Round the Island Race
The Round the Island Race is an annual yacht race around the Isle of Wight. It starts and finishes in Cowes, and is organised by the Island Sailing Club.[1] The course is about 50 nautical miles (93 km) long.[2] It was first held in 1931,[3][4] it was sponsored by JP Morgan Asset Management from 2005 but in 2017 Cloudy Bay took over as the Presenting Sponsor,[5] the 2019 race was sponsored by Helly Hansen, Raymarine, MS Amlin and Chelsea Magazines.[6] The race is generally chosen to be the Saturday in June with the most favourable tides; a date in late May or early July may be chosen if there is no suitable date in June.
History
[edit]The race was the idea of Major Cyril Windeler, who commissioned a gold Roman-style bowl as prize for the winner.[3] The first race, in 1931, had 25 entries.[4] The silver bowl second prize was introduced a few years later when Chris Ratsey impressed Windeler with his good sportsmanship.[3] The last race before World War II, in 1939, attracted 80 entries.[3] In 2008 a total of 1750 boats took part.[7] In 2022, more than 1100 boats took part.[8]
Course
[edit]
The course runs all the way around the Isle of Wight, with a total distance of 50.1 nmi (92.8 km).[9]
The course has varied slightly with buoys tried at the Needles and a requirement to leave No Man's Land Fort to port.
Race record
[edit] | This section needs additional citations for verification. (January 2014) |
Multihull/outright race record
[edit]It was in 1961 that multihulls first entered the round the island race and the record has since fallen considerably.
| Year | Time | Boat type | Boat name | Crew | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 2 h 22 m 23 s | MOD 70 | Concise 10 | Ned Collier-Wakefield | T Lawson |
| 2016 | 2 h 23 m 23 s | MOD 70 | Phaedo^3 | Lloyd Thornburg | |
| 2013 | 2 h 52 m 15 s | AC45 catamaran | J.P.Morgan BAR | Ben Ainslie, helm/skipper | [10] |
| 2001 | 3 h 08 m | 60 ft trimaran | Dexia Eure et Loire | Francis Joyon, skipper Rodney Pattison, navigator |
[11] |
| 1986 | 3 h 05 m | 60 ft trimaran | Paragon | Mike Whipp Rodney Pattison |
|
| 1985 | 4 h 04 m | Nigel Irens 60 ft trimaran | Apricot | Tony Bullimore | |
| 1963 | 5 h 50 m | Catamaran | Snowgoose of Wight | Don Robertson | |
| 1961 | 6 h 00 m | Catamaran | Snowgoose of Wight | Don Robertson | |
| 1932–1960 | Various | Monohulls | |||
| 1931 | 9 h 51 m | Monohull | Thomas White Ratsey |
Monohull race record
[edit]| Year | Time | Boat type | Boat name | Crew | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 3 h 43 m 50 s | 100 ft Farr design canting keel | ICAP Leopard | Mike Slade | [12] |
| 2008 | 3 h 53 m | 100 ft Farr design canting keel | ICAP Leopard | Mike Slade | [12] |
| 2001 | 4 h 5 m 40 s | Reichel Pugh 92 ft maxi | Skandia Life Leopard | Mike Slade | [13] |
| 1931 | 9 h 51 m | Thomas White Ratsey | [citation needed] |
Outright record
[edit]The outright record as recognised by the World Speed Sailing Record Council on behalf of International Sailing Federation has in the past also been the race record.
| Year | Time | Boat type | Boat name | Crew | Notes and ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2017 | 1 h 17 m 17 s | Catamaran | Red Jet 6 | Howard Ray
Casey Sheargold Ben Candy |
Motorised vessel - not sailing[14] |
| July 2023 | 1 h 56 m | Monohull | Oliver Pendleton
Simon Schofield |
Fully electric record attempt[15] | |
| August 2012 | 2 h 21 m 25 s | MOD 70 | Foncia | Michel Desjoyeaux | Set during Cowes Week[16] |
| November 2001 | 2 h 33 m 55 s | Catamaran | PlayStation | Steve Fossett, skipper Stan Honey, navigator |
Standalone record attempt[17] |
| June 2001 | 3 h 08 m | 60 ft trimaran | Dexia Eure et Loire | Francis Joyon, skipper Rodney Pattison, navigator |
Set during round the island race[11] |
| 1994 | 3 h 35 m | Trimaran | Lakota | Steve Fossett, skipper | Set during round the island race[11] |
Gallery
[edit]-
Some of the 1700 boats in the 2010 Round the Island Race. -
Yachts flying spinnakers during the 2010 race -
The fleet rounding St. Catherine's Lighthouse in 2009 -
The 2009 race, with yachts seen racing off The Needles -
The 2009 race, with yachts seen racing off The Needles -
The 2009 race, with yachts seen racing off The Needles
References
[edit]- ^ "Island Sailing Club". www.IslandSC.org.uk. Retrieved 7 January 2018.
- ^ Fisher, Bob (20 June 2009). "Round The Island Race proves frustratingly slow going". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 6 August 2009.
- ^ a b c d Neville, Martin (20 May 2011). "Round the Island in 80 years". Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
- ^ a b Ayles, James (26 June 2015). "Get set for popular Round the Island race". The News. Retrieved 26 June 2015.
- ^ Owner, Practical Boat (28 February 2017). "Round the Island Race announces corking new sponsor". Practical Boat Owner. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
- ^ "Eeyore wins 2019 Round the Island Race Gold Roman Bowl". www.sail-world.com. Retrieved 4 October 2020.
- ^ "Rotarians to rescue in race capsize". Isle of Wight County Press. Retrieved 6 August 2009.
- ^ "Thousands take part in Isle of Wight's Round the Island Race". BBC News. 26 June 2022. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
- ^ "Round the Island Race – The Course". Round the Island Race. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
- ^ "Race Record Broken". BAR Racing. Archived from the original on 4 September 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
- ^ a b c http://www.roundtheisland.org.uk/web/pubs/2011/RIR11-ExhibitionBrochure.pdf [bare URL PDF]
- ^ a b "Race Record Broken". Round the Island Race Event Media. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
- ^ "Round the Island Race Results Book 2001" (PDF). www.roundtheisland.org.uk. Retrieved 8 November 2018.
- ^ "Record Round the Island time | Media & PR | Red Funnel".
- ^ "BBC News". bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
- ^ "Passage Records". World Speed Sailing Record Council. Archived from the original on 25 May 2013. Retrieved 1 June 2013.
- ^ "Paralympic Sailing". Sailing.org. Retrieved 7 January 2018.