There's good news for Irish cruiser–racers after a graph of International Rating Certificates (IRC) published by Irish Sailing administrators reveals a lift in certs issued so far this season.
It's an indication that more boats will be racing in a season that promises so much with June's inaugural Wave Regatta at Howth and the Round Ireland in Wicklow, July's Cork Week, and August's ICRA National Championships in Galway to name but a few.
The lift over 2017 numbers comes after several years of falling numbers and as such it will be cautiously welcomed by the recently recast Irish Cruiser Racing Body (ICRA) that is charged with increasing participation in cruiser–racer fleets.
All IRC certificates expire on 31st December of the year they are issued.
There are other variables that could have influenced the increase to April, one of which being 2018's early Easter which is the traditional IRC renewal date for the Summer season.
Against that, most sailors will agree that the 2018 season has been delayed by a fortnight or more due to bad weather in March and early April.
Harry Hermon of Irish Sailing says it will be more accurate to review the graph after quarter two, sometime in June, but for now the news looks positive for Irish cruiser–racing.
Exact numbers are hard to pin down but ECHO handicap cert stats offer another good indicator of the overall position, as all IRC holders also have an ECHO Cert. The latest position, from Irish Sailing files is below:
Racing (Jan-April) |
2014-Apr |
2014 Tot |
2015 - Apr |
2015 Tot |
2016-Apr |
2016 Tot |
2017-Apr |
2017 Tot |
2018-Apr |
ECHO certs issued |
294 |
499 |
209 |
489 |
270 |
455 |
277 |
497 |
280 |
IRC Revalidation |
200 |
281 |
208 |
291 |
204 |
||||
IRC New |
11 |
26 |
4 |
31 |
2 |
||||
IRC Amendment |
7 |
47 |
5 |
44 |
3 |
||||
IRC Trial |
5 |
20 |
5 |
36 |
11 |
||||
IRC Short Handed |
1 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
||||
IRC Copy |
7 |
11 |
5 |
14 |
16 |
||||
IRC Re-Registration |
0 |
89 |
0 |
1 |
The IRC rule is admimistered by London's Royal Ocean Racing Club. The RORC has been a leader in yacht handicap systems and in co-operation with the French offshore racing club, UNCL, created IRC - the principal yacht measurement system for the rating of racing yachts worldwide.