#rorcsrbi – Before the 2014 Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race, a two-handed team had never completed the 1800-mile course. However three teams from Ireland, Britain and Germany have now accomplished that magnificent achievement. Racing Two Handed around Britain and Ireland requires all-round skill, great seamanship and tenacity. Most of the time, the Two Handed pair are alone on deck. Whilst a team mate sleeps, it can be a lonely existence on deck and the lack of sleep and the effects of exposure to the harshest of conditions is bound to take its toll on both yacht and sailor.

Liam Coyne's First 36.7, Lula Belle with Brian Flahive as crew, finished the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race at 11:40:54 on Saturday 23 August in an elapsed time of 12 days 02 hours 40 minutes 54 seconds. The duo won the Two Handed Class and the combined IRC 3 and IRC 4 Class. Listen to Afloat's finish line podcasts and Liam's thoughts on the finishing here.

Five days ago, the Irish First 36.7, Lula Belle with Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive racing Two Handed was off Dingle on the West Coast of Ireland. Liam reported that they had lost the use of their engine. With 500 miles still to go, Lula Belle had no means of generating electricity and were considering retiring from the race. The team had shredded two of three spinnakers and damaged their mainsail, but they never gave up:

"We had serious doubts that we could finish this race," admitted Liam dockside. "When the engine went, we didn't think there was much more that could go wrong, but at the end of the day, this race is an endurance test for yourself and the boat; that is what it is all about. Brian and myself have done two Fastnets and two Round Irelands but there is no comparison. This race is the hardest we have ever done. We took a hammering for a couple of days but you are 12 days at it, battling for two hours at the wheel, taking two hours rest and then you're back at it again. To rest when you are off watch, you have to put complete trust in one another and myself and Brian have 100% confidence in each other."

Lula Belle, Irish Two-Handed team, Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive spray their celebratory champagne - Patrick Eden/RORC

Brian Flahive, first mate on Lula Belle was delighted to hear that fellow Irishman, Damian Foxall - outright record breaker on MOD 70, Musandam-Oman Sail - had commented on Lula Belle's efforts: "Fair play to Liam and Brian - that's hard core and their efforts show the true spirit of two handed racing. Liam and Brian have normal jobs but their achievement is just as great as the professionals and in many respects, the sacrifices they have had to make puts their achievement even higher. I wish them huge congratulations on finishing the race and their magnificent result."

"Damian Foxall is a big idol to us, someone we look up to and it is really nice to get that compliment from him. There were more than a few memorable moments in this race, but when the engine was gone, we lost everything, even our windex was jammed. The only way to tell the wind direction and speed was the Sevenstar battle flag on the backstay! However we said to each other people have gone a lot further with nothing, so we kept going. We made up some nav-lights with a head torch and a lens over it and two torches taped onto the transom and a head torch each and that was it. We were cautious around the Scilly Isles because we had no electronic navigation, just the chart and a compass. Liam and myself would like to thank the Harbour Master at Cowes for giving us a hand to get to the mooring after we finished and also to Rare, for cheering us over the finish line. Right now, we have a long jobs list, but top of it is definitely to eat a good steak and chips."

Ian Hoddle's British Figaro II, Rare with crew Conrad Manning completed the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race just after 0900 BST on Saturday 23 August 2014, taking Line Honours for the Two Handed Class after almost exactly 12 days at sea (elapsed time: 12 days 0 hours 18 minutes 09 seconds). No Two Handed team has ever completed the race before and with a water-line length of just 32 feet, Rare is also the smallest yacht to ever complete the race.

Ian Hoddle has been raising money for CLIC Sargent all season. The charity has been providing care for his five year old nephew James, who was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour last January. The plight of his young nephew, bravely fighting the disease, has been a big influence on his determination to finish the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race.

As Ian Hoddle stepped ashore with adrenalin coursing through his veins, he was very emotional about the cause that had kept Rare on the race track:

"We had taken photos of James on the boat and the delay to the start meant we could take them up to him in the hospital, which was great. During the race we found out that he had been released from hospital and was going home, which was great to hear. When that first storm hit and started to pull bits off the boat, it got a bit scary but I was remembering why I was out there. It was a tough time. I remember being in the teeth of a gale at 4 o'clock in the morning with just the storm jib up, falling asleep on the helm, but I was continually reminding myself about James and what he was going through to keep us going. I am a bit emotional at the moment," said Ian with the tears welling up. "Apart from one spat, myself and Conrad have become better friends than when we started and considering we have been on a 32 ft boat for 12 days, we have done well to keep each other going the whole time. We lost the autopilot days ago and we have sailed the last 900 miles hand steering the boat. It was a bloody hard race."

