RORC Season's Points Championship winners announced

by RORC Press on 4 Nov 2016 Following a highly successful 2016 season, winners in The Royal Ocean Racing Club's (RORC) annual Season's Points Championship have been confirmed. The prizewinners will be awarded for their racing prowess during the annual RORC Dinner and Prize Giving ceremony to be held at the InterContinental Hotel, Hyde Park Corner, London on Saturday 19th November.

The RORC Season's Points Championship is the largest and arguably most competitive offshore yacht series in the world. Starting almost a year ago with the RORC Transatlantic Race, it consisted of 14 races where over 300 yachts from 15 different nations raced over 6,500 miles. The modern version of the championship is far from domestic as it includes the RORC Transatlantic Race, RORC Caribbean 600, Volvo Round Ireland Yacht Race, the brand new Ile d'Ouessant Race and Rolex Middle Sea Race.

RORC Yacht of the Year: Teasing Machine, A13, Eric de Turckheim (FRA)

Somerset Memorial Trophy: Awarded for outstanding racing achievement by a yacht owned or sailed by a RORC member as voted for by the RORC Committee.

It's been an incredible year in distance travelled and success for Eric de Turckheim's French A13, Teasing Machine. After crossing the line in 11th place and a class win at the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race, the boat was shipped to Panama before being sailed 1,200 miles upwind to Antigua to be on the startline for the RORC Caribbean 600 in February. Another great achievement as the team clinched a class win in IRC One and finished third overall, only being beaten by two Maxi 72s. Teasing Machine was then shipped back across the Atlantic to compete in the Volvo Round Ireland Yacht Race for yet another class win and finishing second overall to an unbeatable Rambler 88. Following the IRC Europeans at Cork Week, it was on to Cowes to help secure a French victory in the biennial Brewin Dolphin Commodores' Cup in July, before an overall win in the inaugural Ile de Ouessant Race. This incredible season finished with another class win in the Rolex Middle Sea Race last month.

2016 RORC Season's Points Championship Winner:
Lisa, First 44.7, Nick and Suzi Jones (GBR)

Jazz Trophy (IRC Overall) and Trenchemer Cup (IRC One), Serendip Trophy (Best Series cruiser/racer series produced Yacht as decided by the Committee)
Keith Ludlow Trophy - Navigator of the IRC Overall Yacht - Neil Morton

Following four IRC One class wins in the De Guingand Bowl, Myth of Malham, Channel and Cherbourg Race, along with five top three finishes, Lisa, Nick and Suzi Jones' First 44.7, campaigned with RORC Commodore, Michael Boyd, will pick up a horde of trophies as overall IRC victor in the 2016 RORC Season's Points Championship.

Securing the much coveted and hard-fought title during the highly competitive RORC season was a team effort and the only crew member to take part in every race, Neil Morton, will pick up the Keith Ludlow Trophy as navigator of the overall IRC yacht.

'We have won a few races in the past ,but we have never won an IRC Class before, let alone the Championship overall,' says owner Nick Jones. 'The real hero of this campaign is my wife Suzi as we have four very young children and she has been racing a lot and also been a fulltime Mum, which is tough to say the least. We decided to split the season in two; the first part was up to the Volvo Round Ireland Yacht Race, and we won our class and came third overall. After that success we realised that winning the RORC championship was on, and we kept going. The RORC Commodore, Michael Boyd was instrumental in putting a squad together with me and without Michael pushing us on, we would never have won. I think that over 40 people have raced on Lisa this season and counting deliveries, over 70 people have sailed on her, so we have a very big table for the RORC annual Prize Giving Dinner,' continues Jones.

IRC Canting Keel: Artemis Ocean Racing, IMOCA 60, skippered by Mikey Ferguson (GBR)

+ Highwayman Cup (Best Elapsed time of an IRC yacht in the Cervantes Trophy, Morgan Cup, Cowes Dinard St Malo and Cherbourg Race)

The team, looked after by the hugely experienced Mikey Ferguson is developing the aspiring Vendée Globe sailors of the future. Having competing in eight races this season, Artemis has dominated the Canting Keel Class and finished 12th in the Season's Points Championship.

