbone for this year's story was Tonnerre de Breskens III, owned by Dutchman Piet Vroon. The crew arrived in Wicklow with a brace of RORC victories, leading RORC's offshore table, and went into the race as favourites. The first twist in Tonnerre's plot came before the starter's gun, when Vroon ended up in hospital, from where he would follow the race as his crew sailed on without him. However, that would be the only bump in their road. Tonnerre led from start to finish, both on the water and on handicap. Vroon's crew brought home the trophy for their ailing skipper in the race's happy ending.

There was drama in their wake, though. Not the high-octane 60-knot knock-down drama of 2008, but good stuff nonetheless. Bernard Guoy's Inis Mor chased hard to no avail, and in the end they just couldn't do it. Theirs was the story of the weary, the plucky but the ultimately unlucky. In 2008 gear failure put them out of the running, but in 2010 it was Tonnerre's sheer perfection that relegated Inis Mor to the runner-up spot. You would be hard pressed to find an error in their race, and they deserved the second slot.

There were other big guns, of course. Mick Liddy and Mark Pollock's Daft.com Class 40 was a drama mini-series all of its own, with a blind co-skipper in a high-powered double-hander seeming a deluded concept to many. Until the batteries died they were churning out their own stories, uploading video content to beat the band. Of course, directorial priorities shifted when their electrics went as they headed up the west coast. Pollock's input was limited to nearly nil without electronics, meaning Liddy became all but a solo sailor without relief, helming non-stop for four days. Their initially promising position was eroded in the last third of the race as fatigue bit hard.

No similar excuses for the biggest boat in the race, the Open 60 Spirit of Rosslare Europort, which by all accounts should have made hay in some heavier airs off the west coast and come home first for line honours. However, they couldn't capitalise on that. Some will say that Tonnerre was better suited to the conditions than the larger Open 60, while others will dismiss that as folly.

The dogfights, then, the meat-and-veg of the story, were in IRC 1. Visit Malta Puma, another hot contender from the Solent, was in charge for much of the race while things were quietly making their way up the west coast. In the Round Ireland, as in Irish history, things have a way of kicking off around the north-east corner. As the tides and light airs played with the fleet, the lead changed hands six times between Inistrahull and the finish, with Fujitsu and Visit Malta Puma match-racing down the Irish Sea, and Bejaysus and Aquelina doing the same behind them.

Visit Malta Puma would emerge victorious, and in the meantime, the leaders of Class 2 and the double-handers were passing the mouth of Strangford Lough and crossing Dundrum Bay. Psipina and Dinah would trade tacks all the way to Wicklow, with Paddy Cronin in Psipina (joined by John Loden) making it two in a row in the two-handers overall. Second place, however, would go to one of the backmarkers.

Theirs was the rags-to-riches tale of this Round Ireland. Brians Flahive and Byrne took a boat all but written off and kitted it out for the 704-mile offshore. Noonan Boat Oystercatcher was the racing equivalent of a transplant patient, with a large portion of its port side removed and rebuilt by its owner, boatbuilder Graham Noonan, also Flahive's boss. Ten days before the race, the pair were rigging the tiny Gibsea with a spinnaker for the first time, and as the front of the fleet slowed, they rocketed on into second, not bad for a major offshore debut.

And while champagne corks were popping on land, there were still cups of tea being handed up to the rail from many galleys along the Irish Sea coast. The finish to the Round Ireland was prolonged, but deciding the results was not as strung out an affair as years gone by, the winner having been decided well in advance of the last finishers' arrival.

The question mark at the end of this story leaves things open for an innovative sequel. Dropped into the narrative mid-race were questions in the national media over how more racers might be tempted to Wicklow for 2012. The festival was, no doubt, a good start, but what of the date? Would moving it away from the annual date of the 1700-boat Solent carnival that is the Round the Island, putting further distance between it and Cork Week make sense? Would it make for a greater foreign entry? Eight of the 36 entries this year were from outside of Ireland - who's to say that couldn't be doubled or tripled?

That's a script yet to be written. For Round Ireland 2010, the credits are rolling. Wicklow SC can be proud that they delivered yet another successful edition of Ireland's classic offshore, and the various actors can take a deserved bow for playing their part in another home-produced oceanic drama.

Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Trophy Winners

Line Honours - Denis Doyle Trophy
Tonnerre de Breskens 3 - Piet Vroon

IRC Overall - Norman Barry Trophy
Tonnerre de Breskens 3 - Piet Vroon
Inis Mor - Bernard Gouy
Visit Malta Puma - Philippe Falle

Class 7 / Two Handed - The Noonan Trophy
Psipsina - John Loden & Paddy Cronin
Noonan Boats Oystercatcher - Brian Flahive
& Bryan Byrne
Alchimiste - Michael Murphy & Alex Voye

Class Super 0
Spirit of Rosslare Europort - Alan McGettigan

Class 0 - Mew Island Trophy
Tonnerre de Breskens 3 - Piet Vroon
Inis Mor - Bernard Gouy
Pride of Wicklow - James Gair/David O'Gorman

Class 1 - Tuskar Cup
Visit Malta Puma - Philippe Falle
Fujitsu - Andrew Britton
Aquelina - James Tyrrell

Class 2 - Fastnet Cup
Raging Bull - Matt Davis
Psipsina - John Loden & Paddy Cronin
Dinah - Barry Hurley & Hannah White

Class 3 - Skelligs Cup
Noonan Boats Oystercatcher -
Brian Flahive & Bryan Byrne
Alchimiste - Michael Murphy & Alex Voye
Cavatina - Ian Hickey/Eric Lisson

Class 4 - Tory Island Trophy
Noonan Boats Oystercatcher -
Brian Flahive & Bryan Byrne
Cavatina - Ian Hickey/Eric Lisson
Gumdrop - Derek Gilmore

Class 5 / Classic - Michael Jones Trophy
Cavatina - Ian Hickey/Eric Lisson

Class 6 / Sigma 38 - Larry Ryan Trophy
Persistance - Jerry Collins

ISORA Trophy
Raging Bull - Matt Davis

Irish Cruiser Racing Association -
Round Ireland Trophy
Aquelina - James Tyrrell

Team Kinsale Yacht Club Trophy
Team 'RORC': Tonnerre de Breskens 3 - Piet Vroon / Visit Malta Puma - Philippe Falle / Psipsina - John Loden & Paddy Cronin Team 'Go Hard or Go Home': Pride of Wicklow - James Gair/David O'Gorman / Aquelina - James Tyrrell / Noonan Boats Oystercatcher - Brian Flahive & Bryan Byrne

More on the Round Ireland Yacht Race:

Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Review

Round Ireland Yacht Race, Ireland's top offshore fixture

A Round up of 80 stories on the 2010 Round Ireland Yacht Race