Following the resolution of protests against his Whitbread 60footer, Colm Barrington's Jeep Cherokee was confirmed as the overall winner of the Cork Dry Gin-sponsored Round Ireland Race that ended a week ago today. A high-powered protest committee chaired by Ken Ryan, the Irish vice-president of the International Sailing Federation, gathered last Sunday to hold the hearings at Wicklow Sailing Club.
Following Barrington's line honours victory 10 days ago, the race officer promptly lodged a protest against the boat for alleged failure to comply with the sailing instruction that requires each competitor to make regular checkin calls at nine arranged locations around the coast.
After meeting for almost three hours, the committee issued the following statement: "The protest committee found that Jeep Cherokee had made reasonable attempts to comply with the sailing instruction concerning reporting-in points. "Having failed to make VHF contact, she used alternative methods to have the required information passed as soon as possible to the race office. The protest is dismissed."
A second protest by Tim Little's Keep On Smiling was withdrawn earlier this week. The result confirms Barrington as the overall race winner under Channel Handicap. His W60 also wins Class One in addition to smashing the course record set by Lawrie Smith in 1990. The new time of 76 hours and 23 minutes is expected to be very difficult to better until the next generation of offshore/ocean racers comes on the scene.
However, Little's Welsh Sigma 400 doesn't go away emptyhanded. Although narrowly missing out on first overall, Keep On Smiling wins Class Two CHS, the Sigma fleet overall and the Sigma 400 class. What classes remain were won by George Radley's Imp (Class Three) and Gary Horgan's Amazing Grace (Class four). These results give Kinsale the overall team prize for the third successive year.
Meanwhile the Irish squad attending the Kiel Olympic classes regatta fared well last weekend. Strong showings in three classes were spoiled only by injury and illness for two single-handed sailors who had been among the best performers in previous events. Europe sailor Maria Coleman had a broken thumb while John Lasenby sailed with a bad dose of flu.
Finn sailor Colin Chapman topped the squad's result, coming 12th out of 75 boats. In total there were three Irish Finns in the top 22 with Atlanta Olympian John Driscoll finishing 19th. David Burrows ended 22nd but won his final race, the first grade one result by a squad member recently. The Finns are now preparing for the crucial world championships in Greece next month.
Tom Fitzpatrick and David McHugh, competing in the 470 men's fleet, are also moving into gear with an overall placing of 24th out of 120 boats in spite of a collision that damaged their new boat. "Their result is very positive - they seem to be getting very organised," commented Bill O'Hara, Irish squad manager. Their counterparts in the women's 470, Laura Dillon and Karina Knaggs, returned to fulltime campaigning after a break for exams. In a fleet of 52 boats, they ended 34th overall but scored a ninth in the final race after port tacking the entire fleet on the starting line.
