The Royal Ocean Racing Club is a club in London with a further clubhouse and office in
Cowes
Cowes () is an English seaport town and civil parish on the Isle of Wight. Cowes is located on the west bank of the estuary of the River Medina, facing the smaller town of East Cowes on the east bank. The two towns are linked by the Cowes Floa ...
,
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight ( ) is a county in the English Channel, off the coast of Hampshire, from which it is separated by the Solent. It is the largest and second-most populous island of England. Referred to as 'The Island' by residents, the Isle of ...
. It was established in 1925 as the Ocean Racing Club, as a result of a race to the
Fastnet Rock
Fastnet Lighthouse is a 54m high lighthouse situated on the remote Fastnet Rock in the Atlantic Ocean. It is the most southerly point of Ireland and lies southwest of Cape Clear Island and from County Cork on the Irish mainland. The current l ...
from Cowes, finishing in Plymouth. It received royal approval by King George V in November 1931 since when it has been known as the Royal Ocean Racing Club.
The RORC is the principal organiser of offshore
yacht race
Yacht racing is a sailing sport involving sailing yachts and larger sailboats, as distinguished from dinghy racing, which involves open boats. It is composed of multiple yachts, in direct competition, racing around a course marked by buoys or o ...
s in the United Kingdom, including the
Fastnet Race
The Fastnet Race is a biennial offshore yacht race organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club of the United Kingdom with the assistance of the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes and the City of Cherbourg in France.
The race is named after the Fastnet ...
, the RORC Caribbean 600, the RORC Transatlantic Race and the quadrennial
Round Britain and Ireland Yacht Race. It was also the organiser of the
Admiral's Cup
The Admiral's Cup was an international yachting regatta. For many years it was known as the unofficial world championship of offshore racing.
The Admiral's Cup regatta was started in 1957 and was normally a biennial event (occurring in odd-numbe ...
and the
Commodores' Cup
The Brewin Dolphin Commodores’ Cup is a biennial amateur team sailing regatta first held in 1992. The competition is organised by the Royal Ocean Racing Club consists of a number of events held in the oceans of the Solent, the English channel ...
.
RORC was founded to encourage long distance yacht racing and the design, building and navigation of sailing vessels in which speed and seaworthiness are combined.
Basic facts from rorc.org website
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In co-operation with the offshore racing department of the Yacht Club de France
The Yacht Club de France is the senior nautical club in France, and one of the most important yacht clubs in the world.
History
The club was established in 1867, during the Second French Empire. It was bestowed Royal Patronage by Emperor Napole ...
, RORC is responsible for IRC
Internet Relay Chat (IRC) is a text-based chat system for instant messaging. IRC is designed for group communication in discussion forums, called '' channels'', but also allows one-on-one communication via private messages as well as chat an ...
, the principal international handicap system for yacht racing
Yacht racing is a Sailing (sport), sailing sport involving sailing yachts and larger sailboats, as distinguished from dinghy racing, which involves open boats. It is composed of multiple yachts, in direct competition, racing around a course marke ...
.
References
External links
Official website
IRC Rating website
Fastnet Race website
RORC Caribbean 600 website
Round Britain and Ireland Race website
RORC Transatlantic Race website
(East Anglian Offshore Racing Association), an alternative UK offshore yacht race organiser
* JOG (Junior Offshore Group), an alternative UK offshore yacht race organiser
{{Authority control
Royal yacht clubs
1925 establishments in England
Gentlemen's clubs in London
Organisations based in England with royal patronage
Yacht clubs in England
Sports clubs established in 1925