RORC Yacht of the Year, Season's Points Championship winners revealed

by RORC on 12 Nov 2014 The RORC Yacht of the Year, recipient of the Somerset Memorial Trophy for outstanding racing achievement by a RORC Member, has been awarded to Anthony O'Leary's Ker 39, Antix, for 2014.

Anthony O'Leary did not do any offshore racing this year but his exceptional season in Antix, winning class in the RORC Easter Challenge, the IRC National Championship overall and being part of the winning Irish team in the Brewin Dolphin Commodores' Cup, was recognised by the RORC Committee as an outstanding achievement. O'Leary was disappointed not to be able to defend the Commodores' Cup victory of 2010 in 2012 but avowed to come back in 2014 with a competitive team and, by enlisting the support of Marc Glimcher's Ker 40, Catapult, and Michael Boyd and Niall Dowling who chartered Quokka 8, O'Leary crowned an already successful season with a consistent performance in Antix to win the Commodores' Cup.

Anthony O'Leary was thrilled with the news: 'I must confess to complete surprise - and absolute delight for my crew!'

Review of the 2014 RORC Season's Points Championship

The RORC Season's Points Championship consists of a selection of races, both UK and abroad, that test the skill and endurance of offshore sailors. In addition to the domestic season of 10 races, including the record-breaking Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race, there were three races based overseas in 2014: the RORC Caribbean 600, Round Ireland Yacht Race and the Rolex Middle Sea Race. Whilst these longer races carry the highest points factor for the Championship, boats that do not travel outside of the domestic season still have a chance to win their class as only one high points factored race can count for the class trophies, with all other completed high points factor races reduced to a normal factor of 1.0. With this in place it is notable that this season the boats successfully campaigned to win their class only competed in races with a points factor of 1.0 or 1.2.

Highlight of the domestic offshore season was the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race,a truly record-breaking race with five World and Race Records set in what transpired to be a challenging test of endurance in difficult conditions.

In total 360 boats competed in the RORC Season's Points Championship, a strong testament to the allure of offshore racing even in a year without the RORC's flagship offshore event, the Rolex Fastnet Race.

IRC Overall - Jazz Trophy

Whilst class prizes for the RORC Season's Points Championship are decided by the best five offshore races, the Jazz Trophy for IRC Overall is awarded with all offshore races to count. This means that dedication from the crew and skipper is required as well as sailing skill. This is demonstrated by the number of races entered, on average seven out of the 13 season's races, by the top 10 boats in IRC Overall for 2014.

Top boat was Vincent Willemart and Eric Van Campenhout's MC 34 Patton, Azawakh, new to the Belgian team after her successful 2013 season sailing as Courrier Vintage. Going in to the final race of the Championship, the Rolex Middle Sea Race, Azawakh was only 0.5 of a point ahead of the second placed boat, the Army Sailing Association's J/111, British Soldier. An entry into the Rolex Middle Sea Race by one of the other boats at the top of the leaderboard could have toppled them from the top spot with such a narrow margin of points, fewer than 100 points between the top 10 boats, but luckily Vincent and Eric had already made the decision to enter the final race of the season and take the boat to Malta. Sadly, after a slow and windless start to the race, the fleet were hit by gale force winds and many boats, Azawakh included, succumbed to the elements and had to retire from the race. Nevertheless, with other boats either not entering or completing the race, Azawakh maintained their lead in IRC Overall to claim the Jazz Trophy, with British Soldier in second and Noel Racine's Le Havre based JPK 10.10, Foggy Dew, in third place.

Azawakh has also won the Stradivarius Trophy for best overseas yacht in IRC Overall, the Emily Verger Plate for IRC Two and the Alan Paul Trophy for consistent high performance in IRC.

Vincent and Eric reflected on their season with Azawakh: 'The 2014 season has been a double challenge for both the boat and the crew. This has been a source of a few frustrations, but essentially a great deal of joy and happiness. The first challenge for the new Azawakh boat was the unification of two crews from competing JPK yachts Rackham and WASABI so as we say in French `the mayonnaise had to take' between both crews and both Captains. We are pleased to say that this challenge has been convincingly won.