Ian's crew, Conrad Manning counts ballroom dancing and ironman competitions amongst his interests. "When people hear that I am racing on a pink boat and into ballroom dancing, they think I have completely lost my mind, which I probably have, but dancing is a great way to chill out," commented Conrad. "I love the Viennese Waltz but the last 12 days have been more like a jive and a jitterbug and a bit of everything thrown in. I have the Welsh Ironman in about three weeks time and I'm aiming for 12 hours which is a bit shorter than 12 days!"

Ian Hoddle and Conrad Manning have raised over £6,000 for CLIC Sargent. If you would like to donate to their cause: https://www.justgiving.com/Rare/

Werner Landwehr's Figaro II, Dessert D'Alcyone crossed the finish line of the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race shortly after midday on Sunday 24 August 2014, completing the race in an elapsed time of 13 days 03 hours 40 minutes 57 seconds, claiming third place in the Two Handed Class.

Werner comes from Helgoland and is 71 years of age: "In four years, we will start this race again and I hope we will be better," commented Werner. "I have taken part in many races, The Fastnet, Round Skagen and many more, but this was the hardest race of them all. We are very tired now but we are happy to have finished the race and we are looking forward to a cold beer.

"We lost all electrical power and decided to retire and sailed 120 miles back towards Edinburgh, but as we arrived there, we gave the battery one more try and it worked! We had to sail 240 miles to get back into the race and there was no way we could make that up. When we were rounding Muckle Flugga it was very cold with a lot of wind, maybe 45 knots and gusting more and the waves were very big."

With Dessert D'Alcyone's finish, the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race yachts are now accounted for, 18 yachts finished the course. Since the race has been run as a non-stop Round Britain and Ireland course, less than 100 yachts have managed this magnificent achievement.

#rorcsrbi – Irish duo Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive continue their two–handed lead in the Round Britain and Ireland Race and send Afloat readers this morning update off the Scilly Isles, giving them under 300 miles to go and an expected finish sometime tomorrow...  'Day 10 (I think), Winds filled in quicker at Mizen head than we expected. Thank god we still have the A5 kite and she was great today. With no electronics on board we don't know speeds , but we were flying. We expected Rare to rocket past us today so we were going fast to hold him off. We are now 10 nm from the Scilly's and we took it down as it was getting to hard to hold. Lucky we decided to as there were two more areas needed sowing. Which our "McGeever" on board Brian duly did. Handy to have such a multitasker on board. We hope when we round the next Mark we might get one more spin out of the A 5. It's literally hanging on by a tread. 

On a lighter side the other night we had a show to remember. As anyone who sails knows there is an Algae in the water which when disturbed by the boats wake causes it to light up. On a really frustrating watch where the sky was pure black it was almost impossible to helm.

At night we usually pick a cloud or star to follow. A night with black clouds and little wind is exhausting. I was nearly in tears with frustration when the dolphins showed up. We see them every day but this night I presume it was the black sky but they were lit up white (from the Algae) and not only were they illuminated they left a 20' trail of illuminated water after them. 

It looked like the Red Arrows doing synchronized swimming. For 30 minutes I forgot about the Boat went and sat at the mast and watched the show of a lifetime. All day we see them break water but here you could see them underwater darting here and there. Sometimes 3 abreast going left, right left right over and over in perfect harmony leaving the illuminated trails in their wakes. It was an unbelievable sight. Nice of them to cheer a sailor up on a tough night.

#rorcsrbi – The Plucky National Yacht Club duo that have experienced major gear failure in the last 48 hours are still leading IRC Four and the Two-Handed Class of the Round Britain and Ireland Race with 360 miles to go. Liam Coyne, racing two-handed with Brian Flahive on First 36.7, Lula Belle, is making good speed across the Celtic Sea.

Werner Landwehr's Figaro II, Dessert D'Alcyone, was 35 miles from the Fastnet Rock at 0900 BST, having covered 140 miles in the last 24 hours. Ian Hoddle's Figaro II, Rare, have used their Code Zero to good effect covering 146 miles in the last 24 hours, more than any of the six other yachts still racing. Rare's Conrad Manning reports that the pink hull seems to be attracting a number of visitors as he explained by text message. "More dolphins and these ones have kids too!".

