Sunshine sailing in the picturesque blue waters of Key West is what the Cape 31 Class signed up for, and that is just what they got at the Southernmost Regatta.

A perfect week for the first-ever Cape 31 US Class event. Five days of action-packed close racing with four winners across the eight races. The 2023 Southernmost Regatta kicked off on Monday, 16th January, with teams travelling to compete worldwide.

As Afloat reported earlier, Antix, a team at many Key West regattas in various forms over the years, shipped their boat from the UK/Ireland at the end of 2022 for the regatta.

Cork Week 2022 Champions, Antix (left) was one of the first teams to enter the new event in Key West that aims to rekindle interest in keelboat racing on Florida's blue waters

Sandy Askew decided to do the same after enjoying her first season with the Cape 31 in the UK before embarking on a Caribbean adventure doing Key West on the way.

The remaining three boats were chartered by teams. Dan Cheresh, Extreme 2, Richard Thompson, Black Seal and Joel Ronning, Catapult. These teams had a few windy training days before the regatta but did not have long to get up to speed to compete against each other.

Topping the Cape 31 class at Florida's 2023 Southernmost Regatta was Irish champion Antix (red hull), skippered by Anthony O'Leary

After dominating the first few days, Anthony O’Leary, the Cork Week Champion, held the top spot for the entire regatta. This was no easy feat as the three charter teams got to grips with the boat surprisingly quickly and found themselves in the chocolates (or rum) all week.

The Cape 31 Antix crew  O'Leary was Nick Butt, Cliodhna Connolly, Ben Field, sons Nicholas and Robert, Clive O Shea and Richie Watkin

Onboard with O'Leary was Nick Butt, Cliodhna Connolly, Ben Field, sons Nicholas and Robert, Clive O Shea and Richie Watkin, whose role is described as 'Switch Flipper' for the week.

With just two points separating the top three teams going into the last day, it was anyone’s game - but a little bit of Irish luck was on Antix’s side as there wasn’t enough wind to race!

After dominating the start of the week, the Royal Cork Yacht Club crew came out on top of the international fleet in Key West!  

Cape 31 2023 Southernmost Regatta, USA Results 

1. Antix, IRL3128, Anthony O Leary - 1 -1 -1 -2 -2 -[5] -3 -5 ; 15
2. Extreme 2, IRL31031, Dan Cheresh - [5] -4 -3 -1 -3 -1 -1 -2 ; 15
3. BLACK SEAL, GBR314X, Richard Thompson - 2 -2 -2 -[5] -1 -4 -2 -3 ; 16
4. Catapult, USA 311X, Joel Ronning - 3 -3 -[4] -3 -4 -2 -4 -4 ; 23
5. Flying Jenny, USA61567, Sandra Askew - 4 -[5] -5 -4 -5 -3 -5 -1 ; 27

Topping the Cape 31 class at Florida's 2023 Southernmost Regatta this week is Irish champion Antix, skippered by Anthony O'Leary. 

After eight races sailed, the Royal Cork crew scored 1 - 1 - 1 - 2 - 2 - [5] - 3 - 5 to share the same 15 points as second-placed Extreme 2 skippered by Dan Cherish in the chartered Irish Cape, Adrenaline.

Cork Week 2022 Champions, Antix was one of the first teams to enter the new event in Key West that aims to rekindle interest in keelboat racing on Florida's blue waters. 

Five Cape 31s are competing.

O'Leary and his team have, of course been racing in Key West for years and, according to social media, 'jumped at the chance to take their new toy over the pond for some winter sun'.

Onboard with O'Leary is Nick Butt, Cliodhna Connolly, Ben Field, sons Nicholas and Robert, Clive O Shea and Richie Watkin, whose role is described as 'Switch Flipper' for the week.

Results via this link here

The all-new Cape 31 keelboat is now available on the Italian market.

Savona Shipyard will exclusively distribute the one design yacht. 

Savona is working in collaboration with sales agent 31 North Yachting, which brought in the first Cape 31 boat to the UK. 

A five-boat fleet has been established in Ireland with the inaugural National Championships won by Anthony O'Leary at Cork Week Regatta in July.

