Sisk's 'Wow' Continues Winning Season at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta

9th July 2015

The Cruiser class one start the first race of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta this afternoon

#dlregatta – George Sisk's Farr 42 'Wow' that was crowned ICRA Division Zero champion last month has won the opening coastal race of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta this afternoon. The Royal Irish entry took the lead in the impressive 25 boat IRC offshore division in choppy seas and 20–knot winds. Second was the canting keel Cookson 50 Lee Overlay Partners skippered by Adrian Lee. Third was another east coast boat, the J122 Aquelina skippered by James Tyrrell of Arklow.

Among the fleets participating, Howth Yacht Club's Storm skippered by Pat Kelly took an early lead in the J109 National Championships being sailed as part of the 2015 regatta.

The Howth entry made the most of a strong sea breeze gusting to 20 knots that delivered championship conditions and got all 29 classes off to a prompt start on Dublin Bay.

3000 sailors are racing in the four day regatta, the biggest sailing event in Ireland this year. Last night no less than 17 protests were heard. There were a number of collisions and a number of rescues inlcuding one for a crew with a reported dislocated shoulder.

Second in the 11–boat J109 fleet was the National Yacht Club's Something Else skippered by John Hall with third place going to recently crowned Irish Cruiser (ICRA) Division One champion, Joker II (John Maybury).

Conditions could not have been more different than the first race this time two years ago when light winds frustrated sailors in the biennial event.

Pat Kelly's Storm has taken an early lead in the J109 National Championships and (below) neck and neck with Joker II with only yards to a hectic drop-gybe-round leeward mark

Wildwood, a 2014 Round Ireland Race competitor, sailed by Ian Patterson of East Antrim is racing in the 25-boat IRC coastal class

Today was equally as testing but for completely different reasons as sailors dealt with choppy seas and gusty conditions that led to a number of collisions and gear damage.

Racing is being staged until Sunday over five separate courses for a combined fleet of 415 boats, with over 180 visiting yachts from 69 yacht clubs.

An impressive line up of eight class zero boats has made Volvo Dun Laoghaire regatta one of the biggest turnout this year for the near 40–footers. What's even more impressive is the fleet has been drawn entirely from outside the Bay. First blood has gone to Conor Phelan's Ker 37 Jump Juice, just one of four entries from Cork Harbour. Second is returning Scottish entry from the Clyde, Roxstar, the XP38i, skippered by Jonathan Anderson. The 2013 winner of the overall Volvo trophy Nigel Biggs is back and sailing this year in class zero in a new C&C 30 design and placed sixth.

The new C&C30 designed by Mark Mills of Wicklow debuted in Class Zero - Afloat.ie's photo boat clocked her at 18–knots

Visitors also top class one's 18-boat fleet with the Beneteau First 36.7 Wildfire (DJ O'Malley) from Royal Northern Yacht Club leading from Fairlie Yacht club's MAT 1010 Now or Never. Third is local boat Boomerang, the Kirwan family's Beneteau 36.7, from the Royal St. George Yacht Club.

The Irish National Sailing School's Reflex 38 was going well in Division one until the jib halyard broke. Team INSS will be back in action on Friday as will these J109s below...

Yachts are sailing different courses including trapezoid, windward leeward, and triangular course configurations.

In the one design and dinghy divisions, sailing in the west or the north west of Dublin bay, there were plenty of familiar names at the top of the fleets.

Royal Ulster's Paul Prentice leads an impressive 16-boat Sigma 33 fleet, Ian Mathews the Flying Fifteens, Vincent Delany the Squibs and in an impressive 35–boat turnout for the GP14s, Ballyholme Yacht Club's Ruan O'Tiarnaigh and Niamh McCormick lead.

Unfortunately, a first race collision with a Beneteau 21 on the same course has almost certainly put Flying Fifteen contenders Ben Mulligan and Alan Green out of the regatta.

Sailing in Seapoint Bay, with a 150-160 degree wind, a seven boat Fireball dinghy fleet
sailed two races and Conor Clancy leads with a first and a third.

Racing continues tomorrow (Friday)

Scroll down for 2023 Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta results class by class

Read all the Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta Race News in one handy link here
Click links to read more on VDLR IRC divisions Coastal, IRC Zero, IRC One, IRC Two and IRC Three
Listen to Lorna Siggins's interview with Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta Race Director Paddy Boyd here
Read more on the Coastival Festival here
See live Dublin Bay webcams covering here

Afloat will be posting regular race updates throughout the 2023 Regatta. Send your photos, tips and stories by email to [email protected]

Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta 2023 Race Results

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Published in Volvo Regatta

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Dun Laoghaire

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Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta

From the Baily lighthouse to Dalkey island, the bay accommodates six separate courses for 21 different classes racing every two years for the Dun Laoghaire Regatta.

In assembling its record-breaking armada, Volvo Dun Laoghaire regatta (VDLR) became, at its second staging, not only the country's biggest sailing event, with 3,500 sailors competing, but also one of Ireland's largest participant sporting events.

One of the reasons for this, ironically, is that competitors across Europe have become jaded by well-worn venue claims attempting to replicate Cowes and Cork Week.'Never mind the quality, feel the width' has been a criticism of modern-day regattas where organisers mistakenly focus on being the biggest to be the best. Dun Laoghaire, with its local fleet of 300 boats, never set out to be the biggest. Its priority focussed instead on quality racing even after it got off to a spectacularly wrong start when the event was becalmed for four days at its first attempt.