Six yachts are still racing in the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race and after light winds slowed their progress yesterday (Wednesday) morning, the wind picked up overnight much to the delight of the remaining competitors. British Soldier and Relentless on Jellyfish are having a tremendous battle in IRC Two and the three remaining Two-Handed teams are making great progress.

Wednesday afternoon JV 53, Bank von Bremen, skippered by Carol Smolawa and crewed by members of the SKWB (Segelkameradschaft das Wappen von Bremen), crossed the finish line of the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race completing the race in under 12 days to claim third position in IRC Zero.

"We had a bit of everything thrown at us in the race, the start was fantastic, downwind through the Solent and east out through the Straits of Dover but it was very tough up the North Sea and all the way around to St.Kilda on the west coast of Scotland," commented Carol Smolawa. "We had to tack against heavy winds and we were very happy when we passed the Shetlands and thought, good, we can now go downwind; but the low pressure just followed us all the time.

"I will remember the gale in the west and we had so many different situations to deal with and such high speeds. We had a daily distance of around 240 miles a day and that's incredible! The most special moment was when we had to set the storm jib. A safety warning was coming in from the Coastguard with Gale force 10 expected and we were prepared when the huge waves came crashing onto the boat. Our boat was strong and our crew made it.

"Finishing the race and coming back to Cowes is such a great feeling. We made it and it was such an amazing experience. It was the first time the SKWB Club and myself, plus all the young sailors on board, have done this race. Many years ago I saw the boats preparing for the Round Britain and Ireland Race and I thought 'I will do that one day'. It was so great and such an honour to do this race.

"We wrote to our Club saying that we have 11 sets of foulweather clothing and boots for sale at the end of this race! However, in a couple of days we will have changed our minds and you might see us in four years time. The RORC is such a great organisation and thank you all for such a great race, with great moments for us."

At 0900 BST Hanse 531, Saga, skippered by Peter Hopps, was 50 miles from the Scilly Isles having covered over 100 miles in the last 24 hours. Saga is expected to finish the race in the early hours of Saturday morning to claim first place in IRC One.

In IRC Two J/122, Relentless on Jellyfish, skippered by James George, had an excellent night. Gybing north of the rhumb line, Relentless on Jellyfish made a massive gain over the Army Sailing Association's J/111, British Soldier. At dawn this morning, Relentless on Jellyfish was the first yacht, still racing to pass the Scilly Isles. Over the last 24 hours, Relentless on Jellyfish has gained 26 miles on their rivals to lead the six yachts still racing.

"We can see British Soldier's kite behind us for the first time and we are now in 10 knots of wind planning on how to tackle the headlands along the south coast of England," commented James George. "We are determined to take line honours for the class, morale is good but it's tense on board, we know we have a real fight on our hands with British Soldier. It has been one hell of a race and we want to finish on a high, we are just trying sail fast and hang on to this lead."

British Soldier had to put an injured crewman ashore in the early part of the race. With just five on board, their watch system has had to change, resulting in far less rest and everybody on deck for every manoeuvre, regardless of watch:

"When we saw them (Relentless on Jellyfish) in front of us this morning it was a bit of a blow," commented Phil Caswell, British Soldier's skipper. "We were absolutely gutted but we are over that now and we have eyes on them, working as hard as possible to pass them. We know we have a quick boat downwind and we are determined."

#rorcsrbi – Dublin offshore two handers Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive are heading for the finish line of the Round Britain & Ireland Race on Saturday even though they have had a series of gear failures over the last 72 hours. Now – on day 10 – their engine, used to power batteries, will not start. Coyne sent this latest update to Afloat.ie this morning:

"When we thought there was nothing else left to fail the engine now will not start. This will probably be last mail from race. We are conserving all power to get us home. We are still not giving up and we have wind, a compass and charts so we can still finish. We now have 435 nm approx left and we feel we can safely cover that. We will inform you if there are any other developments"

Meanwhile, Swish, skippered by Canadian Roderick Knowles, crossed the finish line of the 2014 Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race off the Royal Yacht Squadron, Cowes at 04.06.49 BST on Wednesday 20th August 2014 with an elapsed time of 8 days, 19 hours, 06 minutes and 49 seconds. Subject to ratification by the World Speed Sailing Record Council, this breaks the previous World Record for Monohulls 40 feet and less, set by Concise 2 in 2010, by over 18 hours.

This will be the fifth World Record broken during the 2014 Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club.

Yesterday afternoon Custom JV52, Haspa Hamburg, finished the race to claim second in IRC Zero.

