Leopard eyes JP Morgan Round the Island Race

by Kate Fairclough on 26 Jun 2008 ICAP Leopard, the 100 foot super maxi yacht owned by Mike Slade this morning broke the BMW Round Ireland Yacht Race record. Crossing the finish line off Wicklow at 05:48:47, Mike Slade and his crew knocked 10 hours, 35 minutes and 10 seconds off the previous record, set by Colm Barrington in 1998.

ICAP Leopard sailed the 704 mile course round Ireland in 65 hours, 48 minutes and 47 seconds, to take her second record in a month, having broken the Transatlantic speed record for yachts with powered sailing systems on 3rd June. With no time to waste, ICAP Leopard and her crew are now en route to the Solent, where she will compete in the JP Morgan Round the Island Race this Saturday, 28th June. The event, in which Farr-designed ICAP Leopard made her debut last year, is one of the world’s largest regattas, with 1875 boats entered to date.

In her usual style, ICAP Leopard will be skippered by owner Mike Slade, with an impressive professional line-up of America’s Cup and round the world sailors onboard for the JP Morgan Round the Island Race.

Mike Slade, Chief Executive of London based property company Helical Bar plc, commented: 'The BMW Round Ireland Race this past three days has been a slog. We’ve had all manner of weather conditions to deal with, but overall enjoyed a great rounding of the Emerald Isle. My thanks go to all of the crew for their great work.'

He continued, 'It is now onwards and upwards for us as we dash back to Southampton for this weekend’s JP Morgan Round the Island Race. We’re looking forward to having another bash at the record we set back in 2001 aboard Leopard of London for the fastest boat round the island. We’re keeping our fingers crossed for the right weather, but whatever the gods bring us it’s always a great day’s racing.'

The record to beat is four hours, five minutes and 40 seconds. Following the JP Morgan Round the Island Race, ICAP Leopard will compete in several European events over the summer whilst also hosting a large number of corporate sailing days on the Solent.