More than 400 starters have already registered for the record-breaking 50th Fastnet Race. More than a quarter of them will contest the course from Cowes around Fastnet Rock to Cherbourg in France in the IRC two-handed class and fight for the Brunskill Trophy! There could hardly be better proof of the rise of doublehanded racing. This calculation does not even include the Imocas, which are sailed solo and accompanied by an on-board reporter. With the impressive field of double-handed starters, interest in double-handed racing has increased fivefold since the Fastnet Race was introduced in 2005 (20 boats).
German two-handed crews in the Rolex Fastnet Race
This year, the double-handed boats are mostly competing in IRC 2 or IRC 3. Some of the 25 German Rolex Fastnet Race starters are also taking on the challenge of the Rolex Fastnet Race. Among them are well-known teams such as Lennart Burke and Melwin Fink on their new Pogo 40 S4 "Meganisi", Rasmus Töpsch and RVS chairman Bertil Balser on the JPK 10.10 "Sharifa" or the double-handed world champions Jonas Hallberg and Till Barth with their fast JPK 10.30 "Hinden". Click here for the "IRC Zweihand" entry list for the 50th Rolex Fastnet Race.
The longest boat sailed by two crew members outside the Imoca class will be the Verdier-designed JP54 "Notre Mediterranée-Ville de Nice". She will be sailed by Jean-Pierre Dick and Fabien Biron. Dick is a famous four-time Vendée Globe competitor who narrowly missed out on the podium in both 2012/13 and 2016/17, but has earned many sympathy points for his fair demeanour.
I like the course and its history." (Jean-Pierre Dick)
"The Rolex Fastnet Race is something very special," Jean-Pierre Dick told British journalist and author James Boyd, who has dedicated himself to the two-handed boom at the Rolex Fastnet Race. "I like the course and its history. For me, the Fastnet is a legendary offshore race. The south English coast is beautiful, and the course is complicated and always requires a lot of strategy."
An important double-handed competition of the 50th Rolex Fastnet Race will be held in IRC 1 by the Beneteau Figaro 2 class boats. Very intense double-handed competitions are also likely to take place in IRC 2 and 3. Here, the number of participants is so high that there will be countless "races within races" between various popular models. The boats involved are mainly from the French manufacturers JPK Composites and Jeanneau.
In 2013, a two-handed crew won the Fastnet overall ranking for the first time
Over the past decade, JPK in particular has dominated the Rolex Fastnet Race. Alexis Loison and his father Pascal have contributed significantly to this with the JPK 10.10 "Night and Day". In 2013, they were the first and so far only two-handed crew to win the overall classification of the Rolex Fastnet Race. JPK victories - albeit with a full crew - followed in 2015 with Géry Trentesaux's JPK 10.80 "Courrier Du Léon" and in 2021 with Tom Kneen's JPK 11.80 "Sunrise". 13 JPK 10.10s, nine JPK 10.30s and four JPK 10.80s will be on the starting line in the anniversary year. Twelve Sun Fast 3300s and eleven Sunfast 3200s are also expected to provide thrilling competition in the summer classic.
Among the smallest boats sailed double-handed is the Beneteau First 31.7 "Bruorskip" by Martin-Jan Strebe from the Netherlands, and among the oldest is the 1968 Swan 36 "Scherzo" by Peter Morton from Cowes, which is sailed by son-in-law Joph Carter and Robbie Southwell.
It is absolutely possible that a two-handed crew will win the overall standings." (Rasmus Töpsch)
Experts believe there is a good chance that one of the top crews from the double-handed IRC class could win the overall classification of the Rolex Fastnet Race this year. The boats of the latest generations are often specially designed for distance races under IRC. They have enormous form stability, which culminates in a semi-scow bow. And they are impressive speed machines. Doublehanded expert Rasmus Töpsch also confirms this: "It is absolutely possible for a doublehanded crew to win the overall classification. The 10.30s in particular are extremely fast with their modifications in the VPP."
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Tatjana Pokorny
Sports reporter