At 0900 BST on Day 10 JV53 Bank von Bremen, skippered by Carol Smolawa, is just 18 miles from the finish and is expected to be the 12th yacht to finish the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race and claim third place in IRC Zero. In IRC One Hanse 53, Saga, skippered by Peter Hopps, passed the Fastnet Rock in the early hours of Wednesday morning 390 miles from the finish.

In IRC Two there is a tremendous battle between J/122, Relentless on Jellyfish, skippered by James George, and J/111, British Soldier, skippered by Phil Caswell. Relentless on Jellyfish is sixteen miles behind the Army Sailing Association's British Soldier but leads on handicap by just 50 minutes.

The Irish Two-Handed team, Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive racing First 36.7, Lula Belle, spoke with the RORC Media Team as they approached the Irish Coast on Tuesday evening. "We are just off County Mayo, were I was born," said Liam Coyne. "All is well on board but we only have the A5 kite left, the other two are trashed and the mainsheet track has come away from the deck but it is nothing a bit of Irish engineering couldn't solve, I just hope it holds out. We are determined to finish this race but being so close to home makes us really want to get on with it."

The British Two-Handed team, Ian Hoddle and Conrad Manning racing Figaro II, Rare, have increased their lead over the German Figaro team, Dessert D'Alcyone, skippered by Werner Landwehr with crew Heiner Eilers. Rare is now 45 miles ahead, a gain of 25 miles over the last 24 hours.

#rorcsrbi – After nine days at sea and 500 miles still to sail, Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive are struggling to finish the 1800–mile Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race this Saturday in Cowes. Two spinnakers gone, the mainsheet track shattered, Coyne asks 'what next?' from the deck of two-handed Irish First 36.7 Lulabelle, currently off the West Coast of Ireland. 

We have been to far from shore over the last few days communications have not been possible.
Days 4 and 5 were just a hard slog against the tides and wind to get to the Shetlands but we finally got there. We rounded Muckle Flugga but knew there was a rough weather system coming from west. We had to decide to take shelter or head out. We decided to head west and we would be able to cross on southerly winds to the centre then head south on the north westerly winds the other side.
This would cost us a lot more time but it would be safer. Lula Belle 2 handed does not perform well up wind. With the lack of weight we get blown cross ways in the water.
We went west and it was a hard slog as our southerly winds were more south west and with wind it was very difficult to keep it west and not north.
Finally a day later and the winds died. We knew we were in the eye of it. On the way the Shetland Coastguard radio had moved from force 8 to force 9 and then warned as system had passed Faeroe Islands the winds were severe storm force 10. We were very apprehensive. We readied the boat with 3 reefs and storm sail and sat and waited. Two hours later for shift change Brian came up and asked for a report. I said it's like been stood up for a date. Your sitting here with all your gear and your date has not arrived. Two hours later when the storm hit Brian said, 'your date has arrived' and 'she's nasty'.
It was a nasty storm. I don't know if going west cost time but I was so glad we were meeting this from the north and not coming sideways to this storm. As we still have no wind instruments from day two we don't know how strong the winds were but the waves were enormous. There were massive waves from the north. These were not to bad as we could surf these. The small waves from the west were the dangerous ones. As they hit the stern of the boat they would cause her to turn to wind to round up. All we could do was to ride it out. Later the northerly waves got quite scary as they started to break behind us and water would fill the cockpit and on occasions in the wash boards. These were scary. They came in sets of 3 every 20 minutes.
Then to make things worse, waves from the east started. These were far more dangerous, as the west waves only caused round ups, these east ones caused us to accidentally gybe. And as anyone knows an accidental gybe is dangerous but in force 10 it's really not nice.

"An accidental gybe is dangerous but in a Force 10 it's really not nice..."

We had to turn the Boat more to weather and suffer the round ups as this was the safest option. We don't know the wind strength but we were doing 16–knots boat speed at one point with only a 3 reefed main and no head sail. We battled this for 12 hours. When it finally subsided. This was a night to remember but we were glad it was over.
We arrived at sunrise to the majestic sight of the Sun rising over St Kilda. The wind was about 20 and we had reached the half way point. We have no idea how we are doing in the race but now we have the A5 up and we are pushing for the home county of Mayo and Belmullet. With the speeds we are doing we should be there by Tuesday morning about 5am after 8 days. Sailing now with the kite was exciting but hard work. When your 2 hour shift finishes your arms feel like they are going to fall off your shoulders.
Then Monday night day 8 disaster strikes. Due to wind shifts we were back to white sails only and then the wind died. This was expected and really we needed to go to kites. But the night was so black we did not really chance flying the kites.
We have no wind instruments. And normally we would pick a cloud, star or something to point at but the sky is only black. No reference point. Very unstable ways to fly a kite. We took the decision at 2 am leave it so with main only we proceeded. By 4 am the sky had broked a little so we went for a hoist. Hoisted the brand new A2 for Brian to say there's a rip in that and there was. No sooner had he said those words than it completely shredded. Not one spin on the new kite.

