Displaying items by tag: Globe 580 Race

29th November 2021

Transat Sailor Jim Schofield Crosses Latitude of Nouadhibou in Mauritania in Globe 5.80 Race

After several days of calm weather that tested everybody’s nerves, the fleet has finally caught the trade winds. The four leading boats are currently leaving the Cabo Verde Islands in their wake while Jim Schofield (Ireland) in his Molly Claire, who took a more conservative start and missed the first weather system, is crossing the latitude of Nouadhibou in Mauritania.

Globe 580 Transat Race Director Lutz Kohne is relieved to see his sailors finally getting some wind! “After a week of patchy winds, we are happy to see that our old friend, the Azores High, settled in again this weekend, giving the guys steady trades and boat speeds above 5 knots. Being becalmed in the middle of the ocean is one of the significant mental challenges of solo sailing, and I am impressed how well the Globe 5.80 Transat skippers have sat it out and enjoyed the beautiful nature around them!"

With less than 2000 NM to go, the sailors have completed one-third of the voyage. Picture taken on the first leg start day in Lagos. Credit: G580T

Fleet finally catching trade winds after 12 days of patchy winds along the African coast. Sailors now sailing west in tropical weather and steady winds, leaving Cabo Verde and Jim Schofield (Ireland) with his Molly Claire behind.

The southern group of Etienne Messikommer (Switzerland) in his Numbatou and Michal Krysta (Czech Republic) in his Menawan have just passed Mindelo in Cabo Verde, which Michal chose to round south. Shadowed by the island for most of Sunday with less wind, he let Etienne increase the gap between them through better speed, but as always between those two, this is far from over!

Meanwhile, 100 nm north of them, Peter Kenyon (UK) whose Origami and Don McIntyre (Australia) whose Trekka are still battling it out on a parallel route on the same longitude. Don is thrilled to finally cross the 20° north latitude, enabling a more direct route towards Antigua.

With less than 2000 nm to go, the sailors have completed one-third of the voyage, and the most challenging part of it, with elusive winds and heavy traffic. They are all shirtless, in good spirits, with the boats in perfect condition for the last part of this inaugural 580 voyage from Lagos to Antigua.

You could feel their spirits were high through their tweets on Nov 26 ( DAY 9):

N°01 DON MCINTYRE (AUSTRALIA): great night give me wind i go fast give me blue i go happy give me warm i go naked give me trekka i go to antigua happy naked sailor
N°07 MICHAL KRYSTA (CZECH): Perfect wind condition today. Menawan is flying to south-west as fast as she can. Klárce hubana, zítrasivoláme ?.
N°88 ETIENNE MESSIKOMMER (SWITZERLAND): YO. flying fish all around and the tipical tropial heat fill with moister. yes in the tropics we are. best option naked live.
N°47 PETER KENYON (UK): Found my second flying fish of the journey in the corner of the cockpit this morning. Been watching some live ones do some huge leaps across the wake this pm.
Nº57 JIM SCHOFIELD (IRELAND) : Still moving! Spirits good.

Globe 580 founder and Transat competitor Don McIntyre is especially pleased with the boat, and he always compared this small boat journey with his 2010 Bounty Boat Expedition which with very little food and no toilet paper. And this time he has plenty.

Globe 580 founder and Transat competitor Don McIntyre is especially pleased with the boat, and his sailing time is giving him even more ideas for the class. “We are learning as we go but now have significant mileage in the fleet in wind conditions ranging from 0 to 50 knots with no damage.” Don said over the weekend, “The design is excellent, the boat is strong and can carry weight. This gives me several ideas about the future of the class for the less experienced or the more social sailors. Expect big news in Boot Dusseldorf!”

Severin Hummer will bring his race-ready 5.80 #98 on display on the McIntyre Adventure stand in Boot Dusseldorf. The 25-year-old from Switzerland decided not to participate in the 3000 nm leg after successfully completing the 600 nm qualifier, and will trailer his Shrimp back to continental Europe before taking her to Dusseldorf for the boat show from January 22 to 30. Picture Credit: Aïda Valceanu/ G580T

The McIntyre Adventure team will be participating in Boot Dusseldorf from January 22 to 30 and invites builders to come and see for themselves a race-ready, rigged Globe 580 boat exhibited on the stand. They will meet fellow builders and Transat 580 competitors and learn about the latest developments of this fast-growing fleet with more than 150 plans been sold and more than 50 currently being built.

If you are looking for a winter project and want to build your ocean capable racing yacht, visit www.classglobe580.com, and the builders’ blog page

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What is the Ilen?

The Ilen is the last of Ireland’s traditional wooden sailing ships.

Who designed the Ilen?

The Ilen was designed by Conor O’Brien, the first Irish man to circumnavigate the world.

Where does the name Ilen get her name?

Ilen is named for the West Cork River which flows to the sea at Baltimore, her home port.

Who built the Ilen?

The Ilen was built by Baltimore Sea Fisheries School, West Cork in 1926. Tom Moynihan was foreman.

What is Ilen built from?

Ilen's wood construction is of oak ribs and planks of larch.

What are the dimensions of the lIen?

As-built initially, she is 56 feet in length overall with a beam of 14 feet and a displacement of 45 tonnes.

How did the Ilen get from Baltimore to the Falkland Islands in 1926?

Conor O’Brien set sail in August 1926 with two Cadogan cousins from Cape Clear in West Cork, arriving at Port Stanley in January 1927 and handed it over to the new owners.

How much did the Ilen cost in 1926?

The Ilen was delivered to the Falkland Islands Company, in exchange for £1,500.

What roles has Ilen performed in her lifetime?

Ilen served for over 70 years as a cargo ship and a ferry in the Falkland Islands, enduring and enjoying the Roaring Forties, the Furious Fifties, and Screaming Sixties. She stayed in service until the early 1990s.

Who from Ireland rediscovered the Ilen in the Falkland Islands?

Limerick sailor Gary McMahon and his team located Ilen. MacMahon started looking for her in 1996 and went out to the Falklands and struck a deal with the owner to bring her back to Ireland.

What condition was Ilen in when she was found in the Falkland Islands?

After a lifetime of hard work in the Falklands, Ilen required a ground-up rebuild.

How did the Ilen come back to Ireland?

A Russian cargo ship transported her back on a 12,000-mile trip from the Southern Oceans to Dublin. The Ilen was discharged at the Port of Dublin 1997, after an absence from Ireland of 70 years.

Who restored the Ilen?

It was a collaboration between the Ilen Project in Limerick and Hegarty’s Boatyard in Old Court, near Skibbereen. Much of the heavy lifting, of frames, planking, deadwood & backbone, knees, floors, shelves and stringers, deck beams, and carlins, was done in Hegarty’s. The generally lighter work of preparing sole, bulkheads, deck‐houses fixed furniture, fixtures & fittings, deck fittings, machinery, systems, tanks, spar making and rigging is being done at the Ilen boat building school in Limerick.

How long did it take to restore Ilen?

Ten years. The boat was much the worse for wear when it returned to West Cork in May 1998, and it remained dormant for ten years before the start of a decade-long restoration.

What is the role of the Ilen today?

Ilen now serves as a community floating classroom and cargo vessel – visiting 23 ports in 2019 and making a transatlantic crossing to Greenland as part of a relationship-building project to link youth in Limerick City with youth in Nuuk, west Greenland.