Said to be “fast and fun”, the Cape 31 is easy to handle and trailerable: a project ready to 'redefine the standards of international one-design sailing'.

One of the Irish boats is racing this winter on Dublin Bay. Barry Cunningham's 'Blast' was the overall leader after two races sailed a the DBSC Turkey Shoot.

Designed by County Wicklow's Mark Mills and built by Cape Performance Sailing, the 31-foot Cape 31 is a high-performance boat suited for one-design sailing and to succeed in regattas governed by IRC regulations.

The historic Savona Shipyard, based in Savona in the northern Italian region of Liguria, will be the operational and logistical headquarters of the new Class, which is already established in Ireland, Britain (with 17 boats for the Royal Thames Invitational in September), France and the US.

Savona Shipyard is preparing to launch the first hull early next year and says it will allow interested owners and teams to test the Cape 31 in Italy.

The newly formed Cape 31 Italian Class aims to create a circuit of regattas in leading sailing venues. It will be presented and become operational in mid-December, and its calendar will also include participation in major IRC regattas.

The Cape 31 UK National Championships took place over the weekend at the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes, and with 21 boats on the start line, it was the biggest fleet yet and definitely the most action they’ve seen so far. 

Four Irish boats travelled to Cowes, with Anthony O'Leary's Antix crew from Royal Cork finishing best in tenth overall (results below).

The regatta began with two races on Friday with the forecast building all day.

The RYS Race Committee got two great races away before the tide turned to be against the wind. 2021 National Champions Squirt set the tone, winning the first race, closely followed by Fanatic and Arabella. Tokoloshe won race two with Shotgunn and Gelert rounding off the podium. The breeze got up, and the tide turned during the second race, so racing was stopped to allow the teams to get back to Cowes safely. Tokoloshe and Squirt led the regatta after day one, both carrying a 1st and a 4th, with Fanatic closely behind them with a 2nd and 6th. 

With 21 boats on the start line, it was the biggest Cape 31 fleet yet

Friday evening brought the Nationals Dinner at the Royal Yacht Squadron, a daily prize giving with drinks and canapés followed by a two-course dinner. All of the owners were treated to a gift from the class before they danced the night away with the Pinstripe Band.

There were multiple general recalls and black flags at the Cape 31 UK Nationals

The forecast for Saturday was a solid 16-20 knots all day. The fleet was straight out the blocks in Race 1, with Tokoloshe taking the win. Fanatic took the next two race wins between multiple general recalls and black flags.

Squirt won the last race of the day with Antix and Katabatic rounding off the podium after Fanatic blew up their spinnaker and Tokoloshe had an incident at the top mark. This put Tokoloshe and Fanatic on equal points going into the final day.

Johnny Cooper's Fanatic crew were crowned the 2022 Cape 31 UK National Champions at the Royal Yacht Squadron

The day was rounded off with a daily prize giving with some rosé on the lawn at the Squadron.

The Race Committee tried their hardest to get some racing in on Sunday, but with a dying breeze following the rain, it proved impossible. Just after 11:30 racing was canned for the weekend and with the final horn blown it was champagne all round for the winners Fanatic, Johnny Cooper - 2022 Cape 31 National Champions. Tokoloshe was second on countback, also finishing with 11 points, followed by Squirt with 15 points.

The fleet now looks forward to the Hamble Winter Series - with two days of windward-leeward racing next weekend 15th-16th October, followed by four Sundays of windward leewards in November.

Cape 31 UK National Championships results

Cape 31 UK Nationals Photo Gallery

The race-winning moves of the latest Cape 31 into Ireland were captured on video last Saturday in the final AIB DBSC summer series race of the season.

As Afloat reported, Barry Cunnigham's Blast from the Royal Irish Yacht Club took the Cruisers Zero gun.

North Sails agent Maurice O'Connell shot the video below onboard the boat as it clocked 24.5 knots. 

Another video from the same race shows the high-speed craft really motoring across the Dublin Bay race track (below).

Next up for the DBSC cruiser-racer fleet is the popular Turkey Shoot Series beginning in November.

