Please select your home edition
Edition
GJW Direct 2024 Dinghy

2024 RORC Vice Admiral's Cup shines in autumn sunshine

by Louay Habib / RORC 16 Sep 2024 17:02 BST 14-15 September 2024
RORC Vice Admiral's Cup 2024 © Paul Wyeth / RORC

The Royal Ocean Racing Club's Solent racing season came to a conclusion with the Vice Admiral's Cup with two days of windward leeward and tight round the cans races.

High pressure dominated the weather conditions, with early autumn sunshine providing brilliant sunshine. On Both days the racing schedule was delayed allowing a sea breeze to fill and it was worth the wait. Five superb races were run for all classes in up to 15 knots of wind.

Racing was incredibly close, especially in the Performance 40 and J/111 One Design Classes. In the Performance 40 Class, the IRC rating rule corrected out the multi-designs results to within seconds of race wins and podium places. The winner of the J/111 Class was decided in the final race. Congratulations to all of the class winners in the RORC Vice Admiral's Cup: Ker 46 ROST Van Uden, Swan 45 Luna, J/111 Jitterbug, and J/109 Jeroboam.

In the big boat IRC GP Zero Class, the youth team racing Dutch Ker 46 ROST Van Uden scored a perfect five bullets. Second was Malcolm Offord's TP52 Braveheart making their debut RORC race, and third by just a point, was the Family De Graaf's Ker 43 Baraka GP.

"This is the last event of the season for ROST Van Uden to get more valuable hours on The Solent," commented skipper Gerd-Jan Poortman, who will be skipper the youth team in the 2025 Admiral's Cup, represent the Dutch Offshore Sailing Team. "The Vice Admiral's Cup has been a great experience for the team. On top of the racing miles experience, they have been away from home as a team and we have spent time planning the winter optimisation for the boat." Poortman, was just 22 when he was part of the Dutch team that won The Admiral's Cup in 1999. "The 2025 Admiral's Cup is a great opportunity for the young team to race against the best in the world and our goal is to create an upset through our motivation and training. How we perform at The Admiral's Cup will be on all the teams CVs for the rest of their lives, we are all excited about the opportunity." Gerd-Jan Poortman confirmed that ROST Van Uden will be back in The Solent next year, racing at the RORC Easter Challenge.

The Performance 40 Class was won by Tim Webb's Swan 45 Luna by just two points from Seb Blair's King 40 Cobra. Richard Powell's First 40 Rogan Josh was third.

Tim Webb's Swan 45 Luna comes from Lymington and has been racing both inshore and offshore with a corinthian crew. "An amazing weekend with perfect Solent racing," commented Webb. "We have an interesting selection of boats in the Performance 40 Class and the fact that you are winning or losing by a matter of seconds is pretty amazing. You cannot lose your concentration for a moment, which is really exciting. Luna is a bit heavier than some of our rivals, so it is a big credit to the crew to come out on top in light to medium conditions."

In the J/109 Class, Stephen Davis' Jeroboam scored four race wins to win the class by three points from Rob Cotterill's Mojo Risin'. Chris Burleigh's Jybe Talkin' was third.

The J/111 one-design class went right to the wire. Cornel Riklin's Jitterbug was the winner by a single point from Tony & Sally Mack's McFly. Louise Makin and Chris Jones' JourneyMaker II was third.

Thank you to all the Race Team for organising a great regatta," commented Jitterbug's Cornel Riklin's. "We had some incredibly close racing with a couple of races decided by one or two seconds and the whole class finishing within a minute or two."

The stunning new RORC Cowes Clubhouse was race-central for the regatta and social activities. The VAC Supper at the RORC Cowes Dining Room was well-attended on the first night. After racing was done and dusted at the Vice Admiral's Cup, crews enjoyed a replay of the Louis Vuitton Cup racing on the big screen in the RORC's Fastnet Bar.

Full results here

For more information about the Royal Ocean Racing Club: www.rorc.org

Related Articles

Event video from the RORC Caribbean 600
Interviews and spectacular footage from the 16th edition Sit back, get the popcorn ready and enjoy this event film; with interviews and spectacular footage from the 16th edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's 600NM race around 11 Caribbean Islands. Posted on 22 Mar
RHKYC and RIYC set sail for Admiral's Cup
15 teams from around the world have entered prior to the 28th February deadline The Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC) is delighted to announce that 15 teams from around the world have entered the 2025 Admiral's Cup prior to the 28th February deadline. Posted on 20 Mar
RORC Easter Challenge - Kick start your season
Complimentary coaching is available to all competitors Organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club, the RORC Easter Challenge is an open event raced in the Solent and hosted by the RORC Cowes Clubhouse. Posted on 18 Mar
Nazca's Leave-no-trace Fastnet Campaign
Competing in the Rolex Fastnet Race without any fossil fuels onboard Amongst the Rolex Fastnet Race fleet on the start line this coming July, there will be an entry with a difference, one quietly trying to change the world. Posted on 18 Mar
No more excuses
2025 is all about the club sailors, the weekend warriors, the open meeting stalwarts I was wondering if things were going to slow down in sailing after the huge events of 2024, namely the Olympics, America's Cup and Vendée Globe but, if anything, they've speeded up. Posted on 17 Mar
‘Modern classics' converge on Rolex Fastnet Race
Yet another record-sized fleet heading for July's race This year's special centenary edition of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's Rolex Fastnet Race may have the biggest fleet on record when it sets sail from Cowes on 26 July. Posted on 11 Mar
The 600 Sweet Spot
The world of offshore racing is booming around the world The world of offshore racing is booming around the world. Record entries, some of the world's fastest yachts and highest profile campaigns, and a plethora of Corinthian teams have the 'classics' on their bucket list. Posted on 4 Mar
A Truly Special 2025 RORC Caribbean 600
A spectacular display of offshore racing prowess, attracting a diverse fleet of 66 boats The 2025 RORC Caribbean 600 marked its 16th edition with a spectacular display of offshore racing prowess, attracting a diverse fleet of 66 boats from 32 countries. Posted on 2 Mar
2025 Offshore Double Handed Worlds set for Cowes
The Royal Ocean Racing Club will be hosting the event in September The Royal Ocean Racing Club will be welcoming the Offshore Double Handed World Championship to Cowes, UK in September 2025. Posted on 1 Mar
Get me to the Caribbean 600 Prizegiving!
Multihull, IRC One & IRC Two class winners decided. Congratulations to the latest class winners to be announced: Thomas Kassberg's ORC 50 Malolo, Philippe Franz's NM43 Albator, Team Scarlet on Emily, skippered by Ross Applebey, Ulysse Pozzoli's Class40 Team Renovatec and Jeremi Jablonski's Avanti. Posted on 28 Feb