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Irish Boats Prepare for Welsh IRC Championships

26th July 2019
Dave Cullen's Half Tonner Checkmate XV from Howth Yacht Club is heading for Wales Dave Cullen's Half Tonner Checkmate XV from Howth Yacht Club is heading for Wales Credit: Afloat

With just over two weeks until the Welsh IRC Championships on Cardigan Bay, Irish IRC boats are preparing for the trip across the Irish Sea to the Llŷn Peninsula and to Plas Heli - the Welsh National Sailing Academy on August 9th.

Royal Irish Yacht Club's Patrick Burke will compete in the First Class 35 Prima Luce in IRC as will Dave Cullen's Half Tonner Checkmate XV from Howth Yacht Club.

This year's Irish entries continue a fine reciprocal tradition of competing in Wales where Irish boats have recorded considerable success over the past five years.

The Championships also doubles as the Welsh leg of the RC35 class's Celtic Cup where Howth boat Storm won the inaugural trophy last year. And in 2017, Waterford raiders 'Fools Gold' won the IRC Welsh Championships.

Prima Luce first 35 0578Patrick Burke's First Class 35 Prima Luce from the Royal Irish Yacht Club Photo: Afloat

Berthing will also be available for Irish boats competing in the ISORA race from Dun Laoghaire to Pwllheli on July 27th and who wish to leave their boat in Pwllheli ready for the IRC Champs.

Jac Y Do 4759 2Mark and Jo Thompson's Jac Y Do from Clwb Hwylio Pwllheli Sailing Club Photo: Afloat

Pwllheli will also welcome competitors from right across the Irish Sea catchment area including Scotland. 

Triple Elf 3932Christine and Robin Murray's Triple Elf Photo: Afloat

Christine and Robin Murray's Triple Elf from Fairlie Yacht Club and last year's Class 2 Overall Winner Checkmate (Ian MacMillan) are also entered. This Checkmate team have just become UK Impala National Champions. Also entered is Robin Young's J109 Jings from the Scottish RC35 class.

Jings 3944Robin Young's Jings from Clyde Cruising Club Photo: Afloat

The bulk of these boats last competed together at Dun Laoghaire Regatta earlier this month.

IRC 1, 2 and sports-boats (IRC3) will race from a committee boat start in Tremadog Bay (Race Officer Mike Butterfield). The cruiser class (IRC4) will start and finish from the PSC club line adjacent to Gimlet Rock (Race Officer Robin Evans)

See entry list here

Published in ICRA
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The Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) Information

The creation of the Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) began in a very low key way in the autumn of 2002 with an exploratory meeting between Denis Kiely, Jim Donegan and Fintan Cairns in the Granville Hotel in Waterford, and the first conference was held in February 2003 in Kilkenny.

While numbers of cruiser-racers were large, their specific locations were widespread, but there was simply no denying the numerical strength and majority power of the Cork-Dublin axis. To get what was then a very novel concept up and running, this strength of numbers had to be acknowledged, and the first National Championship in 2003 reflected this, as it was staged in Howth.

ICRA was run by a dedicated group of volunteers each of whom brought their special talents to the organisation. Jim Donegan, the elder statesman, was so much more interested in the wellbeing of the new organisation than in personal advancement that he insisted on Fintan Cairns being the first Commodore, while the distinguished Cork sailor was more than content to be Vice Commodore.

ICRA National Championships

Initially, the highlight of the ICRA season was the National Championship, which is essentially self-limiting, as it is restricted to boats which have or would be eligible for an IRC Rating. Boats not actually rated but eligible were catered for by ICRA’s ace number-cruncher Denis Kiely, who took Ireland’s long-established native rating system ECHO to new heights, thereby providing for extra entries which brought fleet numbers at most annual national championships to comfortably above the hundred mark, particularly at the height of the boom years. 

ICRA Boat of the Year (Winners 2004-2019)