Final Results 2006

BMW Round Ireland Prize giving dinner

Sat 21st October - Grand Hotel, Wicklow

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 is entered as "Teng Tools" for this race. Two other past winners, Imp (2000) and Cavatina (2002) are also in the line up, which are both older boats and are proof positive that sailing skills and good navigation are often far more important than the latest in boat building technology.   

 Festival Programme - a huge success

Co-sponsors:-

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