ORC System News:

Momentum building for 2023 ORC use


It's only February and the 2023 ORC season is well underway - already there are over 7200 certificates issued for boats in 24 nations. Registrations for 2023 ORC championships are building as well: for example, currently there are 41 entries from 12 nations for the ORC European Championship in Malta in April, and 86 entries from 12 nations entered in the ORC World Championship in Kiel in August.


In the southern hemisphere racing is approaching mid-season (eg, the ORC New South Wales Championship in Australia) and in Florida the winter series of events (eg, the SORC and St Pete Helly Hansen Sailing World Series) have concluded with Spring soon on the way.


Superyachts are getting ready to sail in the Caribbean, starting at the Superyacht Challenge Antigua (see photo above) followed by the Bucket Regatta in St Barths.


Among other notable races coming this Spring is the impressive turnout for the 38th biennial Annapolis to Newport Race held over June 1-6. This 475-mile race already has 50 entries registered that are split among Racing, Racer/Cruiser, Double Handed and Cruiser classes, all being scored using ORC scoring tools.

Syd Fischer 1927-2023

The ORC community mourns the loss of legendary Australian yachtsman Syd Fischer, who recently passed at age 95.


Among his many contributions to the sport in many arenas was being a strong and vocal advocate of the use of the ORC system in Australia. He believed this system superior to others that were not transparent and not based on scientific principles.


Sail on Syd, you will be missed.


A more complete tribute to Syd written by Di Pearson can be found in the latest issue of Sails Magazine.

ORC columns in Seahorse Magazine


For decades Seahorse Magazine has been the authoritative source of all that is important in performance sailing and a must-read for all who are serious about the sport.


Every second month Seahorse publishes a special ORC column that highlights the progress of the system, from technical developments to innovations in policies that appeal to those who compete in ORC events...and those who wish they did.


Read the latest March issue with an interview with ORC International Technical Committee Chairman Andy Claughton and his feeling that the VPP is working so well now that he feels it is approaching what he calls "Peak VPP." Read the column here.

After the ORC European Championship in Malta, the next international ORC championship event is two weeks later at the ORC Mediterranean Championship held over 18-21 May at Piano di Sorrento, Italy.


This event features three days of competitive windward/leeward races in the waters between Capri and Sorrento and will be a selection to the Italian National Championship.


Currently there are 23 teams from 6 nations entered, with many past ORC champion teams. Entries close on March 15, so sign up now.

Three ORC seminars in the USA and one in AUS

The ORC team has been busy this month with ORC presentations made at Bayview Yacht Club in Detroit and Chicago Yacht Club by ORC Comms Director Dobbs Davis (shown above, seminar can be replayed here: https://youtu.be/Q3RXs1BJSnU). The Storm Trysail Club also gave a presentation on ORC at Eastern Yacht Club in Marblehead. Meanwhile ORC Chief Measurer Zoran Grubisa gave a much-needed scanning seminar in Sydney. And at the US Sailing Leadership Forum, Dobbs joined world-class navigator Stan Honey (shown below) in explaining the new weather-based scoring model, now in development by ORC.

ORC Regatta News:

ZIG ZAG overall SORC winner

At the conclusion of the Port Canaveral Race last weekend, Andrew Clark’s J122 ZIG ZAG was announced as the overall winner of the four-race 2022-23 SORC Islands in the Stream Series. After correcting out for the race win over Pat Harr’s first-to-finish Cookson 50 EN GARDE, ZIG ZAG won both the race to the Cape and the entire SORC series over a packed fleet of 40-something-footers.


A third place finish for the race was enough for another J122 - Tom Sutton’s LEADING EDGE - to lock up second for the series. Eamonn DeLisser and Jim Bill’s Farr 395 SENARA broke up the J122 design dominance in the top five by claiming third place for the series, ahead of Matt Schaedler’s BLITZKRIEG and Constantine Baris’ DIRE WOLF in fourth and fifth, respectively.


