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Regata al Sol adds IRC Division and new trophy

(February 21, 2008) - IRC ocean racing heads south in 2008. Southern Yacht Club, Pensacola Yacht Club and the Club de Yates de Isla Mujeres have announced that an IRC racing division will be added to the 2008 Regata al Sol. The Regata al Sol, a biennial 555 nm ocean race, Cruising Division starts in Pensacola Bay on May 14th and the Racing/IRC Division starts May 15th. The finish is off the northern point of Isla Mujeres, Mexico.

With the introduction of IRC racing to the event, Stephen Murray Jr. has stepped forward to establish the Madden Randle Perpetual Trophy for the IRC division. The trophy will be awarded to the IRC rated yacht in the racing division with the best IRC corrected time.

Madden Randle was a local ship-right and sailing master, who served as captain of Murray's DECISION racing program until his death.  He was navigator on the Andrews 70 DECISION on her record setting run in 2002.  He was also navigator on the Santa Cruz 52 DECISION in the preceding Mexico Race (2000), in which she won line honors and overall corrected time honors. 

"Before his death in 2005," said Murray, Madden was an advocate of IRC and had often remarked that he would like to see IRC introduced on the Gulf Coast.  The trophy will be awarded to the IRC rated yacht in the racing division with the best IRC corrected time in his memory.

When asked about possible use of IRC in other Gulf Yachting association events, Murray commented, "Other event organizers on the coast have not yet indicated they will be using IRC.  I think everyone is waiting to see what the response to the IRC division in the Mexico race will be."

The Southern Yacht Club and Pensacola Yacht Club are also involved in organizing the Gulf Ocean Racing Circuit (GORC) in the spring, the Gulfport Pensacola Race in June and the West Florida Ocean Racing Circuit (WFORC) in the fall. These are each potential IRC events since they attract a broad regional interest from a diverse fleet of yachts.

Pensacola Yacht Club will be hosting a Mexico Night on March 7th in conjunction with their Centennial Celebration and Southern Yacht Club will host a Mexico Night on March 8th. An IRC seminar presented by the US-IRC Executive Director Luiz Kahl will precede the party

This year will be the 25th sailing of the biennial ocean race from the Gulf Coast to Isla Mujeres. Further information is on Southern Yacht Club's website www.southernyachtclub.org

Interested in using IRC?

Owners and Organizing Authorities wishing to adopt IRC for their events should contact US-IRC Executive Director Luiz E. Kahl for help with the process luiz@us-irc.org.

The US SAILING Offshore office administers the IRC rule in the US. Yacht owners should contact Nathan Titcomb at irc@ussailing.org for help with certificate application or with rating questions.

For all US-IRC latest news, events and seminars check out the US-IRC web site at www.us-irc.org and go racing with us. Regata al Sol XXV - Overview

In 2008 Gulf Coast sailors will celebrate the 25th sailing of Regata al Sol from Pensacola, Florida to Isla Mujeres, Mexico. This biennial premier offshore race is sponsored by Southern Yacht Club, Pensacola Yacht Club, and the Club de Yates de Isla Mujeres. The starts of the race will be May 14, 2008 for the Cruising Divisions and May 15th for the Racing Division.

The course takes racers due south from Pensacola Bay across the Gulf of Mexico to Isla Mujeres, Mexico just off the Yucatan coast from Cancun. This race offers all the excitement of any offshore race with un predictable weather patterns in May as well as the challenge of navigating the tricky Gulf Stream loop current and the Yucatan straits.

The history of the Regata al Sol dates back to 1965, when Southern Yacht Club and the Club de Yates Isla Mujeres initiated an annual offshore race from the Gulf Coast to Isla Mujeres. The race was a tremendous success, drawing boats from Texas to Florida. In 1968 the race took a short detour to Cozumel and became a biennial regatta.

The race continued to be very popular all along the Gulf Coast and in 1986 the starting line moved from Gulfport to Pensacola Bay and the finish line returned to a point off the north end of Isla Mujeres. The current record for the 555 nautical mile race is held by Stephen Murray's Andrews 70' Decision in a time of about 2 ½ days set in 2004. In 2008 the newest Decision, a Transpac 52, will again be the favorite for line honors.

The 2008 race will have three divisions in two starts. The divisions include the Racing division, Cruising-Spinnaker division and Cruising Non-Spinnaker division. Class breaks will be dependent on the number of entries in each division.

The race will be scored based on both IRC and PHRF handicap ratings and have a minimum length requirement of 30 feet. Entrants in the Racing division will have the option of being scored under the IRC rating rule. For safety purposes all boats will be supplied with transponders that will track each boat's progress by satellite on a dedicated Regata al Sol page of the website www.iboattrack.com. This will allow the shore contingencies to follow the race, which will provide greater shore side excitement.

Isla Mujeres is a beautiful tropical island with pristine sand beaches, palm, trees, and crystal clear water. Don't look for high-rise developments, as this is a very laid back, quaint island. The Lima family has been hosting sailors for many years and provides elegant hospitality in this tropical paradise.

There will be daily parties and events including beach parties, a basketball game, a Mardi Gras parade and banquets. The events culminate with an island soiree and awards banquet.

Accommodations are provided in lovely unpretentious hotels located on the beautiful white beaches. You will find no mega resorts, which makes this island a wonderful off the beaten path jewel. Most restaurants and shopping are within walking distance of the hotels and other destinations can be reached by taxi, golf cart, or scooter.

Non-sailors can reach Isla Mujeres by flying into Cancun and taking a twenty-minute ferry ride to the island.

Interested in using IRC?

Owners and Organizing Authorities wishing to adopt IRC for their events should contact US-IRC Executive Director Luiz E. Kahl for help with the process luiz@us-irc.org.

The US SAILING Offshore office administers the IRC rule in the US. Yacht owners should contact Eric Baittinger at irc@ussailing.org for help with certificate application or with rating questions.

For all US-IRC latest news, events and seminars check out the US-IRC web site at www.us-irc.org and go racing with us.