Liam Coyne at the pre–race press conference – Photo: Paul Wyeth/RORC

We then put up the A3 and went with that. I went to bed and Brian started his shift. 20 minutes later I was awoke been turned upside down as the Boat broached. It was not righting so I rushed up to help Brian. We finally stopped it flogging and the boat righted only for us to see this kite now also had come apart.
Completely deflated we got the kite back on board and decided to think about things. We were heading west so decided to gybe to Belmullet. Everything was going so good. We were screaming down south it looked like our racing now just started and our two weapons of kites are gone. What next?
Well as we gybed to Belmullet the track for the main sheet shattered. Bits of track everywhere. Bearings everywhere. Brian and I just looked at each other. We had come through everything that could have ruined our race and here on a mild night of no more than 16/18 knts of wind everything is going wrong.
So here we are on day 9. A lame duck. As always our main priority is safety of us and vessel and we believe nothing damaged or broken pose a threat to that. We have decided to try to finish. We have one small kite with a repair done to it left and our white sails.
It has to be said it's doubtful we will be able to finish but we will give it our best shot.

Liam and Brian, we're all behind you! – Ed.

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#rorcsrbi – After more than a week at sea, Irish Two-Handed team, Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive racing First 36.7, Lula Belle, have had a fantastic 24 hour run, covering nearly 200 miles in the Round Britain and Ireland Race. Just 60 miles to go until Blackrock, the team will be welling up inside as they start to get a glimpse of the Irish coast during the day. Lula Belle is 620 miles (just under a full Round Ireland race distance) from the finish and their current estimated time of arrival in Cowes is midday on Saturday 23rd August. Lula Belle is currently leading the Two-Handed Class on the water and after time correction.

The British Two-Handed team, Ian Hoddle and Conrad Manning racing Figaro II, Rare, have covered 160 miles in the last 24 hours and have 700 miles to the finish. After Rare's pit-stop on the Isle of Lewis last night, the Two-Handed team have made a big gain. Werner Landwehr and Heiner Eilers racing two-up on their Figaro II, Dessert D'Alcyone, are just 19 miles behind Rare. This has created a fascinating battle at the back of the pack. Dessert D'Alcyone and Rare are both 32 feet in length and vying for the prize of the first 32 foot yacht to complete the race.

At 0800 this morning nine yachts were still racing. Ifan James, skipper of Stimpson 42 Palpatine, contacted the Royal Ocean Racing Club yesterday to retire from the race with all crew well. Palpatine left the Isle of Lewis in the early hours of Tuesday morning and is currently passing the Isle of Skye, east of the Outer Hebrides. A scenic sail past the stunning lochs of the West Coast of Scotland in good weather and dry clothes will be a dream compared to the rough conditions experienced over the last few days.

Roderick Knowles' Class40, Swish, rounded The Lizard just before dawn this morning. They are 150 miles from the finish and speeding along at over 8 knots, well inside world record pace for a yacht of 40ft or less. Swish is expected to finish the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race in the early hours of Wednesday morning (20th August).

Pride of Germany
Custom JV52, Haspa Hamburg skippered by Katrin Hilbert, is just 94 miles from the finish, 30 miles offshore south west of Portland Bill. The young crew are all members of the German yacht club, Hamburgischer Verein Seefahrt. Founded in 1903, the club's tradition is to encourage young people to take part in ocean racing. The vast majority of the crew is less than 25 years old. In 2010 the club's entry in the race, Norddeutsche Vermögen Hamburg, came 5th overall under IRC, taking just under 10 days to complete the course. For the 2014 race, Haspa Hamburg is currently 4th overall under IRC and should finish the race in under nine days.

BvB on board
Sent from on board Bank von Bremen to the race blog
Just 10 miles from the Scilly Isles with 237 miles to go, JV53 Bank von Bremen, skippered by Carol Smolawa, is crewed by members of the Segelkameradschaft das Wappen von Bremen (SKWB). Based in Bremen and founded in 1934, SKWB has about 700 members worldwide. It provides each member with the opportunity to use the club's own boats to race offshore and at national and international regattas.

