The 36th 'Mini Fastnet Race' starts this Sunday the 12th of June in the Bay of Douarnenez, France and two Irish boats are competing in the 21-foot class.

The Mini Fastnet is a founding event in the mini circuit and as such is a rite of passage for any self-respecting “Ministe”.

The 600 mile Double handed course runs from Douarnenez - Chenal du Four – Wolf Rock –Racon Buoy north of the Scillies– Stags Buoy - Fastnet Rock – Douarnenez.

The 6.5 metre boats will spend four days and nights at sea, racing round the legendary Fastnet Rock. This year there are 85 entrants with another 46 on the waiting list.

Two Irish co-skippers will be competing in this Double Handed Event.

Mark O’Connor will be skippering his “Bád Beag” number IRL 840 with a French co-skipper. While Galway sailmaker Yannick Lemonnier will be racing aboard “Terminal Leave” USA 837 with an American co-skipper.

This will be Yannick’s Second Mini Fastnet Race as he has previously completed the 2021 edition aboard Port of Galway, IRL 492.

For Mark, this will be a new experience, being his first double-handed race in the mini class.

The anticipated softening of the northeast wind which has been powering the fleet in the 600–mile two–handed Mini-Fastnet Race from Douarnenez in Brittanny to the famous rock, and back, has seen a slackening of the pace writes W M Nixon.

But Ireland’s Tom Dolan, co-skippered by Francois Jambou in the Pogo 3 Cellestab.com, has managed to keep himself in a tight-knit bunch towards the front of the race, within a group who have built up a six mile gap between themselves and the bulk of the 62 strong fleet. The Dolan-Jambou placing has shuttled between fourth and seventh in class with positioning very close, while speed veers between 5.7 and 6.1 knots.

Ian Lipinski, sailing with David Raison on the exceptionally fast one-off Griffon, continues to lead by a considerable margin, but even his speed has fallen to six knots as the fleet shapes up along the long haul from the mandatory turn off the North Cornish coast across the Celtic Sea to the next turning point, at the Stag Rocks off West Cork.

After the Stags, they follow the Irish coast westward to the Fastnet itself before heading back to Douarnenez. Meanwhile their problem this afternoon is to keep up speed until an anticipated slight freshening of the breeze – still from the northeast – fills slowly in.

Ireland’s Tom Dolan currently lies fourth in class as the 62–strong fleet in the 600-mile Mini-Fastnet from Douarnenez in western Brittany goes into its first night, crossing the English Channel to the first mark at the Wolf Rock writes W M Nixon. After that, they pass close close to Land’s End on a routing which keeps the little boats clear of shipping separation zones.

The course for the Mini Fastnet has to take account of shipping zones

It’s a two–handed event, and sailing with Dolan on Cellestab.com (IRL 910) is longtime shipmate Francois Jambou. Once again Ian Lipinsky with the ultimate prototype Griffon is the overall leader, but with the breeze mostly from the easterly sector, most of the fleet have been making good progress.

However, once Land’s End has been passed, an obligatory leg northward may see some windward work, while the weather in the days ahead could see much flukier conditions develop. But for now, sailing conditions are wellnigh ideal, and IRL 910 was making 8.2 knots in fourth place as midnight approached.

The remaining Minis in the Mini Fastnet Race are approaching the Fastnet Rock this morning, with a line of six boats all within four miles of one another at the head of the fleet in a dying breeze.

Upwards of fifteen boats turned for shore before the fleet rounded Wolf Rock, with heavy airs in the English Channel taking their toll on the 21-footers. 

Out in front, it's still Groupama techie Yann Riou and his co-skipper Guillaume Le Brec pushing hard in front, making close to eight knots on a beam reach to the rock. 

The race tracker is visible HERE and is worth a look. Enjoy the playback function, where you can see the race unfold in fast-forward.

64 Mini 6.50s are currently beating their way across the English Channel en route to Ireland's south-west tip as part of the Mini Fastnet. The fleet of double-handed 21-footers are roughly 75 miles from Wolf Rock this morning, battling a strong headwind in excess of 23 knots. The race starts and finishes in Douarnenez, rounding Wolf Rock to Port and then the Fastnet, before the sprint home.

The boats should cross St George's Channel today and round the Fastnet sometime tonight. 

You can follow the race on the live tracker HERE. Leading the charge at present is Yann Riou, a member of the Groupama team led by Franck Cammas, of which Damian Foxall is a key figure.