With the four year pandemic-imposed gap since the previous edition in 2018, today’s restoration of the biennial SSE Renewables Round Ireland Race from Wicklow has been attracting an unprecedented amount of countdown attention and discussion. There has been an across-the-board shooting of the breeze on just about every possible aspect of this great race.

But good people, do please be careful. There has been so much shooting of the breeze that we may have managed to kill it stone dead. Or at least we’ve wounded it so much that although today’s start off the Wicklow pierheads may get away at 1.0pm with a fair wind of sorts – and a generous ebb tide to sweep the fleet into the wide blue yonder and welcome invisibility beyond Wicklow Head – by the time they’re off the Wexford coast, there might be local calms.

This could introduce some crews to the many delights of kedging to simply stay in the one place when the tide turns foul. Kedging is such fun, particularly if you’re in deep water and have to use every bit of line in the boat to get the necessary length for putting the anchor on the seabed. And some anchors need more line than others. In our own mad-keen offshore racing days, we carried a fancy bit of kit called a Fortress anchor, a sort of Danforth with enormous seabed-gripping wings.

But it was made of aluminium, for we were weight-obsessed. So when you chucked the Fortress over the bow as the boat started to make negative SOG, the Fortress weaved elegantly about like a cruising manta ray, and took its own leisurely time before finally digging in somewhere in the inky depths and eventually stopping the sternward progress.

It now seems like a lifetime ago. Tracks recorded in the last Round Ireland in 2018 – it’s possible this year’s race will also have windward work along the west coast.

It’s an exercise which needs a complete mental re-set when you’ve headed off to do some offshore race in anticipation of rugged sailing, and instead find yourself gliding along with everyone in tip-toe movement style. In these circumstances when tide is not a factor, there is only one item of Holy Writ. Never Lose Steerage Way. Have someone aloft if needs be to search out every little ruffle of wind, and if necessary be prepared to re-trace your steps in order to stay in a usable zephyr. But if you lose steerage way it takes so long to get going again - even when a faint air does arrives - that you’re rather more thoroughly stuffed than a Christmas turkey. And please don’t ask how you do this wind-chasing at night……..

Round Ireland Line Honours and CT Winners since 1980.

POSSIBLY WINDLESS MONDAY

Looking beyond this (Saturday) afternoon’s expectations, although the wind will struggle on from various directions through Sunday, by Monday it may be gasping to survive in any significant strength all round the Irish coast, It will be difficult to imagine good strong wind sailing, yet right now (Saturday morning) the 200-strong fleet in the biennial Newport-Bermuda Race on the other side of the Atlantic have all the wind they want, while up in Iceland the Vendee Arctique fleet racing round Iceland have been told to take a break, as winds of 50 knots-plus are blowing off the north coast, and being dense Arctic air, that’s extremely intense boat-damaging pressure.

Yet down here off Ireland and in adjacent waters, the breezes are thin, with the two leader in the RWYC Round Britain and Ireland Race (they were in Galway a fortnight ago) struggling to finish in Plymouth by lunchtime today – they’re Andy Fennell’s 39ft Shuttleworth tri Morpheus and Simon Baker’s Dazcat 46 Hissy Fit.

SOME EXTRA FOOD?

However, at least they’re looking at the finish of their race, even if the tail-enders in this eccentric three-stopovers event are still in Scottish waters. But the boats making the final adjustments this morning for the round Ireland will be thinking of time to the finish, and wondering if a bit of extra food might be a good idea.

The new First 50 Checkmate XX (Nigel Biggs & Dave Cullen) racing at Wave Regatta in a good breeze earlier this month. It’s a moot point if the Round Ireland fleet will experience wind of this strength in the 2022 race. Checkmate XX was withdrawn on the eve of the Wicklow race due to a positive COVID test  Photo: Annraoi Blaney

It looks as though 44-47 boats will come to the line, as the global travel chaos appears to have spread to the yacht delivery ships criss-crossing the Atlantic. This has banjaxed the chances of an appearance by Adrian Lee’s Swan 60 Lee Overlay Partners, whose normally trouble-free Transatlantic transportation has run late.