The idea to rekindle a combined Dublin bay event resurfaced after an absence of almost 40 years, mostly because of the persistence of a passionate race officer Brian Craig who believed that Dun Laoghaire could become the Cowes of the Irish Sea if the town and the local clubs worked together. Although fickle winds conspired against him in 2005, the support of all four Dun Laoghaire waterfront yacht clubs since then (made up of Dun Laoghaire Motor YC, National YC, Royal Irish YC and Royal St GYC), in association with the two racing clubs of Dublin Bay SC and Royal Alfred YC, gave him the momentum to carry on.

There is no doubt that sailors have also responded with their support from all four coasts. Running for four days, the regatta is (after the large mini-marathons) the single most significant participant sports event in the country, requiring the services of 280 volunteers on and off the water, as well as top international race officers and an international jury, to resolve racing disputes representing five countries. A flotilla of 25 boats regularly races from the Royal Dee near Liverpool to Dublin for the Lyver Trophy to coincide with the event. The race also doubles as a RORC qualifying race for the Fastnet.

Sailors from the Ribble, Mersey, the Menai Straits, Anglesey, Cardigan Bay and the Isle of Man have to travel three times the distance to the Solent as they do to Dublin Bay. This, claims Craig, is one of the major selling points of the Irish event and explains the range of entries from marinas as far away as Yorkshire's Whitby YC and the Isle of Wight.

No other regatta in the Irish Sea area can claim to have such a reach. Dublin Bay Weeks such as this petered out in the 1960s, and it has taken almost four decades for the waterfront clubs to come together to produce a spectacle on and off the water to rival Cowes."The fact that we are getting such numbers means it is inevitable that it is compared with Cowes," said Craig. However, there the comparison ends."We're doing our own thing here. Dun Laoghaire is unique, and we are making an extraordinary effort to welcome visitors from abroad," he added. The busiest shipping lane in the country – across the bay to Dublin port – closes temporarily to facilitate the regatta and the placing of six separate courses each day.

A fleet total of this size represents something of an unknown quantity on the bay as it is more than double the size of any other regatta ever held there.

Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta FAQs

What is Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Dun Laoghaire Regatta is Ireland's biggest sailing event. It is held every second Summer at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on Dublin Bay.

When is Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Dun Laoghaire Regatta is held every two years, typically in the first weekend of July.

Where is Dun Laoghaire Regatta held?

As its name suggests, the event is based at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. Racing is held on Dublin Bay over as many as six different courses with a coastal route that extends out into the Irish Sea. Ashore, the festivities are held across the town but mostly in the four organising yacht clubs.

How big is Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Dun Laoghaire Regatta is the largest sailing regatta in Ireland and on the Irish Sea and the second largest in the British Isles. It has a fleet of 500 competing boats and up to 3,000 sailors. Scotland's biggest regatta on the Clyde is less than half the size of the Dun Laoghaire event. After the Dublin city marathon, the regatta is one of the most significant single participant sporting events in the country in terms of Irish sporting events.

How old is Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

The modern Dublin Bay Regatta began in 2005, but it owes its roots to earlier combined Dublin Bay Regattas of the 1960s.

How many boats compete at Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Up to 500 boats regularly compete.

How many yacht clubs are represented at Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Up to 70 different yacht clubs are represented.

Where do the yachts come from to compete at Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

The Channel Islands, Isle of Man, England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Ireland countrywide, and Dublin clubs.

How many boats are visiting boats at Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Nearly half the sailors, over 1,000, travel to participate from outside of Dun Laoghaire and from overseas to race and socialise in Dun Laoghaire.

What type of yachts race in Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

21 different classes are competing at Dun Laoghaire Regatta. As well as four IRC Divisions from 50-footers down to 20-foot day boats and White Sails, there are also extensive one-design keelboat and dinghy fleets to include all the fleets that regularly race on the Bay such as Beneteau 31.7s, Ruffian 23s, Sigma 33s as well as Flying Fifteens, Laser SB20s plus some visiting fleets such as the RS Elites from Belfast Lough to name by one.

What famous sailors race in Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Some sailing household names are regular competitors at the biennial Dun Laoghaire event including Dun Laoghaire Olympic silver medalist, Annalise Murphy. International sailing stars are competing too such as Mike McIntyre, a British Olympic Gold medalist and a raft of World and European class champions.

How much does it cost to enter Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

There are different entry fees for different size boats. A 40-foot yacht will pay up to €550, but a 14-foot dinghy such as Laser will pay €95. Full entry fee details are contained in the Regatta Notice of Race document.

Where can spectators view Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Spectators can see the boats racing on six courses from any vantage point on the southern shore of Dublin Bay. As well as from the Harbour walls itself, it is also possible to see the boats from Sandycove, Dalkey and Killiney, especially when the boats compete over inshore coastal courses or have in-harbour finishes.

How does Dun Laoghaire regatta compare to international regattas?

Very favourably. It is often compared to Cowes, Britain's biggest regatta on the Isle of Wight that has 1,000 entries. However, sailors based in the north of England have to travel three times the distance to get to Cowes as they do to Dun Laoghaire.

Why is Dun Laoghaire Regatta so unique?

Dun Laoghaire Regatta is unique because of its compact site offering four different yacht clubs within the harbour and the race tracks' proximity, just a five-minute sail from shore. International sailors also speak of its international travel connections and being so close to Dublin city. The regatta also prides itself on balancing excellent competition with good fun ashore.

Who organises Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

The Organising Authority (OA) of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta is Dublin Bay Regattas Ltd, a not-for-profit company, beneficially owned by Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club (DMYC), National Yacht Club (NYC), Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC) and Royal St George Yacht Club (RSGYC).

What does Dun Laoghaire Regatta contribute to the local economy?

The Irish Marine Federation launched a case study on the 2009 Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta's socio-economic significance. Over four days, the study (carried out by Irish Sea Marine Leisure Knowledge Network) found the event was worth nearly €3million to the local economy over the four days of the event. Typically the Royal Marine Hotel and Haddington Hotel and other local providers are fully booked for the event.