Displaying items by tag: Round Ireland
Round Ireland Favourites Top RORC Scoreboard
Two of the favourites for the Round Ireland title topped out the RORC IRC overall listings last weekend at the Morgan Cup an overnighter to Cherbourg. The winning boat, Psipsina, was a double-handed entry sailed by Paddy Cronin and John Loden. They pipped Piet Vroon's Tonnerre de Breskens III for the overall trophy by just over two minutes on corrected time.
“I am totally gobsmacked,” admitted John Loden. “I have been racing Psipsina for 11 years and this is the biggest win by a country mile.”
Loden admitted that the falling breeze approaching Cherbourg was a decisive reason for the win and it went right to the wire. Psipsina beat Piet Vroon’s Ker 46,Tonnerre de Breskens 3, by just two minutes and thirteen seconds on corrected time to win the prestigious Morgan Cup.
The start didn’t go well for Psipsina, Loden and Cronin made a navigational error and nearly missed Trinity House buoy altogether but fortunately they managed to alter course, just in time. After that they hardly put a foot wrong.
“The majority of the fleet chose to go to the north shore in the Solent but we correctly chose to say island-side and enjoyed better breeze than our rivals,” explained Loden. “By the time we got to No Man’s Land Fort we were leading IRC Two on the water and going well. During Saturday we had a superb spinnaker run across the Channel,15 knots of steady breeze, warm air downwind sailing…terrific. One of the important factors in offshore racing is fatigue and we have never taken the macho approach of staying up when sleep is available and both of us got some rest during the day on Saturday which pays dividends.
By Saturday afternoon we were on our final approach to Cherbourg and paid great heed to the tide. Perhaps we were a little over cautious but we were going to make damn sure we were uptide and we worked hard to make this happen. As we approached the finish the wind died down to as little as 5-6 knots and we were headed. We used one of our secret weapons to make good our speed in these conditions; we have a very flat A5 which is designed as a storm sail downwind but it also doubles up as a very effective headsail in light air conditions closer to the wind.
We were pretty confident of the Class win and Paddy and I were enjoying a cold beer in the Yacht Club de Cherbourg when the RORC team told us the fantastic news. It is a moment I will treasure for a very long time.”
Piet Vroon’s Ker 46, Tonnerre de Breskens 3, won the Knightsbridge Cup for best yacht in IRC Zero and also took the RORC Salver for line honours by beating Tony Lawson’s Class 40, Concise 2, on the water. Peter Robson’s First 40.7, Playing Around Logic, took the Queensborough Cup for best yacht in IRC One. Matthias Kracht’s JPK 9.60, Ultreia! was best yacht in IRC Three, winning the Warsash Cup.
Ahead of the race, their third win in a row, Loden had said: "We had a very good reminder of what can happen if you lose your concentration in this game during the Cervantes Trophy Race. We got our approach to France all wrong and the resulting foul tide knocked us right down the pecking order. I have been racing short-handed for a few seasons now and I really enjoy the satisfaction of beating fully crewed boats. Also you learn so much when you have to do all of the work between just two of you. Probably the greatest pearl of wisdom I have learnt in short-handed racing is to take time to plan a manoeuvre, especially down wind. Gybe in haste; repent at leisure, would be a good way of summing it up."
Loden & Cronin now lead the double-handed standings, with Vroon leading RORC's overall IRC series.
IRC Morgan Cup Overall Results HERE.
Team Oystercatcher, a double-handed entry in the Round Ireland race, are holding a charity fundraiser on Saturday the 12th June.
Bryan Byrne and Brian Flahive are competing on behalf of the National Children's Hospital and hope to raise at least €2,000 for the charity.
The event takes place at 7pm in the 40ft bar, and there will be a raffle for prizes on the night. The pair are hoping to see a large contingent from the Match Racing Leinsters joining them for the evening.
For those unable to attend, you can donate online by clicking on the link HERE.
Over 65,000 young people attend The National Children’s Hospital, Tallaght, every year.