Round Ireland Yacht Race 2022 Entries 

1. More Mischief, entered by: Grzegorz Kalinecki, boat type: First 310, Length 9.15, Club: ISA
2. Cavatina Ian Hickey Granada 38 11.60, Royal Cork Yacht Club
3. Aurelia Chris Power Smith, J122, 12.20 RSGYC/RORC
4. Prime Suspect Keith Miller Mills 36 10.97 Kilmore Quay BC
5. Mojo Kieron Blamey J105 10.51 Isle of Man Yacht Club
6. Blue Oyster Noel Coleman Oyster 37 11.30 Royal Cork Yacht Club
7.  Hiro Maru Hiroshi Nakajima Sparkman & Stephens 15.05 Stamford Yacht Club
8. Finally Paul Kitteringham Elan 350 10.50 Pwllheli Sailing Club
9. Influence Andrea Fornaro VPLP Class 40 12.40
10. SL ENERGIES Groupe FASTWAVE Laurent Charmy JBOAT J111 11.15
11. Green Dragon Enda O’Coineen / Conor Ferguson VOR70 21.50 Galway Bay Sailing Club / Royal Irish Yacht Club
12. Samatom Robert Rendell GS44R 14.90 Howth YC
13. Peregrine Jasper Golyer Pogo Class 40 12.10 MYC
14. Pyxis Kirsteen Donaldson X332 10.06 RORC
15. Arthur Jim Bennett Beneteau First 40 12.24 RORC
16. Sherkin Irish Offshore Sailing David Hanks Sunfast 37 11.40 RIYC Dun Laoghaire
17. Indian Simon Knowles J109 10.9 Howth YC
18. YOYO Graham Curran Sunfast 3600 10.75 Royal St. George
19. Rockabill VI Paul O’Higgins JPK 10.80 10.84 Royal Irish Yacht Club
20. State O Chassis Mike Murphy Sigma 38 11.55 Royal Irish Yacht Club
21. Artful DodJer Finbarr O’Regan J Boats 10.75 Kinsale Yacht Club
22. Ca Va Tony Rayer Pogo 12.50 12.19 Cardiff Bay Yacht Club
23. Wild Pilgrim Daniel Jones Sunfast 3300 9.99 RORC
24. Telefonica Black Lance Shepherd Volvo 70 21.50 RORC
25. Shindig A. Kingston Swan 40 S&S 12.80 Kinsale
26. Black Magic Barry O Donovan Beneteau 13.65 Waterford Harbour Sailing Club/Howth Yacht Club
27. Nieulargo Denis&Annamarie Murphy Grand Soleil 40 B+C 12.12 Royal Cork Yacht Club
28. Cinnamon Girl Cian Mc Carthy Sunfast 3300 9.99 Kinsale Yacht Club
29. L’ESPRIT D’EQUIPE Lionel Regnier Briand 17.60 Les Sables D’Olonne
30. Fuji Ari Känsäkoski OCD40 12.19 RORC/Port Chantereyne Cherbourg
31. Lynx Wild West Sailing Cian Mulee Reflex38 11.52 SYC
32. Fujitsu Donal Ryan Sunfast 3600 10.80 RORC 
33. Snapshot Michael and Richard Evans J99 9.94 HYC
34. Asgard Ross Farrow Sunfast 3300 9.99 Hamble
35. KUKA3 Franco Niggeler Cookson 15.20 St. Moritz Sailing Club
36. Luzern eComm U25 Lorcan Tighe Figaro 3 10.89 RIYC
37. Jezebel Cris Miles J111 11.0 Conwy
38. InoXXX James Neville HH42 12.60 RORC
39. Bellino Rob Craigie Sunfast 3600 10.80 RORC, Hamble
40. Darkwood Michael Boyd J121 12.19 Royal Irish Yacht Club
41. Kite Greg Leonard 12.00 RORC
42. Jackknife Andrew Hall Rod Johnstone 12.50
43. Pen Duick VI Marie TABARLY André Mauric 22.25 Lorient
44. Bijou Ian Morton Pogo 30 9.15 Port Bannatyne