Four travelling Irish boats are lined up for the Cape 31 National Championship, which will kick off on Friday with the largest ever Cape 31 fleet to date!

The Royal Yacht Squadron team is gearing up to run the event alongside the Cape 31 Class. With 21 teams on the start line for nine windward-leeward races, it’s shaping up to be an awesome three days.

As regular Afloat readers know, in eight races, ten days ago at the Royal Thames Invitational at the same venue, there were five different race winners making for some exciting sailing in the new class that also saw visitors from Holland in the new boat, 'Netherlands Motions'.

Howth's David Maguire was best of the travelling Irish in ninth overall out of 17.  The best Individual result was Maguire's clubmate Dan O'Grady who had a second in race seven.

Simon Perry's Jiraffe (foreground) is one of 21 Cape 31s entered for the UK Nationals on the Solent Photo: Ian Roman

The entry this weekend consists of the 17 teams from the Royal Thames Invitational and four more entries.

Michael Wilson’s Shotgunn is back out, along with William Edward’s Sardonyx X and James Howells Gelert being helmed by Ian Southworth. Royal Yacht Squadron’s own Bertie Bicket has entered Harlequin whilst he waits for his own boat to arrive 

With big conditions due, the weekend will be a real test for the new teams and probably a bit of a gift to the older teams who have had the opportunity to race more in windy conditions. Either way, with a lot of mix-up within teams it will be a regatta to watch to see which team will come out on top.

Russell Peters Cape 31 Squirt is a favourite at the UK Cape 31 Nationals on the Solent Photo: Ian Roman

Firm favourites are Squirt and Tokoloshe, the overall leaders in the series, but both teams have new main trimmers for the weekend. Following Squirt’s win last weekend, they are in direct competition with Tokoloshe for the Cape 31 Race Circuit Series. The real battle will be for third in the series with five teams in contention - Katabatic, Fanatic, Jubilee, Arabella and Shotgunn.

The trophy, donated by HYS, for the top high-performance class of the year in the Solent, will be up for grabs, won by Russell Peters last year and teams such as Niklas Zennstrom's Ran in the past.

Prizes also up for grabs are the top travelling boat - there are six teams in contention for this, four Irish, one Dutch and one American. Finally, there will be a prize for the top Corinthian team, of which six teams are also eligible.

Cape 31 UK Overall Standings

Seventeen Cape 31’s were on the start line at the Royal Thames Invitational at the weekend, which marked Round Five of the 31 Race Circuit. Following a big week of 'orienteering' at Cowes Week, the Cape fleet had eight windward-leeward races in puffy and very shifty Northerly.

The conditions made for tight finishes and huge gains and losses to be made on the race course. In eight races, there were five different race winners making for close battles on the leader board. Amongst the race winners were new team Motions, taking a convincing win after coming last in the race before.

With the usual suspects from the Solent, four Irish teams, Flying Jenny from the USA and the fleet's newest, the Netherlands, there was quite an international feel to the fleet.

As Afloat reported earlier, nine out of seventeen teams made it onto the podium in races over the weekend. Lots of whoops and cheers could be heard throughout the fleet on finish lines as new teams pulled it together to earn a top spot - a great feeling for all involved.

The 17 Capes that made the Royal Thames Invitational are expected to be boosted by four more for the National Championship at the Royal Yacht Squadron from 30th September, making it the largest number of these boats that have been on a race course at once Photo: Ian Roman

In the top spots over the three days were Arabella, Tokoloshe, Katabatic and Squirt. Niall Dowling’s team on Arabella were leading after Day 1 with a 1,1,2, with Mike Bartholomew’s Tokoloshe in second place with 1,2,2 and Lance Adam’s Katabatic in third. Tokoloshe took the lead after day two, with Squirt moving into second place just two points behind the leaders. In the end, it all came down to the last two races on Sunday. After not winning a race in the first two days, Russell Peters and team pulled it out of the bag with two bullets on Sunday.