Carol Smolawa sent in this message from the race course:
"After all the rough days, we have a wonderful sailing day and most important, we could dry our clothes! What a wonderful feeling to have dry boots and garments! Under gennaker we sail with 11 knots in sunny and warm conditions; who could not ask for more? Tomorrow morning we will see the Scilly Isles and then the final leg towards Cowes. We are all happy that we are competing in the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race. The boat and crew have no major incidences. Now we are giving it our best for the last leg to Cowes," writes Smolawa.

Jellyfish Goes West
J/122 Relentless on Jellyfish, skippered by James George, was positioned 30 miles off the west coast of Ireland last night, so far in the race only the Spanish Volvo Ocean 65, Team Campos, decided to go that far offshore. However, the move looks to be paying off. At St. Kilda, Relentless on Jellyfish was behind Hanse 53, Saga, skippered by Peter Hopps, and British Soldier, sailed by the Army Sailing Association. Relentless on Jellyfish seems to have benefited from more wind during the night and this morning has passed both Saga and British Soldier, moving into first position in IRC Two, just under two hours ahead of British Soldier.

#rorcsrbi – Dubliner's Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive, racing First 36.7 Lula Belle always knew it would be a test of endurance and now after a week at sea the Dubliner's are approaching St.Kilda, 800 miles from the finish of the Round Britian and Ireland race. The pair experienced strong winds through the night which have abated somewhat this morning.

Ten yachts are still racing in the although the next yacht to finish the gruelling 1800 mile race is not expected until tomorrow evening. Over the last 24 hours a low pressure system that arrived from the north west, is bringing gale force headwinds that are hampering the progress of the fleet north of the Irish coast.

Roderick Knowles' Class40, Swish, is in the Celtic Sea, 340 miles from the finish and is expected around midnight tomorrow (Tuesday). At their current pace, Swish is almost 24 hours inside the world record for yachts of 40ft or less.

Roderick Knowles sent this message back to the RORC organisers. "The instruments are playing up so we have no wind readings and we have blown out our gennaker. The good news is we have fixed our fractional kite. All is well, but we are very wet and it has been a tough couple of days, especially on Saturday when we had three reefs in, but now on full main and with that record on our minds, we are pushing when we can!"

Katrin Hilbert's Custom JV52, Hapsa Hamburg, is currently halfway across the Celtic Sea and 300 miles from the finish. Carol Smolawa's JV53, Bank von Bremen, was making good progress this morning having passed Slea Head and making good progress along the stunning coastline, south west of the Ring of Kerry, with 430 miles still to complete.

After two days of rough weather, two yachts are battling it out for class honours in IRC Two. J/111 British Soldier, skippered by Phil Caswell, has made great progress through the night and, after gybing at dawn this morning, they are heading for the north coast of Ireland with just under 700 miles to the finish. J/122 Relentless on Jellyfish, skippered by James George, is 10 miles behind British Soldier but leading the class on corrected time by just one hour.

Hanse 53, Saga, skippered by Peter Hopps, is the new leader of IRC One. The previous class leader, Stimpson 42 Palpatine, is still taking shelter in Stornaway. Peter Hopps contacted the RORC Media Team from the yacht 15 miles from St.Kilda, describing the conditions since rounding the top of the course:

"Our trip up to Muckle Flugga slowed as we got closer and we ended up beating round it in quite a light and pleasant breeze. The wind filled in as expected from the SW, before veering NW and increasing to around Force 9. When our third reef pennant broke we dropped the main and have been sailing under headsail only since. You may have picked up a sudden slowing down on the tracker. This is probably a good thing as we have had a more comfortable sail and have put less pressure on everything. Life onboard is a little damp at present, but I'm sure it's a lot better for us than for some of the others. The hand-hold we rigged up in the saloon is now also doing duty as a clothes line. Looking forward to our beef stew for dinner."

Ian Hoddle's Figaro II Rare, with crew Conrad Manning, sought shelter on the west coast of the Isle of Lewis last night. This morning, the two-handed team are back on the race course having contacted the RORC:

"Yesterday things started to get serious out here and, with a Force 9 predicted, we decided to take cover. Things have been very mad; with two reefs in the main and the storm jib there were times when we were both afraid," commented Conrad. "I went up the rig to fix the wind wand, but still no joy, which means we will be doing it the old fashioned way. We have just left Lewis in good spirits and flying towards the next mark, feeling slightly drier, but not for long!"

At 0930 BST Werner Landwehr, racing his German Figaro II, Dessert D'Alcyone, two handed with Heiner Eilers, is north of the Isle of Lewis with 885 miles to go.

