J/Teams Endure Grueling RORC Myth of Malham Race

ByStuart Johnstone
Sailboat speed and performance instruments on a sunny day at sea.

(Cowes, Isle of Wight, England)- The 2025 Myth of Malham marked the sixth event in the RORC Season’s Points Championship, the world’s largest offshore racing series. It also played a pivotal role in the season, acting as a key qualifier for the 2025 Rolex Fastnet Race, as well as a crucial leg in the new RORC Cowes Offshore Series.

Starting from the iconic Royal Yacht Squadron Line, the fleet raced down the English Channel to round the Eddystone Lighthouse, before turning back to finish at North Head.

The RORC fleet faced a fierce test of endurance and seamanship as strong south-westerlies built to 15–20 knots, with gusts touching 30 and waves exceeding two meters. The long beat to Eddystone was a punishing uphill grind, testing every maneuver and tactical decision. But the reward was worth it—once around the lighthouse, crews cracked sheets and hoisted downwind sails for a thrilling high-speed ride back to the Solent, surfing home on a full-throttle ride to the finish.

A Grueling Test, Standout Performances
IRC 1 Division
In this large thirty-three-boat fleet, Mike O’Donnell’s Irish team aboard the J/121 DARKWOOD pulled off a fifth place.

IRC 2 Division
The big twenty-three boat fleet saw Robin & Lawrence Herbert’s J/133 CORAZON garnering the silver medal, missing the gold medal by a mere six minutes corrected time! Then, Nick Southward’s J/122 WHISKEY JACK took fifth place in the hotly contested class.

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