There were great starts for the host club's Elan 40 Chancer (Brian Carroll) and Denis Murphy's Grand Soleil 40 Nieulargo from Royal Cork in the inaugural Inishtearaght Race from Kinsale this morning in the brand new Irish offshore yacht race fixture along the Cork and Kerry coasts.
An entry of seven boats started a new chapter in West Cork offshore yacht racing just after 9 am when the small but competitive fleet crossed the Kinsale Yacht Club line.
Cian McCarthy's two-handed Sunfast 3330 Cinnamon Girl Photo: Bob Bateman
The fleet, led by Chancer off the line, set out in 15-20 knot south-westerly conditions and light rain. Forecasts this morning indicate gusts to over 30-knots on the way to the Blasket Islands.
The single Dublin entry in the race is Royal St.George's J/122 Aurelia (Chris Power Smith) Photo: Bob Bateman
Unfortunately, the planned start using a Navy ship did not materialise due to the exigencies of the Naval Service but Club Race Officer Dave O'Sullivan got the fleet underway in a club vessel from the KYC's Charles fort startline inside Kinsale Harbour.
The Inishtearaght Race fleet set out in 15-20 knot south-westerly conditions and light rain Photo: Matthias Hellstern
As Afloat previously reported, the course is approximately 240nm long and will run along the spectacular south coast, round Inistearaght island and back to Kinsale.
Soft day - The Elan 40 Chancer crew all wearing offshore gear in anticipation of a wet trip to the Blaskets Photo: Bob Bateman
The first boats in the Matthews Centre sponsored event are expected home sometime on Saturday evening but as competitor Brian Carroll told Afloat in a podcast here, the fleet is expecting quite a lot of challenging upwind sailing today.
Cian McCarthy's Cinnamon Girl on starboard and Chris Power Smith's Aurelia on port after the start Photo: Bob Bateman
The Inishtearaght Race fleet emerge from Kinsale harbour with (from left) Sunfast 3300 Cinnamon Girl, Grand Soleil 40 Nieulargo, Elan 40 Chancer and Dublin Bay J/122 entry Aurelia to weather Photo: Matthias Hellstern
The breeze is on for (from left) Grand Soleil 40 Nieulargo, Sunfast 3300 Cinnamon Girl and Dublin Bay J/122 entry Aurelia to weather Photo: Matthias Hellstern
The Thuillier family have kindly allowed the oldest trophy in Kinsale YC to be presented as the line honours trophy for the race. The Thuillier Cup is 150 years old, having been originally presented by the Royal Enniskillen Fusiliers in 1871 and won by Michael Thuillier. The cup was presented to Kinsale YC by the Thuillier family to acknowledge the long tradition of yacht racing in Kinsale.
Noel Coleman's Oyster 37 Blue Oyster from Royal Cork YC on her way to the Blaskets Photo: Bob Bateman
The inaugural Inishtearaght Race fleet
