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Swords Sailing & Boating Club To Host First GP14 Event of 2016 Season

9th May 2016
Irish GP14s returning from the Barbados World Championships arrived back in Belfast in early May. Three Irish containers were unpacked and It is reported all the boats are very much in one piece. Shane McCarthy's winning championship boat was one of the first out Irish GP14s returning from the Barbados World Championships arrived back in Belfast in early May. Three Irish containers were unpacked and It is reported all the boats are very much in one piece. Shane McCarthy's winning championship boat was one of the first out Credit: GP14 class

The GP14 Ireland fleet kicks off its 2016 season with combined Purcell Trophy 2016 & O’Tiarnaigh Challenge from 21-22 May at Swords Sailing & Boating Club.

The first event will of course be sailed with the new Irish world champion among its numbers. Shane McCarthy, who was just named Afloat's 'Sailor Of The Month' for April, will be in attendance at the North Dublin venue.

The format is as follows:

Saturday 21 May 2016 (Purcell Trophy)
Four Races First Race 12.00noon
Lunches ashore, there will be a briefing before going afloat

Sunday 22 May 2016 (R O'Tiarnaigh Challenge)
Two/Three Races First Race 10.30.
Lunches ashore, there will be a briefing before going afloat
The Finals will as soon as possible after the selection of the 12 Finalist

The NOR is attached.

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Published in GP14

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The GP14 is a popular sailing dinghy, with well over 14,000 boats built.

The class is active in the UK, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and parts of north-eastern USA, and the GP14 can be used for both racing and cruising. 

Designed by Jack Holt in 1949, with the assistance of the Dovey Yacht Club in Aberdyfi. The idea behind the design was to build a General Purpose (GP) 14-foot dinghy which could be sailed or rowed, capable of also being powered effectively by a small outboard motor, able to be towed behind a small family car and able to be launched and recovered reasonably easily, and stable enough to be able to lie to moorings or anchor when required. Racing soon followed, initially with some degree of opposition from Yachting World, who had commissioned the design, and the boat soon turned out to be an outstanding racing design also.

The boat was initially designed with a main and small jib as a comfortable family dinghy. In a design philosophy that is both practical and highly redolent of social attitudes of the day the intention was that she should accommodate a family comprising parents plus two children, and specifically that the jib should be modest enough for "Mum" or older children to handle, while she should perform well enough to give "Dad" some excitement when not taking the family out. While this rig is still available, and can be useful when using the boat to teach sailing, or for family sailing, and has some popularity for cruising, the boat is more commonly seen with the full modern rig of a mainsail, genoa and spinnaker. Australian boats also routinely use trapezes.

GP14 Ireland Event Dates 2023

  • O'Tiarnaigh (Apr 22-23) Blessington Sailing Club
  • Ulsters (May 20-21) East Antrim Boat Club
  • Munsters (Jun 17-18) Tralee Bay Sailing Club
  • Leinsters (Jul 7-9) Dun Laoghaire Regatta
  • SOYC (Aug 19-20) Rush Sailing Club
  • Nationals (Sep 1-3) Sutton Dinghy Club
  • Hot Toddy (Sep 30-Oct 1) Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club

 

At A Glance – GP14 Dinghy Specifications

Crew 2
Draft 1,200 mm (47 in)
Hull weight 132.9 kg
LOA 4.27 m (14 ft)
Beam 1.54 m
Spinnaker area 8.4 m2
Upwind sail area 12.85 m2

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