'The second challenge was to find ourselves sailing the boat that was elected Yacht of the Year by the RORC and UNCL for the 2013 season under the esteemed ownership of Géry Trenteseaux and Sam Marsaudon. Their 2013 overall season results were outstanding, achieved with an extremely competent team. Azawakh replied with three wins in our class, IRC Two, one overall on the beautiful Myth of Malham Race and the title of RORC Champion 2014. We feel that the Azawakh team has risen to the challenge, although we know there remains a lot of work and room for improvement.

'Our frustration was mainly due to a season of particularly light wind conditions that we have all faced this year. This did not often allow Azawakh to express her tremendous qualities of reaching in a strong breeze. The irony was that in our last race 'the Middle Sea' we were forced to retire with a ripped mainsail in conditions gusting over 60knots, therefore cancelling any chances of winning the title of RORC class winner in IRC Two. However we congratulate our competitors, Jellyfish and British Soldier, who retain first place, which is very well deserved after a long season and very tough race around the British Isles.

'We complete our 2014 season with a boat that we know better and respect even more, our new team spirit and future ambition to participate and extend our racing miles in the English Channel during the 2015 season.'

IRC Canting Keel

Andrew Budgen and Fred Schwyn's Volvo 70, Monster Project, had a consistent season in 2014 to win the IRC Canting Keel class. The boat travelled far and wide to compete in RORC racing - notching up four high points race finishes: RORC Caribbean 600, Round Ireland, Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland and Rolex Middle Sea Races. Dedication from skipper and crew have seen them battle through tough conditions both off the British coast and in the Mediterranean Sea.

In IRC Canting Keel second place was the IMOCA 60, Artemis - Team Endeavour, skippered by Brian Thompson. Their highlight of their season was the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race where they battled the conditions to set a new World Record for a Monohull of 60 foot or less beating the time set in 2011 by Marc Guillemot's Safran.

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IRC Zero - Europeans Cup

Consisting of boats with the highest IRC ratings, IRC Zero was characterised by travelling boats in 2014. Going in to the Rolex Middle Sea Race the competition for the top spot was open with Jens Kellinghusen's Ker 50, Varuna, and George Sakellaris' Maxi 72, Shockwave, gunning for the class win. Wins in IRC Overall in the RORC Caribbean 600 for Shockwave and the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race for Varuna had put them both into a strong position, with only 0.8 of a point between them before heading for Malta. In the end, Varuna fell victim to the bad conditions, losing her rudder during the race and leaving Shockwave to take first place in IRC Zero overall.

IRC One - Trenchemer Cup

IRC One was once again convincingly won by Piet Vroon and his crew on the Ker 46, Tonnerre de Breskens 3. A delay in the shipment of the boat back from her class win in the RORC Caribbean 600 meant that the crew could only manage to get Tonnerre back into the water in the UK in time for the Cowes Dinard St Malo Race in July. However, class wins in the Cowes Dinard St Malo, East Coast and Channel Races put her into a strong position going into the Cherbourg Race, making it difficult for any of the other IRC One boats to climb to the top spot. Piet, the oldest skipper in the RORC fleet for 2014, did not let his crew lie idle during the wait for Tonnerre and instead launched his Lutra 56, Formidable 3, to race the De Guingand Bowl and Morgan Cup, to keep them in practice.

The class second and third places went to RORC Commodore Michael Greville's Ker 39, Erivale III, and RORC Rear Commodore Steven Anderson's Corby 40, Cracklin Rosie, respectively, with just 3.2 points between them. Strong performances from both boats, including two class wins in a race each, kept the podium positions for the class changing throughout the season.

IRC Two - Emily Verger Plate

IRC Two was a classic example of the discard system at work as, despite their win in IRC Overall, Azawakh was only able to manage a third in class after retiring in Malta. First in IRC Two was David Richards' J/122, Relentless on Jellyfish, sailed by James George, beating the Army Sailing Association's J/111, British Soldier, into second place by nine points. Both boats had a strong season, managing to complete the weather adverse Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race, despite British Soldier losing a crew member to injury during the race.

