Round the Island Race adds some 'Fun' into Fundraising
by Peta Stuart-Hunt, ISC Race Press Officer 20 Jun 2016 14:15 BST
2 July 2016
Saracens/Team Keech in 2015 © Paul Wyeth /
www.pwpictures.com
Race Day: Saturday, 2nd July 2016
Charity fundraising plays a significant role in the staging of the annual J.P. Morgan Asset Management Round the Island Race, taking place this year on Saturday 2nd July. Amongst the thousands of competitors taking part, many are helping to raise funds for their favourite charity, often with heartfelt and very personal stories.
Indeed it is an element of this Race that is so close to their hearts that J.P. Morgan Asset Management awards The Charity Cup to the boat that has raised the most funds in the previous year's Race campaign. This year that accolade goes to 'Team Jackie' who raised the significant sum of £70,000 for Keech Hospice in 2015.
Team Jackie is back and proud to be supporting Saracens in this year's Race. 'Sarrie' the camel mascot recently visited Britannia Corporate Events in Hamble to check out some of the Team Jackie yachts that are taking part in this year's race and helping to raise much needed funds for the Saracens Sports Foundation and Space for Giants.
After the success enjoyed by Saracens Rugby Club this season, having picked up both the European Challenge Cup and the Premiership Cup, 'Sarrie' has been out and about and the lovable mascot will be on one of the yachts in the Race and roaming amongst the racegoers and spectators in the J.P. Morgan Asset Management Race Village after racing on Saturday.
The official Race charity, the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, has five yachts entered in this year's Race with 25 young people sailing and it has been confirmed that Dame Ellen MacArthur, the Trust's Patron, will once again be taking part, on EMCT 1 - Moonspray.
So far the Trust has raised over £269,000 through its Official Race charity partnership.
rtir.me/charity
IRC
In the IRC fleet, Andrew McIrvine, Admiral of the Royal Ocean Racing Club (RORC), is racing his Beneteau First 40, La Réponse (Larry) and RORC Commodore Michael Boyd is sailing on Audrey, a 2016-built JPK 10.80 skippered by Jean-Philippe Cau, President of UNCL, France (Union National pour la Course au Large), the French equivalent of the RORC Rating Office in the UK, responsible for IRC.
Also amongst this year's IRC fleet there are a number of Fast 40+ yachts including the black hulled Invictus, entered by and skippered by Sir Keith Mills with his son Alex mid-bow and Rob Greenhalgh, Fast40+ Class President, multiple World Champion, Volvo Ocean Race winner and Extreme 40 winner, calling tactics!
Sir Keith Mills comments, "I am very much looking forward to this year's race, it is one of my favourites anywhere in the world. There aren't too many sporting events that see the top professionals on the same race track as your everyday enthusiast, so that makes it quite special.
"This will be our second Round the Island Race on Invictus, having won IRC 0 last year, so we will be targeting another strong result. However, with a number of new Fast 40s in the Solent this season, it is going to be a hotly contested race! One thing is for sure, I am delighted that the start time is a little more sociable this year!"
Another notable in the Fast40+ fleet is the white hulled Pace, owned and raced by Johnny Vincent. Johnny started sailing competitively, campaigning a Hunter 707 in the mid-nineties. After a long break, his sailing started again in 2008 with the first "Pace", a Marten 49, racing both in the Solent and abroad. The team had some inshore and offshore successes, notably winning the 2008 Giraglia Rolex Cup. After a few years campaigning a TP52 extensively in the Solent, Mediterranean and further afield, Johnny is now looking forward to Fast 40+ action.
Labour of love
As far removed as you can get from the racing demons in IRC, Dr Bill Probert is competing on his homebuilt Starry Eyed & Laughing II, a Classic Racing Yacht (ISCRS) LOA under 9.6m, designed and built from Yachting Monthly plans - a project he started in 1979 and finished in 2003; a real labour of love!
Born in Newport, Isle of Wight, Bill was raised in Bembridge on board a charter yacht. He gained his RYA Yachtmaster in 1975 and has a lifetime of sailing experience, is a marine engineer and shipwright. His boat is named after a British rock band from the 1970s.
Web Q&A - June 22nd - Ask the experts
If you would like to chat to Race experts in the final session of the web-based Q&As on Wednesday June 22nd, login here from 1pm - 1.45pm. rtir.me/qanda
Dave Atkinson, who heads up the Race Management Team, will be joined by last year's Gold Roman Bowl winner, Giovanni Belgrano to take your questions regarding last-minute preparations for boats & crew, start tactics, tracking and things to avoid!
Sign up & join in!
You can also still sign up to the greatest yacht race in the world. Late entries are open until 12 noon on Wednesday 29th June.
rtir.me/entries
Ways to follow the Race
www.roundtheisland.org.uk
- Website: On the Day - News on the Hour - a handy snapshot of what's been happening out on the race course brought to you by expert sailor & yachting journalist Rupert Holmes
- Website: On the Day - Tracking - if you're racing and you have registered your mobile for tracking (once this service has gone live), your family & friends can follow your progress as you race around the Isle of Wight. It also really helps the comms team and race management to see where you are!
- Website: On the Day - RTI TV - broadcasting live with on-water and shoreside commentary from the Island Sailing Club covering the starts & first finishers. Supplemented by the Race Control Blog reporting from Race HQ at the ISC. On air from 0800 and interspersed with interviews with competitors, race partners, experts.
- Website: On the Day - LIVE Blog - our team of bloggers will once again be interacting with competitors, family & friends and media around the world to bring you the colour, atmosphere and a sense of the sheer scale of the greatest yacht race in the world.
- Race Village: On the Day - The Race Village will be showing RTI TV live on the big screen so that spectators can keep in touch with the action while we're on air.
- Royal Southern Yacht Club: The mainland Race 'Hub Club' in Hamble will be showing live RTI TV from Friday night's Raymarine Weather Briefing, held at the Island Sailing Club, through Saturday's live starts and first finishers.
- Social Media: Follow us for Race news & comment on Facebook www.facebook.com/roundtheisland & on Twitter @roundtheisland using #raceforall.
