WICKLOW SAILING CLUB

ARE HAPPY TO ANNOUNCE THAT

The next BMW Round Ireland Race will be held on

Saturday 21st June 2008 - mark your diaries!    

Notice of Race - BMW Round Ireland 2008

All enquiries to:-

Race Organiser Dennis Noonan. 

(N.B. -please include a contact number on all e-mails/correspondence)

Dunmore, Sea Road, Newcastle, Co Wicklow 

Telephone :  00-353-(0)1-281 9459 Fax 00-353-(0)1-281 9459

or Email: jackyb@eircom.net  

Captains log:-

• 13th May 2008 - interest is hotting up with 17 fully confirmed entries and another 20 or so in the works - looks like the 2008 BMW Round Ireland will be a bumper race with between 40 and 50 boats expected to start. ICAP Leopard will have stiff competition with a strong possibility of at least one Volvo 70, another state of the art 80 footer as well as a few other biggies talking about entering. See entries so far - 2 handers entries are very strong:-

• 12^th May  2008

  List of confirmed entries to date                       

  Persistence                               Jerry Collins                                Sigma 38                   Irish

  Lancastrian                               Neil Eatough                                Starlight 46                UK

  ICAP Leopard                         Mike Slade                                    30m. OD                   UK

  White Tiger                              Anthony O’Brien                           Beneteau First 44.7   Kinsale

  Earendil                                    Pierre & Samuel Caillault             Grand Soleil 37         France

  Alegre                                      Andres Sorano                             IRC 68                      USA

  Slingshot                                   Michael Boyd& Niall Dowling        J105                          Irish

  Star Dancer                              Rob Packham                              Southerly 110            Isle of Wight

  Gallileo                                     Kelliher Lemass Tennyson           First 47.7                  Irish

  Bjaysus                                    Alan Hannon                                J124                          N. Ireland

  Cheetah Cub                            Rob Wooton & James Walker       Reflex 38                   Isle of Man

  Ocean Spirit of Carlingford       Peter Finegan                             Oceanis 461              Ireland

  FMB Noyeks                           Tom Fitzpatrick & Des Glennon       First 36.7                  Ireland

  Cavatina                                   Ian Hickey                                   Granada 38               Ireland

  Lee Overlay Partners                Adrien Lee                                  Cookson 50              Ireland

  Aquelina                                   James Tyrrell                               J109                        Ireland

  Ruffian                                      Pete McEvoy                              Sigma 36                   UK

   

•  - Round Ireland 2008 Update -There is already great interest in this year’s race with entries from France, the UK and Ireland.  The Two Handed class is also looking very interesting with many enquiries but as usual a lot of people are playing their cards very close to their chest.  Good news is that past winners George Radley and Eric Lisson (who is looking for a third win in Cavatina) are both entered.  We also have four Prima 38s from the UK.  If there are any more Primas out there, do come along.  We will give class prizes if we get enough entries of any class as the Sigma entries have been getting less each year.  To all you sailors out there that missed out or had to retire from the Fastnet race in 2007 come to Wicklow and take part in the Round Ireland.  It’s a great race.

• Colm Barrington’s race record will yet again be under threat as Mike Slade who broke the Fastnet record in ICAP Leopard 3 is coming to do the race.  ICAP Leopard 3 will then be returning to the UK to do the Round the Island race. 

• For entry forms fax or phone Denis Noonan at  00 353 1 2819459 or email Jacky Breathnach  at jackyb@eircom.net

• 7th December 2007 - venue Wicklow Sailing Club - Dennis Noonan launches 2008 BMW Round Ireland Yacht Race - also, David Branigan of Oceansport officially opens the Round Ireland Wall of Fame (all previous winners)

    See Ireland as you've never seen her before!

Training courses

Section 6, (Appendix G) of the ISAF Offshore Special Regulations (30% of crew must have it).

ISAF Cat "2" Sea Safety Courses - Sea and Safety, Yachtmaster Ocean,  Sailingwest

Read Tim Greenwoods tips for success in the race - contact for file)

Race Info

RORC Notice to Bavaria owners intending to do RORC events incl. BMW Round Ireland

Our Wonderful Race

   The Round Ireland is Ireland's premier offshore yacht race, and the second longest race in the Royal Ocean Racing Club calendar. The first race took place in 1980 with only thirteen boats. Since then, held biannually, the fleet has grown steadily, attracting a record 60 entrants from all over Ireland and the British Isles in 1992.
   There are four classes in IRC in which boats and their crews can compete, including a Classic Class for the Michael Jones Trophy, classes for Sigma, ISORA, IRM, a Team Prize. 2004 saw the launch of the "Two-handed Class" which has introduced a new level of competition for the more extreme sailor. In the past, boats competing have ranged from an 84-footer former "round the world" maxi, to club boats one third the size, with all shades in between. 2006 saw the largest yacht yet to partake - Konica Minolta Zana, a 30m (98') racing machine from New Zealand, but light winds scuppered her chances of breaking the record or winning the race.

Konica Minolta off the head!

See more photos.

The bigger boats compete for top honours and for the race record, which is held by Colm Barrington who skippered Jeep Cherokee to victory in 1998 in a time of 76 hours 23 minutes and 57 seconds, breaking the previous record by a massive eight hours. The 2004 winner was a 32' one off design built in Ireland for Eamon Crosbie called Calyx Voice and Data ("Voodoo Chile")  and the 2006 Race was won by a previous winner, Eric Liddels' "Cavatina" (2002), a Grenada 38 classic GRP yacht.

BMW Round Ireland Yacht Race 2006