Conditions were excellent - there was great racing, lots of place changing at the Cape 31 RTYC Invitational Photo: Ian Roman

Ian Walker, tactician on Tokoloshe said, “Sailing the Cape was fantastic, and the conditions were excellent. Great racing, lots of place changing. The Tokoloshe crew were awesome - I don’t think I’ve ever sailed on such a quiet calm boat; they made it all the more fun. The good thing about the racing this weekend was that no one was going to get everything right. If you fell back, you always felt that there was an opportunity.”

The fleet attracted some new but well-known faces this weekend, including Olympic gold medalist Giles Scott on Arabella, Irish and GB Olympian Saskia Tidey from Dun Laoghaire on Fanatic, America’s Cup veteran Jes Gram Hansen on Motions, double Olympic Silver medalist and Volvo Ocean Race Winner Ian Walker on Tokoloshe, Grant “Fuzz” Spanake Olympic, TP52, Americas Cup and Round the World Sailor and Coach on Flying Jenny.

Russell Peters (left) and crew are the Cape 31 team to beat after overall victory at the RTYC Invitational Photo: Ian Roman

Off the water, the teams enjoyed beers and pizza on Friday night at the Sugar Store in Shepards Marina. On Saturday, they gathered at the Island Sailing Club for the regatta party with food, AIX Rosé and music into the wee hours.

21 teams are expected for the Cape 31 National Championship at the Royal Yacht Squadron from 30th September to 2nd October. The largest number of these boats that have been on a race course at once. 

Four of the five Irish Cape 31 fleet made the pilgrimage to Cowes at the weekend for the first of two big late-season regattas on the Isle of Wight. 

Scoring three race wins, the UK-based Royal Irish Yacht Club member Niall Dowling was third in the blue-hulled Arabella in the Royal Thames event.

In eight races, there were five different race winners making for some exciting sailing in the new class that also saw visitors from Holland in the new boat, 'Netherlands Motions'.

Howth's David Maguire was best of the travelling Irish in ninth overall out of 17.  The best Individual result was Maguire's clubmate Dan O'Grady who had a second in race seven.

The overall winner was Russell Peters Squirt; the UK skipper previously won the Cape 31 class at Cowes Week and has definitely produced a winning edge in the high-profile class.

The overall Cape 31 season Championship will be decided at the Cape 31 Nationals from 30th Sept to 2nd October, where Peters' Squirt and Mike Bartholomew's Tokoloshe will likely vie for the overall prize.

Results are below

Barry Cunnigham's new Cape 31 ripped up the DBSC race track on last night's final Thursday night race for the 2022 season. 

The vid below by Maurice O'Connell shows the brand new boat under her North Sails A3 reaching kite.

The latest Cape 31 arrival at the Royal Irish Yacht Club is the first of the new ultra-modern sportsboats into Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

The new addition to Dublin Bay brings the Irish fleet to five, with three boats already racing in Howth and one at Royal Cork Yacht Club in Cork Harbour since May.

Despite her impressive speed last night, it was John O'Gorman's Sunfast 3600 that eclipsed the new Cape 31 to take the last Thursday night gun in Thursday racing as Afloat reports here.

It's a busy week for Cunningham and the Blast crew who are also entered in an 11-boat Class Zero contest at the Taste of Greystones Regatta this weekend off Wicklow. 

Tis all happening here in North Sails Ireland!

We had our first outing on the new Cape 31 "BLAST" here in Dublin Bay.

This is the second Cape 31 in Ireland to be kitted out in a full North Sails inventory.

"BLAST " flew her North Sails NPL Xi upwind training sails and her North Sails NPC Norlon 75 training kite complete with "Blast" logo applied in ink by our North Sails graphics division.

Fresh out of the bag, the flawless geometry and designs were absolutely perfect, which is a credit as always to our colleagues in our Design group, Dave Lenz and Cameron McCormick and our tireless colleagues in our manufacturing group.

Cape 31 "BLAST " flew her North Sails NPL Xi upwind training sails

On our first "turn" downwind, we hit 11 knots boatspeed in only about 11 knots true windspeed.

Keep an eye out for this North Sails-powered rocketship BLASTing around Dublin Bay over the next few weeks.