The hospital prides itself on providing excellent care in a number of areas including, Endocrinology, Surgery, Radiology, Cystic Fibrosis, Diabetes, Asthma and allergies. There is also a very busy paediatric A&E department that sees over 30,000 children a year. The hospitals Outpatient department facilitates multidisciplinary care supporting its core services. Extensive research into the area of childhood illness is carried out in the hospital and Trinity College’s Paediatric Department is also based here.
There will be some in the 2018 race who remember the first Round Ireland Yacht race in 1980. Back then, within a few weeks of the preliminary race programme being published, more than 50 requests for it were received. As we all know the enthusiasm continues for the Round Ireland 38 years later on its 20th staging of the race. For those who’d like to see the original race details for the first time and for those folk who’d like a look down memory lane afloat.ie has published them below. Thanks to inaugural race skipper John Hall for keeping his copy nice and safe!
No Transatlantic Record for Leopard
ICAP Leopard, the 100ft super-maxi racing yacht owned by Helical Bar PLC chief executive Mike Slade, has ended her transatlantic record attempt. After a fantastic start, ICAP Leopard found herself in a windless high pressure at 02:00 UTC on Saturday 420 nm from the finish. With the record looking less and less achievable, Skipper and Boat Captain Chris Sherlock took the decision to abandon the attempt.
Having started on Saturday 29th May in New York, ICAP Leopard has had to contend with variable conditions from the start. The crew worked hard in the first few hours to position themselves correctly to pick up a weather front with enough breeze to get them up to record speed. Having achieved this, the crew were then able to keep the boat going fast through a cold and wet few days mid-Atlantic. With a record attempt of this nature the weather has to be consistently good for the entire voyage, which is hard to predict 9 or 10 days in advance. On this occasion a high pressure system on the approach to the UK blocked ICAP Leopard’s path and ended any hope of breaking the record.
ICAP Leopard Owner, Mike Slade, commented: ”We have a great yacht which has now proven itself over the last three years to be physically fast enough and powerful enough to easily churn out 500+ miles day after day and could have broken this record. However, on this occasion it materialised that the weather was not on our side and after a fantastic run at the start, the crew were forced to gybe all the way home during the latter part of the race. It just goes to prove how difficult this record is to beat and what a great boat Mari Cha IV was.”
Chris Sherlock also commented: “The crew did a phenomenal job to put us in such a great position during the first 5 days of the attempt, it is just a real shame that the forecast didn’t work out for us on this occasion. When we started we always knew that there may be a ridge of high pressure blocking our route to the finish, but we hoped that we would be able to navigate our way through without slowing too much. It is really disappointing that our record attempt was thwarted by the wind gods but no doubt we’ll be back to take on the mighty Atlantic again next year.”
ICAP Leopard was the most high-profile racing yacht to take part in the last Round Ireland, but this time around she will compete in the JP Morgan Round the Island Race on 19th June followed by a large number of corporate charters and sponsor commitments in the UK. Her next record breaking adventure will see Slade and his crew attempt to take on the Sevenstar Round Great Britain & Ireland Race starting on August 23rd this year.
Once again they will be equipped with a tracker and their adventures can be followed at www.leopard3.com. Following this ICAP Leopard will head to the warmer waters of the Mediterranean and the Caribbean for further racing on the International circuit.
Planning to do the Round Ireland Yacht Race this month?
Planning to do this year's Round Ireland Yacht Race? You could do a lot worse than listen in to how Galway's Aodhan Fitzgerald put together a team of friends to win the 2008 race. Also on Afloat.ie are navigation tips from tactician Brian Mathews. There is little over a fortnight to the race start in Wicklow. Notice of race here. Get your crew together now for the 16th circumnavigation!