In IRC Two fourth and fifth positions went to two Figaro IIs being raced two-handed: Ian Hoddle and Conrad Manning on Rare and Robin Elsey and Will Harris on Artemis 43. Rare put in a commendable performance to finish the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race - the first two-handed boat to have done so since the race started. Artemis 43 is crewed by sailors from the Artemis Offshore Academy, set up in 2010 to encourage British youth into shorthanded sailing. For 2014 Robin and Will have been awarded the Peter Harrison Youth Trophy for a crew under the age of 25 and the Highwayman Cup for the best elapsed time in the Cervantes Trophy, Morgan Cup, Cowes-Dinard-St Malo and Cherbourg Races.

British Soldier was also awarded the Serendip Trophy for best series produced yacht and the Haylock Cup for best Service Yacht in IRC Overall for 2014.

Another boat that was showing strongly in her class was Ross Applebey's Oyster 48, Scarlet Oyster, who went to Malta knowing a good result would put her on the podium for IRC Two. Unfortunately, she was also to fall victim to the conditions, losing her rudder during the Middle Sea Race. However, for the skill shown by Ross and co-skipper Andy Middleton to secure the boat and the crew in difficult conditions, Scarlet Oyster has been awarded the Seamanship Trophy. Having finished the season racing for a different Sailing School than from the start, Scarlet Oyster found themselves out of contention for the David Fayle Memorial Cup for the best Sailing School Yacht in IRC, which they won in 2013. In 2014 this was won by Sailing Logic's First 40, Arthur Logic, who sailed well in a strong class to win the trophy and take seventh place in class overall. This is the 10th consecutive year that Sailing Logic have taken this trophy home.

IRC Three - Grenade Goblet

Competition was close in IRC Three, the top seven boats had only 67 points separating first and seventh place, with four of those boats being raced two-handed. In first place was Louis-Marie Dussere's JPK 10.10, Raging Bee, who secured his place at the top with five well sailed races to win the class with no discards applied. Louis-Marie sailed each race with a different co-skipper, a testament to his skill and the setup of the boat, and would sail the boat over from her home port of Cherbourg for each start off Cowes, Isle of Wight. The rest of the podium positions in IRC Three were all up for grabs as the boats went into the Cherbourg Race, the last of the domestic season. A slow, light wind race saw the first boat to finish taking over 20 hours to complete the 74nm course but the competitors held on to complete the race and finalise their Season's Points rankings. The final results played out with Nicolas Gaumont-Prat's First 40.7, Philiosophie IV, and Nick Martin and François Turpault's two-handed J/105, Diablo-J, in second and third places.

IRC Four - Cowland Trophy

The competition for first place in IRC Four was down to the last race of the season, the Rolex Middle Sea Race. After the Cherbourg Race, Noel Racine's JPK 10.10, Foggy Dew, was in pole position with Peter Ward's MG 38, McGregor IV, and Harry Heijst's S&S41, Winsome, in second and third place behind her. Winsome had been entered into the Middle Sea Race and so stood a good chance of knocking Foggy Dew off the top but it was not to be. Whilst off the island of Pantelleria, seeing 50 knots of wind over the deck and with storm sails set, the crew decided that discretion is the better part of valour and, despite the boat holding out well in the conditions, they pulled in to the island to ride out the storm. After 36 hours on the island they had to retire from the race as they had left the boat to rest up and feed the weary crew. Not finishing the last race of the season left Winsome in third place in IRC Four overall and confirmed Foggy Dew as the winner.

McGregor IV had a strong season to clinch second place and showed dedication by travelling from their home port in the River Blackwater on the East Coast, to races as far afield as Ireland for the Round Ireland Yacht Race as well as the races on the South Coast.

Noel Racine is a consummate repeat performer; this is the sixth time in eight years that he has won his class in the RORC Season's Championship. In addition this is also the fifth time he has won the Assuage Trophy for the RORC Member with the most points in IRC overall in the Cherbourg Race plus the best three races taken from Cervantes, Morgan Cup, Myth of Malham and Cowes Dinard St. Malo races. Noel Racine first won the stunning engraved glass trophy in 2006.

