Volvo Cork Week 2024 entries have been steadily climbing with a huge variety of boats and sailors from Ireland and all over the world expected to be competing at the Royal Cork’s famous regatta from 15-19 July.
The championship fleet boasts a fine array of race boats, including high performance carbon-fibre flyers to Quarter-Tonners.
Racing in sportsboats at Volvo Cork Week will be the 1720 class for the European Championship, the phenomenal Cape 31 class and, new this year, the RS21 keelboat class with boats available for charter.
For those new to racing, or for cruising boats that don’t want to bring a massive crew, the non-spinnaker/White Sail class offers an ideal programme to enjoy. For a unique experience, the Beaufort Cup provides offshore and inshore racing as an inter-services regatta within Volvo Cork Week.
The championship fleets are always a big feature of Volvo Cork Week, with a several well-known names and boats already entered for 2024. Quarter-Tonners already entered include Anchor Challenge, Panic and Diamond. Half-Tonners already entered include 2 Farr, with reigning ICRA Boat Of The Year Swuzzlebubble planning to enter soon.
Visiting boats such as Raptor, Flyover, Meridian, Allig8r and Valentina will have to get the better of local boats such as Ellida, Magnet and North Star if they are to lift the trophies.
There has been particular interest from the Welsh fleet, some of whom will also compete in the Kingstown to Queenstown race as part of the ISORA series. Entries include Impetuous, Faenol and Mojito — the former El Gran Senor. Several entries from Portishead have been received, including ScrumpyJ, Assassin and Ctrl-J.
The level of interest in non-spinnaker/White Sail classes is high, with many skippers keen to experience racing at Volvo Cork Week for the first time. Visiting boats will include Dreamcatcher, Apache, Hansemer and Calero. They will battle local boats including Sweet Dreams, Indulgence, Loch Greine, Morning After and Rosmarina for the silverware.
The RS21 keelboat class is set to make a splash at Volvo Cork Week 2024
Sportsboats
Notable entries for the 1720 European Championship include local boats Zing, Dark Side and Mini Apple, as well as visitors Mo and After Midnight.
The Cape 31 class previously attended Volvo Cork Week as a relatively new keelboat but is now firmly established as the most exciting one-design class in these waters. Volvo Cork Week is now part of the global Cape 31 2024 events circuit. The strong Irish fleet are expecting international competition from all over the world.
The RS21s will be keen to make a mark, as this is the first time the keelboat class will be part of the event. A unique element of this fleet is the availability of charter boats in ready to race condition for the week. These boats will be supplied by the class and managed at the event by Kenny Rumball of the INSS, making this a very attractive package for those that can’t bring their own boats to Cork. Contact [email protected] for more details.
Beaufort Cup
The Notice of Race for the Beaufort Cup has recently been published on the Volvo Cork Week website. The Beaufort Cup is a unique inter-services regatta, hosted by the Irish Defence Forces in conjunction with the Royal Cork Yacht Club.
A number of veteran teams from the USA have expressed interest in joining the competition, along with uniformed service teams from across Ireland and the UK. Any boat owner interested in chartering a suitable boat to one of the teams is encouraged to make contact by sending an email to [email protected].
Accommodation update
Additional local accommodation has been secured and more details are available on the Volvo Cork Week website. Competitors bringing campervans will be accommodated at the Crosshaven Rugby Club, which is provides appropriate facilities and is located around 1km from the Royal Cork Yacht Club. A regular bus service runs from Carrigaline and Cork City which stops directly outside the Royal Cork Yacht Club.
Social update
Daily entertainment will be provided at the Royal Cork Yacht Club for all competitors after racing, along with various promotional events and sponsor activities. The Ladies Gala Lunch, which will be hosted in aid of the RNLI, is planned for Wednesday 17 July.
For more information including race documents, marina Facilities, accommodation and the superb social programme, visit www.corkweek.ie.
