JOG announces newest and longest distance offshore race

by Roger Townsend on 31 Mar 2012 JOG announces the BNY Mellon Challenge 2013.

Starting from Cowes in the Solent on Friday 14 June 2013, this exciting 1000 mile race to Portugal is designed to appeal to the widest range of corinthian offshore yacht racers.

It takes the form of two separate races.

The first is a 350 mile leg from Cowes, down the western Channel around Ushant to La Trinite in Brittany, qualifying as an ISAF Category 3 race (plus JOG prescriptions).

Leg 2 starts from La Trinite on 19 June and will take Cat 2 yachts across the Bay of Biscay, around Finisterre to Cascais in Portugal: a distance of approximately 650 miles.

Competitors can enter the whole race, or either leg in isolation, depending on the classification of their boat, their experience, or simply the time available to them.

Entries are invited from IRC qualified yachts and MOCRA multihulls, and for the first time JOG will welcome entries from University Sailing Clubs, for which there will be a separate BNY Mellon trophy. Yachts may be fully crewed, or double handed.

The principle trophies in this race are named in honour of Patrick Ellam, one of the founder members of JOG in 1950 and the veteran of a transatlantic crossing with Colin Mudie in 1952, in his 20ft sloop Sopranino. The major Patrick Ellam trophies will be the mounted original sextant and the boxed chronometer actually used by Patrick on that voyage and kindly donated to this race by him.

I cannot promise the weather, but I can promise you a well organised, competitive race together with the friendship and onshore fun that JOG is famous for. Even your family and friends who cannot join you will be able to follow your progress 24/7 via Yellowbrick online tracking and other social network sites

How to enter here

JOG website

The race to Cascais in Portugal, via La Trinite in Brittany, will be sponsored by Bank of New York Mellon as title sponsor with Associate Sponsors Clanfield Properties Ltd and Cascais Marina.

Bank of New York Mellon Asset Management as the title sponsor of this race. BNY Mellon are one of the world’s largest financial institutions, represented on 5 continents and managing assets of over $1.2 trillion. We know that they will prove to be excellent partners for this event.

I am equally pleased to introduce two Associate Sponsors of this race. Clanfield Properties Ltd., a South Hampshire based company, are sponsoring the Double Handed class over both legs and Cascais Marina are generously providing entries with free mooring and other benefits in Portugal.