RORC Round Britain and Ireland Race, Day 9: Varuna 6 Finishes; Class Battles Go to the Wire
On Day 9 of the RORC Round Britain and Ireland Race, Jens Kellinghusen's Ker 56 Varuna 6 became the second monohull to complete the 1,805-nautical-mile course. All bar, three boats have rounded Muckle Flugga and class battles rage on in the marathon race.
Varuna 6 crossed the Royal Yacht Squadron finish line in Cowes at 13:37:19 BST on Monday 17 August. Her elapsed time was 8 days, 7 minutes and 19 seconds. After IRC time correction, Varuna 6 did not better the time set by Johnny Vincent's Volvo 70 Pace.
"It is a long race with a huge amount of navigation, so we are very happy to be back in Cowes," commented Varuna 6 navigator Mike Broughton. "Full credit to the whole team, especially our owner Jens Kellinghusen. At 79 years young, Jens is the oldest sailor in the race and this is a tremendous achievement.
"This is a tough race, particularly on a carbon machine like Varuna 6. The boat has been wet since the very first night and down below is like a black hole. But that is all part of the challenge. We are delighted to have finished with the boat and everyone on board in one piece."
Attention now turns to Antoine Magre's Mach 50 Palanad 4, expected to finish this afternoon. Valdo Dhoyer and Charles Houal's Volvo 60 Challenge Ocean remains fourth on the water, with 27 teams still racing.
Rounding the Land of Giants
For the crews still racing, reaching Muckle Flugga and nearby Out Stack is an achievement in itself. These remote rocks off Unst mark the northern extreme of the course. At almost 61 degrees north, the fleet sails five degrees farther north than Cape Horn is south.
Local folklore tells of giants Herman and Saxa who fought over a mermaid by hurling rocks at one another; one became Muckle Flugga. To escape them, she promised to marry whichever giant followed her to the North Pole. Both drowned because neither could swim.
The Competitors' Blog has filled with images from Pata Negra, Challenge Ocean, Frida, Bellino and RORC Griffin. Fujitsu British Soldier reported finally reaching Muckle Flugga after the wind had completely shut down.
Benjamin Grosman and Klaus Rasmussen rounded in sunshine aboard the double-handed Ronin, reporting: "We may be far back, but we Danes are once again patrolling the Shetlands!"
The passage carried special meaning for Maggie Adamson, racing double-handed on Tigris with Gavin Howe. Adamson comes from Cunningsburgh in Shetland and her mother even offered to deliver a Sunday roast. Outside assistance is, of course, forbidden, so the crew settled for pot noodles while friends sailed out to wave hello.
Bellino endured a harder night after rounding Muckle Flugga and Out Stack. A horizontal tear was discovered near the head of the A0 and Joe Griffiths spent the night repairing it below deck. By morning, the sail was ready to race again.
Pace in Pole Position
Pace has effectively secured IRC Zero and is the firm favourite for IRC Overall. Varuna 6's corrected time does not threaten Pace, while Palanad 4 remains projected to take second in IRC Zero, with Varuna 6 completing the podium.
The 1300 BST projections placed Palanad 4 second overall and Sam Hall's Lombard 46 Pata Negra third. Bellino, Sky Business - Game On and Kestrel completed the projected top six. These remain estimates, with weather changes and several tidal gates still ahead of the smaller boats.
Protest Adds Jeopardy to Class40 Battle
The next title to be decided is expected to be Class40, where only eight miles separated the remaining three boats at 1300 BST. It is a genuine fight to the finish. Pierre Le Boucher's Penfret led with 168 miles remaining. Greg Leonard's Swift was just one mile behind, with Jon Tyrrel's Gambit on 176 miles.
A protest has been lodged against the current provisional Class40 leader and will be dealt with once both teams involved have finished, meaning all results will remain provisional until then.
Penfret reported sporty conditions around Muckle Flugga, changing from the big spinnaker to the Code Zero in darkness before fast reaching south the following morning.
Class Battles Far from Settled
Pata Negra leads IRC One with 371 miles remaining. Navigator Jules White admitted to some "finger-tenting" as he contemplated the maze of exclusion zones in the southern North Sea, made even more complicated by unstable weather.
"We've been in entirely different breeze from the front-runners for the whole race. Weather routing with tea leaves at this point," commented White.
Tim Behrendt and Andreas Buchheim's double-handed Frida is projected second in IRC One with 515 miles to go, followed by Nick Edmonds' Stickleback on 529 miles. Espresso Martini Too and Xantho complete the class.
The closest contest remains in IRC Two. Rob Craigie's Sun Fast 3600 Bellino leads Sky Business - Game On by just one minute and 40 seconds on projected corrected time. Bellino had 540 miles remaining, Game On 542, with Kestrel and Mzungu! both on 550 miles. RORC Griffin followed on 560 miles and Tigris on 568. The battle in IRC Two is as fierce as any in the fleet.
Moana, Löwe von Bremen, Fujitsu British Soldier, Quailo III, Marco Polo and Ronin are also continuing south in the largest IRC class.
Sky Business - Game On leads the IRC Two-Handed standings from Kestrel, Mzungu!, Tigris and Frida, with Zanzibar, Mojo, Marco Polo and Ronin completing the nine double-handed teams still racing.
Mark Brown's Jetpack leads IRC Three with 640 miles remaining after a week of champagne sailing, windy drag racing, cold conditions and frustrating light patches. Zanzibar is projected second with 684 miles to go, followed by Mojo on 710 miles and Astrid on 714. Snifix Dry has 908 miles remaining, while AJ Wanderlust still has 1,085 miles to sail.
For the 27 boats still racing, passing Muckle Flugga may mean turning towards home, but the 50th anniversary RORC Round Britain and Ireland Race remains far from over.
