2019 Dun Laoghaire to Dingle Race Forms Part of the 'RORC' Calendar

3rd December 2018

The start of the 2017 D2D race. Changes to the 2019race means navigators and skippers can plot courses to hug the coastline, and to go inside Islands and lighthouses as part of their strategy" Credit: Afloat.ie

The 2019 Volvo Dun Laoghaire to Dingle “D2D” Race will start from the National Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire on Wednesday, June 12th 2019. The 2019 edition of D2D brings with it some important and exciting changes while retaining the spirit and ethos of the race as a 300-mile coastal racing challenge for Cruiser/Racing boats racing under the IRC rule.

Firstly, the 2019 race forms part of the Royal Ocean Racing Club “RORC” calendar for the season. This is in addition to the race continuing as part of the ISORA programme and much of the fleet participating in ISORA using the same race tracking technology. The association with RORC has been growing over the past few years and we expect this to further develop for future editions. What this association brings this year is the superb race management team from the National Yacht Club is further enhanced with international racing best practice in terms of the RORC offshore racing standards, and it is expected that boats campaigning in RORC will look towards the D2D race as a great workout for crew and equipment in advance of the RORC Fastnet Race in August 2019.

"This change means that navigators and skippers can plot courses to hug the coastline, and to go inside Islands and lighthouses as part of their strategy"

Secondly, the course for the race has been amended for 2019 in that the course is defined as “Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Dingle Harbour leaving the Mainland of Ireland to Starboard”. This change means that navigators and skippers can plot courses to hug the coastline, and to go inside Islands and lighthouses as part of their strategy to get from the start to finish lines in the quickest (and safest) times. This innovation has occurred as a result of the experience of the Volvo Ocean Race fleet earlier in 2019, where the fleet could take a similar approach on the leg around Ireland. It can make a great spectacle as the fleet get close inshore, even if some of the towns and pubs along the way are difficult to pass late in the evening!

Finally, to encourage entries from mixed crews there will be a new sub-category and prize for entries with at least two female crew/competitors.

So the 2019 edition of the D2D (Dun Laoghaire to Dingle) Race builds on the wonderful ethos and tradition of this great race. With Volvo Car Ireland continuing as the title sponsor to the traditional local support from the Dingle Skellig Hotel. Since its inception in 1984 this race has always thrived on the wonderful co-operation between the National Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire and those local businesses in Dingle that provide a great welcome and hospitality at the finishing destination.

The timing of the 2019 race is designed so boats participating in the IRC Nationals in Dun Laoghaire (June 7th – 9th) can use the race to get south in time for Sovereigns Week in Kinsale (June 26th – 29th).

The Notice of Race is now available to download here.

Published in Dun Laoghaire Dingle

Dun Laoghaire Dingle Race Live Tracker 2023

Track the progress of the 2023 Dun Laoghaire to Dingle Yacht Race fleet on the live tracker above and the leaderboard below

Dun Laoghaire Dingle Race Live Leaderboard 2023

The 16th edition of the 280-mile race organised by the National Yacht Club starts at 2 pm on Wednesday, June 7th, on Dublin Bay.

Read the full 2023 race preview by WM Nixon here
Read all the D2D Race News in one handy link here
Listen to Lorna Siggins's interview with Race Chairman Adam Winkelmann on Afloat's Wavelengths here

WM Nixon will be posting regular race updates and analysis throughout the 2023 race here

Published in Dun Laoghaire Dingle

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Dun Laoghaire to Dingle D2D

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Dun Laoghaire to Dingle Yacht Race Information

The biennial Dun Laoghaire to Dingle race is a 320-miles race down to the east coast of Ireland, across the south coast and into Dingle harbour in County Kerry.

The race is organised by the National Yacht Club.

It never fails to offer a full range of weather, wind and tide to the intrepid entrants, ranging from a 32ft cruiser to a 79ft all-out racer.

Three divisions are available to enter: cruiser (boats equipped with furlers), racing (the bulk of the fleet) and also two-handed.

D2D Course change overruled

In 2019, the organisers considered changing the course to allow boats to select routes close to shore by removing the requirement to go outside Islands and Lighthouses en route, but following input from regular participants, the National Yacht Club decided to stick with the tried and tested course route in order to be fair to large and smaller boats and to keep race records intact.

D2D Course record time

Mick Cotter’s 78ft Whisper established the 1 day and 48 minutes course record for the Dun Laoghaire to Dingle Race in 2009 and that time stood until 2019 when Cotter returned to beat his own record but only just, the Dun Laoghaire helmsman crossing the line in Kerry to shave just 20 seconds off his 2009 time.