Two-Handed Class - Psipsina Trophy

The Two-Handed Class is fast becoming a favourite among RORC racers, the added challenge of sailing shorthanded appealing to the competitors. In 2014 the competition was very close for the Two-Handed Class, a mix of boats from mostly IRC One, Two and Three. Louis-Marie Dussere's JPK 10.10, Raging Bee, won the class with a margin of only six points ahead of Renaud Courbon's family-raced First Class 10, Shortgood. Rare's performance in the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race put her into a good position in the class but her other races were not enough to place her higher than third overall in the end, although only eight points behind Shortgood. Experienced shorthanded sailor Nick Martin, sailing with François Turpault on the J/105, Diablo-J, took fourth place in the Two-Handed Class. Nick has been racing Diablo-J two-handed for over five seasons and is always a strong contender for the podium in this class. In contrast fifth place went to Ludovic Melnyk's JPK 9.60, Sous Mama Boulé who is new to racing two-handed with the RORC this season. Much like Louis-Marie Dussere, Ludovik raced with a variety of co-skippers during the season.

Class40s

Class40s entered into RORC races have the option of racing either under IRC or level under Class40 rules. There are some differences between the rules, especially with regards to the stacking of sails for example. In a non Fastnet year the number of boats level racing is generally lower, but with the qualifying mileage to do for the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race, there was some competition in the domestic season. Ned Collier Wakefield's Concise8 came first in class in the end, despite having to retire from the Sevenstar Round Britain and Ireland Race with boat damage.

Dennis P Miller Trophy

The RORC also has trophies that recognise achievements outside of the RORC season. The Dennis P Miller Memorial Trophy is awarded to a British Yacht Overseas and this year was won by Andres Soriano's Mills 72, Alegre. Based in the Mediterranean for the majority of the summer, Alegre has been awarded the trophy in recognition of winning the Mini Maxi Division of the Rolex Maxi Worlds and being Mini Maxi World Champion for Click here for a full list of trophy and prize winners for the 2014 season.

Nick Elliott, RORC Racing Manager, was delighted with the 2014 season: 'The 2014 Season's Points Championship has been another closely fought battle across the classes. The RORC Caribbean 600 continued to grow in popularity attracting 60 yachts from around the world to the warm sunny climate of Antigua while the northern hemisphere was in the depths of winter. Spring in the UK brought the beginning of the domestic races and saw a good entry into the Cervantes Trophy, swelled by the GBR Trials for the Brewin Dolphin Commodores' Cup. Challenging conditions are a feature of offshore yacht racing and they were no more clearly defined than by the Cherbourg Race, only 75 miles but a real marathon in the extremely light conditions, and the Rolex Middle Sea Race. The Rolex Middle Sea Race started in very light conditions and the fleet spent the first few days searching for zephyrs of breeze and drifting but then the wind arrived and it finished in ballistic conditions with many of the yachts testing their storm sails.

'Congratulations to everyone that took part in the racing during the season, it has been a fun and competitive series and we all look forward to a bumper year in 2015.'

2015 RORC Race Season

The Programme for the 2015 RORC Race Season has now been announced. The season will be particularly special as it is the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Royal Ocean Racing Club after the first Fastnet Race in 1925. The RORC Season's Points Championship starts with the seventh edition of the increasingly popular RORC Caribbean 600 in Antigua in February before the UK domestic season starts with the Cervantes Trophy Race in May in the Solent. The Cervantes Trophy Race is the first of nine races in the UK which can be used as qualifying mileage for the highlight of the race season, the Rolex Fastnet Race. Whilst the majority of these races are based in the Solent there are two on the east coast, the North Sea and East Coast races, and one on the west coast, the Lyver Trophy Race, which can help boats not based in Solent to notch up qualifying miles for the Rolex Fastnet Race. The Season's Points Championship for 2015 finishes with the Rolex Middle Sea Race in October, starting and finishing in Malta.

Entry for the 2015 RORC Caribbean 600 is now open and looking strong with over 20 entries three months before the start of the race. Entry for all other races, including the Rolex Fastnet Race, will open on Monday 12th January 2015.

Outside of the Season's Points Championship the RORC will also run the inshore regattas: RORC Easter Challenge and IRC National Championship, both based in the Solent and running from Cowes. The last event of the season will be the second edition of the RORC Transatlantic Race from Lanzarote to Grenada in November. Whilst not part of the 2015 Season's Points Championship, this 2700 mile east-west transatlantic race will count towards the 2016 Season's Points RORC website