Antoine Magre’s Palanad 4 has taken the projected IRC Overall lead in the RORC Round Britain and Ireland Race as Johnny Vincent’s Volvo 70 Pace powers south towards Cowes and monohull line honours.
By 1100 BST on Saturday (15 August), the seventh day of the 1,805-nautical-mile race, six boats had rounded Muckle Flugga, the most northerly point on the course.
Pace, with Ireland's Tom McWilliam and Johnny Carroll on board, had 204 miles remaining and was expected to finish in the early hours of Sunday morning. Behind her, Jens Kellinghusen’s Ker 56 Varuna 6 and Magre’s Mach 50 Palanad 4 were also heading south, followed by the three leading Class40s — Pierre LeBoucher’s Penfret, Jon Tyrrel’s Gambit and Greg Leonard’s Swift.
Pace Stretches Away on the Water
The gap at the front of the IRC fleet widened significantly after Bull Rock. Pace rounded with Varuna 6 one hour and 34 minutes behind, while Palanad 4 was five hours and 35 minutes astern.
By St Kilda, Pace had extended her advantage to seven hours and 40 minutes over Varuna 6 and 12 hours and 45 minutes over Palanad 4. The Volvo 70 then accelerated towards Muckle Flugga, with Pace boat captain Anthony Haines describing conditions as “25 knots of boat speed, wet, noisy and physical”.
Setting the pace: Johnny Vincent’s Volvo 70 Pace powers south towards Cowes with Monohull Line Honours in sight after leading the fleet around Muckle Flugga. Photo: Rick Tomlinson
Pace covered the sector from St Kilda in just over 18 hours, increasing her advantage over Varuna 6 to almost 18 hours.
Palanad 4, however, was faster than Varuna 6 on the same leg and recovered almost an hour and a half. At Muckle Flugga, Varuna 6 remained second on the water, but her advantage over Palanad 4 had been reduced to three hours and 36 minutes.
Palanad 4 Takes Projected IRC Lead
While Pace remains firmly in control on the water, IRC corrected time determines the overall winner.
At Muckle Flugga, Pace retained the advantage, but the latest VMG-based projections at 1100 BST on Saturday put Palanad 4 approximately six hours and eight minutes ahead of Pace for IRC Overall. Varuna 6 was projected about 10 hours behind Pace, placing her third among the IRC Zero leaders.
The projections remain provisional, not final results. Pace has little more than 200 miles to sail, while Palanad 4 and Varuna 6 face considerably more racing and potentially different weather and tidal conditions before reaching Cowes.
The overall winner could also emerge from further down the fleet.
Pata Negra Leads IRC One
Sam and Andrew Hall’s Lombard 46 Pata Negra leads the projected IRC One standings and remains in contention for a strong IRC Overall result.
Class act: Sam and Andrew Hall’s Lombard 46 Pata Negra leads the projected IRC One standings as the Round Britain and Ireland marathon continues. Photo: Rick Tomlinson
Pata Negra holds a substantial advantage over the double-handed JPK 1180 Frida, with Nick Edmonds’ J/45 Stickleback third. Espresso Martini Too and Xantho follow in the class standings.
The Pata Negra crew has already carried out sail repairs at sea, but has managed to minimise the resulting losses. Before the start, Sam Hall said the priority was to “finish in one piece, both crew and boat”. With hundreds of miles still to race, that approach remains particularly relevant.
Just Minutes Separate IRC Two Leaders
The closest corrected-time contest is developing in IRC Two.
The double-handed Sky Business – GameOn, sailed by Ian Hoddle and Willow Bland, heads the latest projection, with Bellino only 33 minutes behind. Simon Bamford and Zeb Fellows aboard Kestrel are another one hour and 23 minutes back, while Mzungu!, RORC Griffin and Tigris remain firmly in contention.
Home waters: Maggie Adamson aboard Gavin Howe’s Sun Fast 3600 Tigris as the double-handed entry rounds the Hebrides, Adamson’s home waters, during the 1,805-mile race. Photo: Tigris
Only a handful of hours separate the top six after almost a week at sea. Hoddle described the contest earlier in the race as “very close racing since the start”, and GameOn and Bellino are also among the strongest challengers to the IRC Zero boats for a high overall placing.
Two-Handed Battle Remains Wide Open
Sky Business – GameOn also leads the IRC Two-Handed division, with Bamford and Fellows aboard Kestrel less than two hours behind on the latest projection. Mzungu!, sailed by Sam White and Nathan Steffenoni, lies third, while Gavin Howe and Maggie Adamson aboard Tigris hold fourth.
For Adamson, who comes from the Hebrides, the passage through her home waters added particular significance to the race. Frida, raced by Tim Behrendt and Andreas Buchheim, and Benjamin Grosman and Klaus Rasmussen’s Ronin are also in the division.
Before the start, Hoddle predicted an “incredibly intense 1,800-mile match race”. More than halfway around Britain and Ireland, the competition remains exceptionally tight.
Jetpack Holds IRC Three Advantage
Mark Brown’s JPK 1010 Jetpack leads IRC Three, with Zanzibar keeping up the pressure. The Swan 44 Astrid is third, followed by Richard and Emma Breese’s double-handed J/105 Mojo, with Snifix Dry and AJ Wanderlust completing the leading six.
Pressure on: Sun Fast 3200 Zanzibar keeps up the challenge to IRC Three leader Jetpack as the smaller boats face a substantial distance still to race. Photo: Rick Tomlinson
The smaller boats still have a substantial distance to cover, leaving considerable scope for the corrected-time standings to change. After Mojo became trapped in light winds, Richard Breese summed up the frustration: “If you want to find no wind, just follow our track.”
Class40 Trio Chase Race Record
Immediately behind the three leading IRC Zero boats are the remaining Class40s, which have all rounded Muckle Flugga. Penfret leads Gambit and Swift as the trio race south. Unlike the IRC divisions, Class40 positions are decided on elapsed time, making every minute gained or lost decisive.
There is also a race record at stake. The Class40 benchmark of eight days, four hours, 14 minutes and 49 seconds was established by Phil Sharp’s Imerys Clean Energy in 2018. To break it, the leading Class40 must reach Cowes before approximately 1744 BST on Monday (17 August). With Penfret, Gambit and Swift heading south through the North Sea, all three remain ahead of record pace.
Two Boats Retire
There have been two retirements from the race. Class40 Tjoba and Graeme Lewis’s maxi Venomous have withdrawn with boat issues. All crew are reported safe and well. For the remaining fleet, the marathon continues.
Pace is closing rapidly on Cowes and is expected to deliver the first monohull finish early on Sunday, but line honours will settle only one element of the race.
Palanad 4 now leads the projected IRC Overall contest, Pata Negra heads IRC One, and GameOn and Bellino are separated by minutes in IRC Two. Jetpack remains under pressure in IRC Three, while three Class40s are racing south with both division victory and a race record at stake.
There is still plenty to play for before the RORC Round Britain and Ireland Race is decided.
