Cork issues ‘call to action’ for bumper week at RCYC

With just over five weeks remaining to the start of Volvo Cork Week, organisers at the Royal Cork Yacht Club have called on south coast crews not to delay entry and support the event that aims be a highlight of the 2018 sailing season.

Volvo Cork Week 2018 will run from July 16 to 21. Entries have already surpassed the 2016 turnout and are heading for a post-recession record level.

The second staging of the Beaufort Cup for military and emergency services crews is also on course to double its turnout on the inaugural event, including an American team.

Seventeen teams are confirmed with a Galway entry expected this week and a Garda team as well. Five UK service teams are entered.

And in further evidence of an upturn in the economy, most of the major social occasions for the week are sold out with waiting lists for the formal events.

However, the bulk of the entries received to date are mostly from visiting crews with more 27 clubs from around Ireland and Britain represented in the fleet.

Around 90% of the regular weekday racing crews from Cork Harbour are also entered but a sizeable portion of the boats based along the south coasts have yet to enter.

“While many people wait until last minute to enter, it makes planning for the event easier when we know who to expect,” says Kieran O’Connell, RCYC Rear Admiral keelboats.

“The event had been hoping to reach 150 boats – a 50% increase on 2016 – but organisers now expect the overall entry to be around 120-130 boats for this year.

“The options are there to do one, two, three and up to six days so there’s something for everyone,” he says. “We would know of around 72 active racing boats that might be expected to turn up to an event. To date, about half that number have entered.”