18:00 June 26th: A flying morning for Kinsale crews on the 704 nautical mile Round Ireland Race 2026.

Loinnir Girl is home and top of IRC Class 3. The Lough Ree and Kinsale crew of John Malone (Lough Ree YC), Emmet Sheridan (Lough Ree YC), Sam Hunt (KYC) and Cian McCarthy (KYC) turned the early week chase into a class lead, crossing the Wicklow line in style.

Well Done Loinnir Girl!

Black Sheep is in too. Trevor Middleton’s boat, with Kinsale’s Micheal O’Suilleabhain aboard, sits third in IRC Class 1. A cracking result.

Word just in from Shindig: “66 mile beat to the line”. The father and son crew of Tony and Jack Kingston have brought her from fourth to second in IRC Double-Handed overnight. They lead the Cruisers and sit second in Class 4, with one long upwind still between them and the finish.

Go Shindig!

All positions provisional until official results are confirmed.

Video footage from Shindig tonight …