IRZ Zero: Ker 46 Shakti, co-skippered by Christoph Avenarius and Gorm Gondesen (GER)

Securing the Europeans Cup, Christoph and Gorm have enjoyed a great year, winning both the De Guingand Bowl and Channel Races outright, and class wins in all the races they took part in. No mean feat against the likes of Piet Vroon's hugely successful Ker 51, Tonnerre 4.

IRC Two: Pintia, J/133, Gilles Fournier (FRA)
Emily Verger Plate and Assuage Trophy

One of the stand-out performances of the year was Gilles Fournier's French J/133 Pintia, winning two races overall and topping IRC Class Two in the Cervantes Trophy Race and Myth of Malham where she had a tremendous side-by-side battle during the 230 nmile race with Lisa, this year's RORC Season's Points Champion. After IRC time correction, Pintia won by just eight seconds after 38 hours of racing! The largely corinthian team, centred around family and friends from Le Havre, continued their winning streak throughout the season, achieving class wins in all five races in which they competed, with third overall being their lowest score.

'We are a family boat,' says Fournier. 'Pintia sails with my daughter Corinne Migraine, my Grandson Victor, my two nephews Yan and Thomas Fournier and one of the best Master Laser sailors in the world, Daniel Devos. We are all from the Société des Régates du Havre and it is the best sailing school in France,' exclaims Fournier.

IRC Three + IRC Two Handed Division:
Raging Bee, JPK 10.10, Louis-Marie Dussere (FRA)
Grenade Goblet (IRC 3) and the Psipsina Trophy (IRC Two Handed)

This year is the third time in a row that Louis-Marie has won the Psipsina Trophy presented to the winner of the most successful Two Handed yacht during the RORC season. As in 2014, Raging Bee also win the Grenada Goblet for overall victory in IRC Three. Nearly 50 teams competed during the RORC season in the Two Handed class which attracted a devoted and growing following.

IRC Four
Foggy Dew, JPK 10.10 Foggy Dew, Noel Racine (FRA)
Cowland Trophy (IRC Four) and Stradivarius Trophy (Best Overseas Yacht)

It's been a triumphant decade for Noel Racine and the team on the highly successful French JPK 10.10, Foggy Dew. With eight class wins in the last 10 years in IRC Four and another outstanding race season in 2016. Their season concluded with an overall class win in the Rolex Middle Sea Race after competing in eight RORC races this year.

Multihull Class winner + Beken Trophy for Concours d'Elegance:
Phaedo³, MOD 70, Lloyd Thornburg (USA)

Continuing their record-breaking streak, Lloyd Thornburg and the team co-skippered by Brian Thompson on the immaculate MOD70, Phaedo³ have this year set new heights for others to achieve in the form of laying down yet more records. Starting the RORC season by taking line honours in Grenada after winning another great duel with MOD70 Concise10 in the RORC Transatlantic Race last November, crossing in less than 6 days. Phaedo³ spent the winter in the Caribbean, competing in the RORC Caribbean 600 in Antigua where she set a new record and took line honours in a spectacular fleet. She was also the first boat home in the inaugural RORC Île d'Ouessant Race. Other achievements include smashing the Bermuda to Plymouth record by over a week, placing second (by mere seconds) after a nail-biting finish in the Volvo Around Ireland Yacht Race, finishing first in the Artemis Challenge and then breaking the record for sailing Around the Isle of Wight. The team have since re-broken their Around the Isle of Wight record two more times!

Always immaculately turned out and with a stunning boat, the Beken Trophy for Concours d'Elegance will be made at the prizegiving ceremony.

Class40: Concise 2, Class 40, Tony Lawson (GBR)
In the Class40 division, 20 teams took part during the season and the overall winner after competing in eight RORC races during the season was Tony Lawson's Concise 2, often racing with an all-female crew.

Seamanship Trophy
The Seamanship Trophy will be presented to 27 year old Gavin Reid who raced in the Clipper Round the World Race on board the yacht, Mission Performance on the leg from Hobart to Whitsundays, Australia. Gavin volunteered to go to the aid of a crew member stuck for seven hours in the rigging at the top of the mast of another yacht (not in the Clipper race). In open ocean, Gavin who has been deaf since birth, swam the hundred metres to the yacht, then climbed the mast, spending two hours safely recovering the stranded crew member.