RORC News

Gentoo Win 2021 IRC Double Handed National Championship

Gentoo sailed by James Harayda & Dee Caffari © Rick Tomlinson
Gentoo sailed by James Harayda & Dee Caffari © Rick Tomlinson

A reduced but competitive fleet fought it out over the weekend of 18/19 September in the RORC’s IRC Double Handed National Championship with four races scheduled over two days.

Saturday saw a steady Easterly breeze allowing the race team to set a nine-mile course around laid and fixed marks.  Gentoo, sailed by James Harayda and Dee Caffari made their intentions clear by winning from the J/109 Jago, sailed by Mike Yates and Will Holland with Diablo beaten into third by 4 seconds on corrected time.

Race two saw Jago OCS at the start, a mistake that would cost them dearly by the end of the regatta.  Although Jago clawed some back, they lost by four seconds to Gentoo with the top three repeating their results from race one - Nick Martin and Calanach Finlayson in Diablo only 10 seconds from top on corrected time.

Sunday saw a temperamental North Westerly wind slowly moving towards the West.  After a short postponement, race three got under way with a beat towards Gurnard and reach towards Williams shipping and onto less tide around the Brambles Bank. With the wind slowly decreasing, the race was shortened off Cowes, this time Jago had done enough to win, with Chilli Pepper sailed by Jim Driver taking second ahead of Gentoo.

Race four saw a short beat and then a reach to the Lepe shoreline before an upwind downwind course finishing at the RORC buoy.  Chilli Pepper improved to take first place from Gentoo, leaving Mike Yates in Jago ruing the OCS in race two that may have cost him the overall title.

So Gentoo, James Harayda and Dee Caffari are the 2021 IRC Double Handed National Champions and the prizes will be awarded at the UKDHOS dinner in Cowes next month.

Full results: http://www.rorc.org/raceresults/2021/irc2hnatos.html 

 



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