Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) training regatta, the RORC Easter Challenge supported by North Sails, kicked off on Easter Friday with windy conditions in the Solent; 15 knots gusting up to 30 knots from the south west, produced thrilling conditions for over 200 sailors racing with the RORC.
PRO Stuart Childerley and the RORC Race Team organised a series of practice starts followed by a technical windward leeward race and a Solent marks race for all classes.
After racing, the RORC Cowes Clubhouse was packed with sailors for the RORC Easter Challenge video debrief, led by coaching coordinator Richard Moxey, Olympian Vita Heathcote, North Sails’ Ronan Grealish and professional coach Phil Deveraux. During the hour long session, Moxey focused on bow set up and hoists, Heathcote and Grealish analysed sail trim. Deveraux looked at all round performance gains and commented on spinnaker hoists in gusty conditions.
“The key is not just the hoist itself, it is the communication that comes before it,” commented Deveraux. “Everyone on board has to be seeing the same picture. The helm and trimmers need to feel when the pressure is building, but crew can help by calling gusts, changes in angle and making sure the bear away happens at the right moment. A good hoist is rarely about one perfect action, it is about the crew working together and staying ahead of the boat. The best hoists are tidy and controlled. For developing crews, the big lesson is do not overcomplicate it. Keep things simple, communicate early and make sure everybody contributes.”
David Franks’ J/112 Leon was the standout performer in IRC 2, taking two wins from two races on the opening day. In Race 1, Leon won by 3 minutes 51 seconds on corrected time from Army Sailing Association’s Sun Fast 3600 Fujitsu British Soldier, while Max Walker’s Sun Fast 3600 Elysium IV was just 24 seconds further back in third. Race 2 followed a similar pattern, with Leon taking another win, this time by 3 minutes 4 seconds on corrected time from Fujitsu British Soldier, and Elysium IV only 20 seconds behind the runner up in third.
John Smart’s J/109 Jukebox was the standout performer in IRC 3, taking two wins from two races on the opening day. In Race 1, Jukebox won by 1 minute 59 seconds on corrected time from Oliver Love’s J/109 Frank 4, while Harry Heijst’s S&S 41 Winsome was 1 minute 53 seconds further back in third. Race 2 saw Jukebox stretch its advantage, winning by 3 minutes 6 seconds from Frank 4, with Winsome just 20 seconds behind Frank 4 in third after another solid performance.
Chris Shipman’s team racing on J/109 Rioja is a typical example of a team making full use of the RORC Easter Challenge. Rioja intends to compete both inshore and offshore during 2026. North Sails’ Ruaridh Wright joined the team for today’s racing to help get them up to speed.
“Rioja is relatively new to Chris Shipman and this was an early outing for a scratch crew, so the whole focus was on keeping things simple,” commented Ruaridh Wright. “We went afloat with a reef in and a J4, knowing it was going to be breezy and testing, and the objective was not to chase perfection or get drawn into overcomplicating things. It was about getting round the course in a tidy fashion, working on the fundamentals and making sure everyone settled into their roles. In those conditions, with big breeze, chop and plenty of changes in pressure, that was the right approach.
What was really encouraging was how much progress the team made through the day. There were big strides on board, especially when you consider that not everyone knew each other well going into the regatta. The mechanics started to come together, the starts were positive and, despite everything being so new, they managed to round the top mark in third in the first race, which was a very solid return.
With a developing crew you have to make sure the foundations are sound before refining the finer points. Rioja did that well today. The next step is to build on it, improve communication, smooth out the manoeuvres and keep repeating the good habits. That is how teams naturally get faster.”
Racing at the RORC Easter Challenge is set to continue today, Saturday 4 April , with more racing for the RORC fleet in the Solent.
Image: Simon Patterson's FAST40+ Standfast © Paul Wyeth/RORC