The general weather outlook for the western coasts of Scotland and Ireland, and the Celtic Sea, is that the north westerly winds will prevail, but high pressure is due to arrive from the mid-Atlantic by tomorrow, bringing lighter westerly winds.

#rorcsrbi – Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive's progress continues in the 1800–mile Round Britain and Ireland race today. The Dublin two handed pair sent this update from Lulabelle as they approach the Shtland islands leaving them with a 1,000 mile to the Solent finish next week. "The first sign of things changing were the waves were now against us then the wind turned. The hard beat started to Shetland. Over 100 miles up wind. Wind in 20's again today.

Shackle on jib blew so we had to stop to fix that. While we were stopped we fixed nav lights. Bulb blew in lights but broke inside so we had to fit spare set to bow. Brian did same hanging from the pulpit. Despite my best efforts he did get dunked a couple of times so he can confirm the gauge saying water temperature 32c is also incorrect.

Life on board is still uncomfortable. The sailing is great it's all the other stuff that's a nuisance. Eating sleeping etc. All our injuries have come from falls down below as boat is rocked.

As day closes we see we have actually sailed 155 miles but only covered 110 of race course. The tide seems to be forever against us. And it's not so much the 2 knts you loose against it it's the 20 degrees you lose of pointing that kills you. The north sea tides are erratic and hard to work with.

Spirits are good anyway as we hope to see Shetlands tomorrow" 

#rorcsrbi – Liam Coyne's First 36.7 Lula Belle, racing Two-Handed with Brian Flahive, is just west of Sunderland with 1450 miles to go, which means that the Dublin Bay pair from the National Yacht Club will have about a week at sea before they finish the Round Britain and Ireland race in one of the smallest boats in the fleet. From the start, Damian Foxall's Oman Sail-Musandam had 3 days and 3 hours to complete the course for the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race to set a new world record.

On Day Three of the race the trimaran's three hulls, sailed by Foxall, two British expats and three Omanis, are continuing to hammer on south. The lightening quick MOD 70 has hit the turbo charger, screaming along at 30 knots off the North West coast of Ireland. Currently Musandam - Oman Sail's expected finish time is approximately 1000 on Thursday morning, three hours inside the world record set by Loick Peyron's 140ft trimaran, Banque Populaire 5, in 2011.

"Records are there to be broken and it would be an honour to be bettered by such a great team," commented Loick Peyron by telephone to the Royal Ocean Racing Club. "Perhaps if they do set a new record it will also be good for the race. It will encourage other multihulls to come and try it - it is a fantastic course."

Abu Dhabi Ocean Racing's Azzam is leading the fighter formation of Volvo Ocean 65s that have now all rounded Out Stack and are heading home. At dawn this morning Azzam was passing Sula Sgeir, a remote island that marks the halfway point in the race and is best known for its population of gannets. However it is unlikely that the Volvo Ocean 65s, blasting along at over 25 knots, will have the chance to do much bird watching. Ian Walker, skipper of Azzam, called the RORC Media Team just after rounding Muckle Flugga at 2000 yesterday.

"The decisive factor in the race so far has been sail selection and timing of sail changes," commented Ian Walker. "Obviously you have got to go the right way, but that all ties in with where you decide to go and what sails you want to be on and then you can concentrate on putting the hammer down.

This has been a really tough race so far, right from the start, but we were all fresh for that and the North Sea was non-stop navigational decisions with oil rigs and sand banks on top of heavy conditions and sail changes. It is all about ragging it on deck, coping with the non-stop spray and pushing the boat as hard as we can. One thing we have seen in this race that we haven't seen in practice is being so close to the Spanish team - relaxing for just five minutes reflects in a loss.

The biggest call so far was as we approached Muckle Flugga, we stayed more to the west than the Spanish team. We spent four or five hours with the big sail on trying to get west so that we didn't get sucked up into the low pressure. We knew that as long as we had good wind speed we were inside the shift and, when we eventually gybed, the distance between us would become our lee. In the end the gybe call was very, very, difficult as the wind was very shifty. We gybed as late as we dared and just managed to just get round the top of the rocks. Navigating around a headland like that, with a 100 degree wind shift, was about as difficult as it gets and our navigator Si Fi (Simon Fisher) nailed it - we made quite a big gain."

IRC Overall
Jens Kellinghusen's German Ker 51 Varuna, racing in IRC Zero, is the new overall leader for the 20 strong IRC fleet. After time correction Varuna made the top of the leader board yesterday evening and, on the morning of Day Three, Varuna is estimated to have an eight hour advantage over Andrew Budgen and Fred Schwyn's Volvo 70, Monster Project.

