J/Teams Ready for RORC Myth of Malham Race

(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- The RORC Myth of Malham Race returns with a potent fleet for one of the Royal Ocean Racing Club’s most respected offshore tests. Starting from the Royal Yacht Squadron Line in Cowes, the race sends the fleet west out of the Solent, along the English Channel to round the Eddystone Lighthouse before turning back towards the Solent.

At around 235.0nm, the Myth of Malham course is short enough to demand intensity from the start, but long enough to expose every weakness in boat speed, tidal strategy, crew work, and stamina. The race is often a tough beat west, followed by a fast return, and the opening 100 miles mirrors much of the early challenge of the Rolex Fastnet Race.

The Myth of Malham Race is also the second race of the 2026 Cowes Offshore Series, adding another important layer to the event. The race will provide a strong early-season showcase for the crews, boats, and stories that are shaping the RORC offshore series of seven races, all starting from Cowes. The Myth of Malham is also the sixth race of the world’s largest offshore series, the RORC Season’s Points Championship.

The 2026 fleet features forty-five yachts. Several standout performers from 2025 return, giving this year’s edition a strong sense of form, rivalry, and unfinished business.

IRC 1 Division
Sailing in this half-dozen boat fleet will be Nick & Jacquetta Edmonds’s J/45 STICKLEBACK.

IRC 2 Division
With just three boats starting on the line, everyone is guaranteed a podium finish! The real question comes down to bragging rights; perhaps past RORC Champion Derek Shakespeare and his crackerjack team on the J/122 BULLDOG will go for the gold!

IRC 4 Division
As the largest division with thirteen boats, the two J/109s will have their hands full with a few very competitive offshore teams. Rob Cotterill’s MOJO RISIN and Gillian Burgess skippering the Royal Air Force Sailing Association’s RED ARROW will be hoping the forecast for westerly breezes holds true! A giant windward-leeward race would be much to the J/109’s liking.

From Cowes to Eddystone and back to the Solent, the Myth of Malham remains a proper Channel test. It rewards the crews that can combine speed with control, aggression with stamina, and good seamanship with sharp racing skills. For many teams, it is one of the defining offshore challenges of the RORC season.

For more RORC Myth of Malham Race sailing information
http://www.rorc.org