Unexpected benefits
IRC Rating Authority
www.ircrating.org
The IRC Rule is owned and managed by RORC and UNCL and certificates are issued by:
RORC Rating Office Lymington, UK
info@rorcrating.com
www.rorcrating.com Director:
Jason Smithwick Jenny Howells Emma Smith Carole Abbott Sally Moss
UNCL Centre de Calcul Paris, France
irc@uncl.com
www.uncl.com Director:
Ludovic Abollivier Basile Despres Rose Lounes
In countries outside the UK and France, IRC administration is through the local Rule Authorities around the world.
Please see
www.ircrating.org for contact details.
In the September issue we talked about crew number flexibility for race organisers and this subject has been prominent during the last few months with coronavirus restrictions. Local restrictions will of course vary in different countries, but the GBR IRC Committee recently held their annual meeting (virtually) and it was interesting to hear how enforced reduced crew limits had affected local racing. Many clubs have seen increased entries in their club racing compared with previous years, and the
Mix it up
general feedback was that owners were enjoying racing with fewer crew. The less high tech boats also felt they could compete better with the local ‘hot shots’ because everyone was subject to the same crew limitations. Don’t forget that changing IRC crew number limits is permitted within the IRC rule and this is a great way to keep racing going within the national social distancing requirements and restrictions on gatherings.
The style of racing has also changed with many clubs offering much less formal racing to build confidence and generate interest amongst those who are new to racing. New ideas that have been tried include self-timed races or lap times; and offering overlapping long, medium and short courses with each boat deciding on the way round which course to complete. One observation was that holding round-the-cans or other varied race types rather than only windward- leeward courses has proved popular and tended to attract more boats. The IRC Race Management guidelines have always strongly recommended that race committees vary course types as this is a fundamental part of fair yacht racing. In many places offshore racing, which has gained
International Rating Certificate Seahorse Issue 487 £6.50 US$8.50
popularity in the last few years, has proved problematic due to restrictions on having people down below and social distancing. In some areas of the world racing between different countries, or even states within countries, can also be an issue and adaptability is the watchword for event organisers looking to set up alternative racing at short notice. It’s clear that with coronavirus shaking up many of the ‘norms’ we are used to, those clubs that are adapting and being imaginative are seeing good entries while sailors also reap the benefits with new challenges on the water. The IRC Race Management guidelines are in the racing section of
www.ircrating.org
Technology
A chance to see what you are missing…. The new conquistadors
Powering 100-foot supermaxis and giant superyachts, winning the Maxi72 worlds, equipping the Vendée Globe favourite and infiltrating the fastest giant French multihulls... Doyle Sails is on a mission to win everything
2019 ended on a strong note for Doyle Sails with yachts carrying its inventory winning a hard-fought line honours and second place in the tough Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race. Jim Cooney and Samantha Grant’s Comanche took line honours with Christian Beck’s Infotrack following th
th li l i g h
we wanted to go. We set up a triple headsail arrangement with the non- overlapping J0 in front, a J2 staysail and a storm staysail, inside. We got all the way down to VMG running angles with a non-overlapping jib on, which is pretty cool.
th J0
‘We saw how strong and efficient t i Th
Above: Mike Sanderson (at the helm of Aquarius), Volvo Ocean Race winner and chief executive of Doyle Sails, has led a
TIM WRIGHT
RORC/PAUL WYETH
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