More on the Round Ireland Yacht Race:
Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Review
Round Ireland Yacht Race, Ireland's top offshore fixture
A Round up of 80 stories on the 2010 Round Ireland Yacht Race
If you're heading offshore this season with ISORA or navigating Round Ireland this month don't forget your 2010 Irish Almanac. It offers the racing yachtsman ready access to essential information by virtue of its clear information and user friendly format. Its available online here or at major chandleries
More on the Round Ireland Yacht Race:
Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Review
Round Ireland Yacht Race, Ireland's top offshore fixture
A Round up of 80 stories on the 2010 Round Ireland Yacht RaceRound Ireland Offers Two for One Deal
There is only one week to go to enter the Round Ireland Race before a 50% late entry fee penalty applies. Wicklow Organisers are hoping for a fleet in excess of 40 boats to mark the 30th anniversary of the event and so far the east coast club are recording 19 entries. In a further initiative to bring in entries from across the Irish Sea and beyond, the Royal Ocean Racing Club fixture is offering a two for one deal for all overseas entries. The deal has been made possible through the Inter-reg project, Irish-Sea.org. Wicklow SC remind entrants that they are required to have a completed “RORC Checklist” prior to arriving for the event. A 50% Late Entry Fee will be applied to entries received after 8th June 2008
No entry will be accepted after Thursday 17th June 2010.
More on the Round Ireland Yacht Race:
Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Review
Round Ireland Yacht Race, Ireland's top offshore fixture
A Round up of 80 stories on the 2010 Round Ireland Yacht RaceICAP Leopard Begins Transatlantic Record Attempt
Round Ireland race record holder ICAP Leopard, the 100ft super-maxi racing yacht owned by Mike Slade, crossed the start line at Ambrose Light on Saturday to begin her attempt on the 2,925 nautical mile monohull transatlantic speed record. ICAP Leopard will need to cross the finish line at Lizard Point before 12h 37m UTC on Saturday 5th June to break the current record held by Mari Cha IV of 6 days, 17 hours and 52 minutes.
Starting in 15 knots of wind, ICAP Leopard will head north to hook into a weather system developing over Nova Scotia this weekend. It is hoped that ICAP Leopard will be able to ride this weather system all the way across, however she may encounter some high pressure on the approach to the UK. It is hoped a fast start will give ICAP Leopard a good chance of getting through the high pressure and across the line in record time.
ICAP Leopard will be carrying a GPS tracker during her record attempt, to follow her progress online go to: www.leopard3.com
New Entrants in Conway Media Round Ireland
Among the entrants for the 2010 race are two identical yachts from Sailing Logic, based in the Solent, the leading yacht racing charter company in the UK. These are “Visit Malta Puma” (aka Puma Logic RORC Yacht of the Year 2009), skippered by Philippe Falle, with eight crew plus skipper and mate. The oldest member of the crew is Brian Philipps who is 70! The second Sailing Logic boat is “Jaguar Logic” skippered by James Allen who skippered ‘Me to You’ on the Challenge 2000 Race, and is Training Manager for Clipper Ventures. Again there is a crew of eight plus skipper and mate.
Enquiries from possible entrants in the race are welcome. Application forms and further details are available from [email protected] or Dennis Noonan Telephone: 01-2819459.
More on the Round Ireland Yacht Race:
Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Review
Round Ireland Yacht Race, Ireland's top offshore fixture
A Round up of 80 stories on the 2010 Round Ireland Yacht RaceSailing West for Round Ireland
The rule is simple; Keep Ireland and all her islands to starboard. For the captain and crews undertaking the Round Ireland Yacht race this summer with Sailing West on their Sunfast 37 and Reflex 38, one can add the following rules: Keep everyone safe, Keep to the Rhumb line and Get back on the Rhumb Line!
The sailing school - based from Dun Laoghaire - aims to include up to 20 Irish sailors in the key event. The crews will be made up of sailors from all backgrounds and disciplines who have a passion for sailing.
More on the Round Ireland Yacht Race:
Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Review
Round Ireland Yacht Race, Ireland's top offshore fixture
A Round up of 80 stories on the 2010 Round Ireland Yacht Race