However at 0700 BST, Varuna was still 70 miles from Out Stack with a complex weather scenario in front of them while Monster Project rounded Out Stack at about 0500 into the fresh northerly breeze and will almost certainly gain many miles on Varuna over the next seven hours or so.

Class40
Burkhard Keese's Stella Nova has retired with boat damage and they are making their way to Den Helder in Holland, expecting to arrive there before dusk tonight. This leaves Roderick Knowles' Swish as the only Class40 still racing. The British Class40 is expected to round Out Stack in the early evening. The highly experienced crew on board include South African Nick Leggatt, with three circumnavigations including the Class40 Global Ocean Race. He is joined by Ian Munslow with one circumnavigation, two Transats and a Route du Rhum, and Paul Peggs who has over 40 years of offshore racing including two Mini-Transats. So far Swish is on course to shatter the Class40 record set by Concise 2 in 2010.

IRC One
Jankees Lampe's Open 40, La Promesse, is the runaway class leader and currently enjoying a blast past Aberdeen in the North Sea at over 10 knots. Darren McLaughlin's Hanse 531, Saga, has made good progress overnight and is currently due east of Edinburgh. Saga is skippered by Peter Hopps, who has competed in every RORC Caribbean 600 and 12 Rolex Fastnet Races and the crew of Saga have been training for the race all season. For them, just finishing the Sevenstar Round Britain Race is their 'Everest'.

"So, we started on Monday morning at 9 o'clock when the rest of the world was going back to work... of course we are happy!" commented Peter by satellite connection. "Everyone enjoyed the spectacle of the start and the speed of the VO 65s and the trimaran, which was really impressive. Unfortunately we were taking our spinnaker down when the Volvos came past so we were a bit preoccupied! That sail has remained firmly in its bag since then - we had a good run up the Channel under poled out headsail which was very effective. We've been at sea for a while now and have settled into our watch system. We're all quite happy and heartily glad we are going anti-clockwise. It looks like we'll have to beat the last bit up to the Shetlands, but we're all here for the experience, which should include beating!!"

IRC Two
Ian Hoddle's Figaro II Rare, racing Two-Handed, leads IRC Two on the water. At sunset last night, just off North Yorkshire, Rare, the smallest yacht in the race, gybed offshore to cover Ross Applebey's Scarlet Logic, which had been making big gains. Through the night Rare led the way, just a few miles ahead of their bigger rivals, and this morning at 0700 BST Rare was six miles ahead of Scarlet Logic. However, after time correction, Scarlet Logic is still leading the class.

IRC Three and Four
Liam Coyne's First 36.7 Lula Belle, racing Two-Handed with Brian Flahive, is just west of Sunderland with 1450 miles to go, which means that the Irish pair will have about a week at sea before they finish the course. Rob Hammomd's J/109, Ruag White Knight 7, crewed by the Royal Armoured Corps YC is currently leading IRC Three on corrected time, and are four miles ahead of Keith Gibbs' C&C 115, Change of Course, sailed by David Dyer.

#rorcsrbi – Dublin offshore sailing team Liam Coyne and Brian Flahive are just four days away from their 'biggest ever challenge' in the Royal Ocean Racing Club's (RORC) Round Britain and Ireland race this Sunday.

Veterans of two Round Ireland races and two Fastnets, the sole Irish entry say the non stop 1800–miler is the next 'logical step' in Coyne's First 36.7, Lula Belle. The race starts from Cowes at noon and is expected to take a fortnight to complete.

The fleet will set off down the Solent to the east and turn west around the south side of the Isle of Wight. After that the course is simple: leave Ireland and Great Britain to starboard all the way to the northern tip of the Shetland Isles, a point known as Outer Stack just north of Muckle Flugga, then return down the eastern side of the UK back to where the race started in Cowes, a non-stop 1800 mile race. The fastest yachts may complete the course in under a week. For the slower yachts, nearly two weeks is likely.

This year yachts flying the flags of 11 nations will be taking part: China, France, Germany, Great Britain, The Netherlands, Ireland, Oman, Spain, Sweden, United Arab Emirates and the United States of America.

Following the success of a tracking system for the entire fleet in 2010, all yachts will be fitted with a similar device. Tracker here

Although, clearly the Dublin pair will have other matters on their mind, Coyne hopes to post to his blog and tweet from @lulabelle367