Cervantes Trophy Race Preview: RORC fleet bound for Le Havre

by RORC 25 Apr 2016 16:10 BST 30 April 2016

• Start: Saturday 30 April 2016
• Course: Cowes - Le Havre (95-140 nautical miles)

The Cervantes Trophy Race is traditionally the first English Channel Race of the Royal Ocean Racing Club's Season's Points Championship and this year's race from Cowes to Le Havre has attracted a variety of yachts from Belgium, Britain, France, Germany and the Netherlands. The majority of the teams are passionate Corinthians, but make no mistake, the RORC Season's Points Championship is arguably the toughest offshore series of races in the world. Each race has its own worthy prize, both for overall and class, after time correction using the IRC rule. The Season's Points Championship Class winners are decided by the best five results across the Season.

James Neville from Cambridge, UK will be racing his HH42, Ino XXX in IRC One for the Ceravntes Trophy Race. "The Cervantes Trophy Race is a qualifier for the Brewin Dolphin Commodores' Cup and we hope to get a step further to being selected by performing well. It is going to be a cold one but we are an experienced crew coming together on a new yacht and we are targeting several offshore races and the IRC National Championship to sharpen up for the Brewin Dolphin Commodores' Cup and we aspire to upgrade to a Fast40+ next season."

Surgeon Adrian Lower, from Burnham on Crouch, will be racing his Swan 48, Snatch, with co-owner David Smith in IRC Two. "We are a bunch of Essex adventurers and have entered the race because our aim is to do as many RORC races as we can before we head south for the Swan Worlds in Sardinia. The highlight of the programme for us will be the Transatlantic Race and the RORC Caribbean 600 in February 2017. This November will be my second Atlantic crossing and I am hoping to do it short handed this time."

Jean-Eudes Renier is originally from France but works in London in the Financial sector, he has been sailing since he was a child and has competed in several Rolex Fastnet Races. Jean-Eudes will be competing in the Cervantes Trophy Race in the IRC Three and the Two-handed Class, which has seven teams entered.

"The boat is a new JPK 10.80 called Shaitan (little devil in Arabic). I race her double handed and we aim at competing for the Two-handed RORC championship for 2016 with my friend Patrick Baune. We have been doing fully crewed RORC races since 2004 on various boats that we owned and are now trying our hand at double handed which is extremely exciting. The Cervantes is the first race of the season in our programme. If you know of crew who could help me sail the boat back from Le Havre to Lymington after the race I would be delighted!"

Brian Wilkinson from Crowthorne, Berkshire will be racing Corby 30, Wild Child in IRC Four. Formerly called Yes! the yacht is probably the most successful boat designed by Cowes boat designer John Corby. Brian Wilkinson was a class winner for small multihulls in the 2006 Two-Handed Round Britain race.

"We've entered the Brewin Commodores' Cup selection trials, this race is part of the qualification requirement and great training for the Cup's offshore race. The new format and rating bands for the Cup mean that after adding a larger overlapping jib and spinnaker, Wild Child re-rated higher to meet eligibility criteria. The new sails have significantly boosted our speed in light to medium airs and I think we could be a contender for the GBR team small boat slot. Wild Child has been very successful inshore, it's going to be interesting to see how she'll go offshore. The crew are a bit of a mixture, some members have sailed in previous GBR Commodore Cup teams, and have extensive offshore experience with multiple Fastnet race campaigns and a range of boats from offshore multihulls to Mumm30s. There are ex-dinghy sailors stepping up to offshore racing for the first time too in our trim and foredeck team. The crew was found using a wide selection of club web sites and Facebook groups. For us the focus is on Commodores Cup qualification so we hope to do well in one other offshore race the De Guingand Bowl and then focus on inshore racing for the Cup."

For more information about the RORC Seasons' Points Championship and the Royal Ocean Racing Club, visit www.rorc.org