That’s the trouble with the modern world. It’s too rigidly set in pre-ordained schedules. Things were a bit more rough and ready in the old days. Back in 1977, Otto Glaser of Howth changed from his McGruer 47 Tritsch-Tratsch II to the Frers 47 Red Rock, which happened to be in Argentina. Not to worry. He arranged her Transatlantic shipment from Buenos Aires as deck cargo on a general freight ship. But then a marathon dock strike in England meant that Red Rock would stay on the ship. Not to worry. Otto got onto the ship’s captain, persuaded him to divert into the Solent, then further persuaded him to activate his ancient derricks to offload Red Rock – cradle and all – off Cowes, where she was taken in tow by Groves & Guttridge’s yard launch and towed slowly into their marina where the whole lot was lifted out again, the mast was stepped, and racing started almost immediately, leading in time to the highlight of Red Rick being the best-placed Irish boat in the Fastnet Race.

KEY CREW PEOPLE MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER

One can’t see that being done nowadays, ’Ealf ’n Safety would have a fit, so boats miss races. But of the fleet still remaining in the Round Ireland race, perhaps all bets are off, for despite the popularity of recent prediction here by Maritime Mystic Meg, the weather pattern is just all over the place, and it’s going to be the crews as much as the boats which have the stamina to see this thing through to individual success.

Lorcan Tighe of Dun Laoghaire, Afloat.ie “Sailor of the Month” for September 2017, will be the youngest skipper in the 2022 Round Ireland Race.

This puts further pressure in young Lorcan Tighe, our Sailor of the Month in September 2017 after the Irish National Sailing School’s J/109 had returned from the Fastnet Race garlanded with awards. The youngest skipper in the Round Ireland, Lorcan is racing the Figaro 3 Lucern. This seems to be the only boat in the race with foils, which in light weather is a very mixed blessing, but it’s the youth factor which gives the extra interest here.

Another factor is previous success, and who is sailing where. Back in 2014, the overall winner was the Scottish-owned Sydney 36 Tanit, with Richie Fearon of Lough Swilly as navigator. Despite having flu to such an extent that he was of his head with anti-biotics throughout the race, Richie persuaded his shipmates to hold to the middle of the Irish Sea in the final stage, and Tanit emerged from the leading bunch to win overall.

Those formidable Fearon talents are being transferred aboard Robert Rendell’s already talent-laden Grand Soleil 44 Samatom (HYC) today (with four-time Olympian Mark Mansfield onboard), and the longer the race in terms of time, the more important they become.

The strong Howth contingent also sees Shane Hughes of North Sails shipping aboard Mike Evans’ notably potent J/99 Snapshot, while his work colleague Maurice the Prof O’Connell is with the Sunfast 3600 YoYo (Brendan Coghlan RStGYC) with Graham Curran.

In times past in a slow race with calms, it was always reckoned that the lowest-rated boats would come out tops. But these days while the heftier boats do indeed come a stop in what seems like total calm, there’s a new generation of ultra-slippy boats which seems to generate their own private breeze, and the Fast 40+ class based in Cowes have showing the way.

What’s to stop her? The HH 42 is designed and built for speed and racing success.

RORC Commodore James Neville with his Judel-Vrolik HH42 InoXXX (it sounds like a decidedly rough real ale best consumed with a dash of lime) has been successfully pushing the offshore boundaries with this. And when we look at the total package, there seems every likelihood that InoXXX has what it takes to win. The profile is remarkable, while she has one of those extraordinarily effective hulls which lose about half their wetted area just by being heeled 15 degrees.

So all the logic points to InoXXX success. But this is Ireland. Logic is not necessarily our strong suit. So if anyone happens to beat InoXXX overall in the SSE Renewables Round Ireland Race 2022, it will be a mighty victory.

(Above and below) Wicklow Harbour will be the focal point of sailing in Ireland today

Competitors berthed in Wicklow on the eve of the 21st race Photo: Bob Bateman