#MiddleSeaRace - As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Irish-crewed boats made the podium in the 2014 Rolex Middle Sea Race that came to a close last week. But they didn't mark the only Irish involvement in the gruelling offshore challenge.
Howth Yacht Club was represented twice among the fleet, with one team chartering Lucy Reynolds' Beneteau First 40, Southern Child, and HYC sailor Laura Dillon setting out on the S&S 41, Winsome.
The latter was forced to retire from the race after the extreme weather conditions that hammered the Mediterranean midweek, with Dillon describing the situation as "frightening" – though both boat and crew were able to shelter at the Italian island of Pantelleria, relatively unscathed.
Meanwhile, the crew of Southern Child elected to push on to the finish, helped by their more remote location out of the full impact of the Force 10 gales that rammed the fleet.
Despite that fortune, the return leg was heavy going in confused seas and waves as high as 10 metres, and it was only on crossing the finish line that the crew discovered they'd placed sixth in Class 4, which saw 75% of entered boats retire.
"Sustained wind strengths of 44 knots for a period of 24 hours really tested the spirit of the crew, and the relentless conditions were some of the most difficult that I've seen," said HYC's Kieran Jameson, who crewed Southern Child with Darren Wright, Colm Bermingham, Frank Dillon, Rick De Nieve, David Wright, Paul Walsh, Jonny White, Will Murray and Lucy Reynolds.
