Start Date: 22 Jun 2024 - 704NM - Organised by the Wicklow Sailing Club in association with the RORC and Royal Irish YC
Image: Ker 46 Searcher (Ex-Tonnerre de Glen) © Tim Wright/RORC
Eric De Turckheim’s NMD54 Teasing Machine has been declared overall winner under IRC for the 2024 SSE Renewables Round Ireland Race. While boats are still racing, none of them can beat the corrected time under IRC to beat Teasing Machine.
Teasing Machine crew: Eric De Turckheim, Laurent Pages, Jean-Luc Nelias, Christian Ponthieu, Gabriele Olivo, Jean Mazars, Jerome Teillet, Paco Lepoutre, Bertrand Castelnerac.
“The last time we did the Round Ireland Race was 2016 and Teasing Machine was second overall, beaten by Rambler,” commented Eric De Turckheim. “So, we always wanted to come back here because we love the Irish; it is always a great welcome! It is a great racecourse; you go from one weather front to another; it is a tactically interesting race. This year we went from no wind to 35 knots, which is a great test for the crew and the boat. In one 24hr period we raced over 300 miles, along the West Coast we averaged nearly 20 knots downwind for eight hours, fantastic sailing! It reminded us of the RORC Transatlantic Race.”
Congratulations to all of the class winners including IRC One and second overall: Pete Smyth’s Ker 46 Searcher. IRC Four and third overall: Rónán Ó Siochrú’s Sun Fast 37 Desert Star Offshore Sailing. IRC Two: Paul O'Higgins’ JPK 1080 Rockabill VI, IRC Three: Annemarie Fegan & Denis Murphy’s Grand Soleil 40 Nieulargo, IRC Two-Handed Rob Craigie’s Sun Fast 3600 Bellino, racing with RORC Commodore Deb Fish. The MOCRA and Multihull Line Honours winner was Adam Davis’ Irens 63 Paradox3.
The SSE Renewables Round Ireland Race is part of the RORC Season’s Points Championship, the world’s largest offshore racing series. The next race will be the Cowes Dinard St Malo Race starting from Cowes on 5th of July, over 100 boats have entered the 151NM race which finishes in the walled-city of St Malo during the French Bastille Day celebrations.