Irish Sea Offshore Racing Association (ISORA) Chairman Peter Ryan is urging crews to enter for next month's first race of the Viking Marine Irish Coastal Series 2024 so class rating splits can be evenly prepared.
"Now that rugby is over, it's time to start thinking about sailing", Ryan told Afloat after Ireland secured back-to-back Six Nations titles after a 17-13 victory over Scotland at the Aviva Stadium.
The Irish coastal series starts on the 6th of April from Dun Laoghaire Harbour, with four races on the following weekends.
New boats coming to the ISORA line this season are the J122 El Gran Senor that is the new Mojito from Pwllheli in North Wales
The five-race 'Irish Early Coastal Series' features races of three to five-hour duration.
ISORA Chairman Peter Ryan
Ryan reminds competitors that 'Courses for races will be decided by time, not distance, to ensure we can have a get-together after each race'.
The final race in the coastal series is the night race in September.
ISORA signed off on a 'final' race schedule for 2024 in February. The version nine calendar released in February is "structured to avoid as many clashes as possible while facilitating boats doing the other events", according to Ryan.
Ryan previously referred to decreasing fleet numbers as 'the elephant in the room' when raising his concerns in the 2023 season. He asked fleet members for possible solutions to the drop in numbers as Afloat reported here.