"It was a terrific series,” said organizer Chris Woolsey, "with a handful of boats within striking distance of the win going into the last race.” ORC scoring for most races were chosen among the range of point-to-point course model options found on Page 2 of the participants 2022 ORC USA certificates.


At the awards ceremony in Port Canaveral, the final award of the evening was the Luiz Legacy Trophy, awarded to the person or team who raised the most money for Warrior Sailing’s Luiz Legacy program, in honor of our friend Luiz Kahl’s legacy of support for our sport. According to Warrior Sailing National Director Ben Poucher, the fleet raised enough money to train one warrior for a year. Read more about the campaign on the Warrior Sailing’s Luiz Legacy page.


"No race has been requested more than the old classic SORC race, and there will be no easing into the new season,” said Woolsey, alluding to this race’s reputation as being a challenging sail down the Gulf coast to make then make the turn east at Key West into the full teeth of the Gulf Stream up the South Florida Atlantic coast to the finish in Ft Lauderdale.

Final results Southern Ocean Racing Circuit (SORC)

BUSHRANGER and YOUNG AT HEART winners of NSW ORC Championship

In a 3-day format of racing that included six inshore, W/L and passage races of lengths from 5 to 24 miles, two winners emerged at the ORC NSW Championship 2023 hosted by the Royal Prince Alfred YC. Gerry Hatton's MAT 1245 BUSHRANGER and Simon Grosser's Young 88 YOUNG AT HEART won Divisions 1 and 2, respectively, each by convincing margins.

Final Results from the 2023 ORC NSW Championship

FIREBALL and PEACEMAKER winners at Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta St Pete


𝗙𝗜𝗥𝗘𝗕𝗔𝗟𝗟 (shown above) and 𝗣𝗘𝗔𝗖𝗘𝗠𝗔𝗞𝗘𝗥 are winners of ORC A and ORC B Classes in the 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗛𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗻 𝗦𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗪𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗴𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗮 𝗦𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗦𝘁. 𝗣𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗯𝘂𝗿𝗴 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯. Bill and Jackie Baxter’s J111 had nearly perfect scores in ORC Class A, while Jeff Samson’s MORC 30 won ORC Class B by only one point in eight races sailed.

Final results Helly Hansen Sailing World Regatta St Pete

ORC Championship events in 2023

ORC European

Championship

23 April - 1 May 2023

Valletta, MLT

ORC Mediterranean

Championship

18-21 May 2023

Sorrento, ITA

ORC DH European

Championship

10-18 June 2023

Helsingor, DEN

ORC World

Championship

4-12 August 2023

Kiel, GER

ORC DH World

Championship

9-15 September 2023

Barcelona, ESP

ORC Sportboat European

Championship

23-29 September 2023

Kalamaki, GRE


About ORC and ORC Partners

For over 50 years the Offshore Racing Congress has managed and developed the IOR, IMS and now ORC rating systems used in inshore and offshore racing around the world.


For the past 20 years ORC has also organized annual World and European championship events, and provides the tools needed for fair racing among thousands of sailors competing in hundreds of local, regional and national races and regattas in 45 countries. It is the largest World Sailing-recognized handicap system in the world, issuing >10,000 certificates per year.


More on ORC at www.orc.org

GAASTRA is the Official ORC Apparel Partner. Go and discover more about GAASTRA here.

The ORC team is pleased to represent the values of the GAASTRA brand and now, with this special promotion from GAASTRA, you can get %30 discount on all items (if not already in sale) from the ORC & Gaastra selection. 

Go and find out at: 

https://www.gaastrastore.com/en/orc/


Seahorse is the world's foremost international performance sailing magazine, published every month, highlighting all that is new and exciting in the sport.

ORC certificate holders have FREE access to Seahorse for the January, March, May, July, September, and November issues, wherein there is also published an ORC column article that relates to the ORC community.


Special ORC discount subscriptions are also available: more at www.orc.org/seahorse.

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