Although there was a small enough turnout, the Irish Examiner sponsored Round Spike Island Race was sailed in beautiful sunshine in Cork Harbour.

Eight keelboats and six dinghies competed for the annual Royal Cork Yacht Club hosted event.

Scroll down for photo gallery below

The cruisers went off first being given a course to No. 3 buoy at the mouth of the harbour and then round Spike and a finish in the river at Currabinny Pier near the Royal Cork clubhouse at Crosshaven.

The dinghies had a reach mark laid off Spike and then onwards to round the island.

Alex Barry, at the helm of the winning National 18 dinghy Photo: Bob Bateman

Alex Barry, at the helm of a National 18, won the dinghy prize against a mixed fleet including an Oppie, a Topper, a Wayfarer and three visiting 505s.

The Young Family's North Star was the Cruiser winner of the Round Spike Island Race Photo: Bob Bateman

The Young Family's North Star won the keelboat prize.

Bob Bateman's RCYC Round Spike Island Photo Gallery

In Royal Cork Yacht Club Thursday Cruiser Leagues, Fiona Young's North Star leads IRC Spinnaker and ECHO handicap Divisions. Paul and Deirdre Tingle's Alpaca is 2nd. Jelly Baby (Jones family) is 3rd in IRC. Frank Doyle/Cara 2nd in ECHO and Richard Leonard's Bandit 3rd.

In Whitesail, the leader is Prince of Tides, Frank Caul/John Molloy in both IRC and ECHO. Kieran O'Brien's Magnet is second and Sean Hanley's Luas third in IRC. John and Fiona Murphy are second in ECHO sailing Esme' Magnet are third. 

Peter Webster leads the Friday Whitesail League with Clive Doherty's Phaeton second and Fiona Young's North Star third.

Richard Leonard's Bandit Photo: Bob Bateman

This year's Cork Harbour Round Spike Island Race will take place on Sunday at the Royal Cork Yacht Club in Crosshaven in both dinghies and keelboats for the 'Irish Examiner 'trophy.

Boats of all types and sizes regularly compete in the annual race.

High Tide at Cobh is 12:28 hours, giving boats 3.5 metres to get around, so First Gun for the race will be at 11:55 hours in the vicinity of Cage buoy.

Even small Optimist dinghies compete in the Round Spike Island Race Photo: Bob Bateman

Royal Cork's National 18 dinghy League had a seven boat turnout for Wednesday's race in Cork Harbour.

The three-man dinghy fleet returned to the racecourse at Royal Cork on June 10th for the first racing league of 2021 and have been racing every Wednesday as part of a busy 2021 line up.

As Afloat previously reported, highlights of the upcoming calendar include the National 18 Championships (Cock O’ The North) in August, the presentation of The Curlane Cup for the overall winner of the combined harbour races plus the Cork Harbour Archipelago Raid, a series of harbour point to point races which plays on the famous Swedish Archipelago Raid.

National 18 RCYC League Photo Gallery by Bob Bateman 

Royal Cork female helmswomen finished first and second overall at the 29er Irish National Championships at Royal Cork Yacht Club in Crosshaven this afternoon. 

After a ten race series on the Curlane Bank in Cork Harbour, in which brother and sister Lola and Atlee Kohl won four races, the duo was crowned Irish champions on 20 points with a three-point margin clubmates Alana Twomey and Chris Bateman. Still, the winners were only decided in the last race this afternoon.

Overall winners - the Kohls Second overall - Alana Twomey and Chris BatemanJames Dwyer and Oisín MacSweeney

Most of the racing was held in 12-15 knots, testing sailing conditions.

Rounding out the podium, a third RCYC combination James Dwyer and Oisín MacSweeney, took third overall.

Royal St. George siblings Emily and Jessica Riordan of Dun Laoghaire Harbour were the top female combination in fourth overall in the 15-boat fleet.

Royal St. George's 29er siblings Emily and Jessica Riordan

The youth skiff racing is seen as a step up boat to the Olympic 49ers skiffs. 

Cork native and World Sailing Vice President Marcus Spillane, a former President of the International skiff class, spoke to the sailors at the prizegiving. 

The 29er event is one of the Cork 300 events postponed last year and sponsored by AIB and Mervue Laboratories.

There was a training camp in the club in the week leading up, which many of the competitors attended.

29er Irish National Championships at Royal Cork Yacht Club Photo Gallery

Three single-handed dinghy fleets ventured out last night to compete for Royal Cork mid-week honours in Cork Harbour.

Over 30 Oppies, Laser & Topper dinghy sailors competed from Crosshaven with Optimist Class Captain Derek Moynan in charge of the Oppie racing course.

Scroll down for a photo gallery of the Optimist racing.

Royal Cork Optimist Dinghy Racing Gallery by Bob Bateman

Essentially a river race starting opposite the Royal Cork Yacht Club, 2021's PY1000 dinghy event was won by 29er skiff duo, James Dwyer and Oisin MacSweeney. 

Race Officer Anthony O'Leary set a windward-leeward course over ten rounds on Crosshaven's Owenabue river. A fleet of 25 dinghies competed.

Second in the handicap race was Laser Radial single-hander, Jonathan O'Shaughnessy. Third was National 18 trio Charles Dwyer, Harry Pritchard and John Coakley.

Megan O'Sullivan was awarded at the prize giving for both, first girl and youngest sailor in her Laser 4.7 (6th overall).

Scroll down for a photo gallery of the event below by Bob Bateman.

Laser Radial single-hander, Jonathan O'Shaughnessy (Sail number 189211) was runner up in the 2021 PY race Photo: Bob Bateman

National 18 trio Charles Dwyer, Harry Pritchard and John Coakley were third overall in the PY1000

Results are here

2021 PY 1000 photo gallery by Bob Bateman

Despite the grey day, a party atmosphere prevailed both on land & sea for the traditional 'Admiral's Chace' in the Royal Cork Yacht Club yesterday afternoon.

The Chace is about spending some fun time on the water and was led by Admiral Colin Morehead around beautiful Cork Harbour. This family fun day is for all members and all boats are encouraged to join (motor & sail).

Scroll down for a photo gallery of the event below by Bob Bateman.

Admiral Colin Morehead on board RCYC club launch, Adriele Photo: Bob Bateman

Admiral Morehead headed off with his entourage in high spirits followed by a fleet of mixed yachts and motorboats in pursuit on Saturday afternoon.

First Gun was at 15.00 The Admiral directed the fleet by flag and sound signal, the latter provided by the club cannon which was onboard for the day.

Two five gun salutes were given by the Admiral to recognise two former clubhouses of the Royal Cork Yacht Club, one at the Sirius Building in Cobh and the second at Haulbowline now home to the Irish Naval Service but the location of the first Club House of the Club in 1720.

Firing the RCYC gun at Haulbowline, now the base of the Naval Service but the first home of the Royal Cork Yacht Club in 1720 Photo: Bob Bateman

Finishing off the evening, a Midsummer BBQ was held on the lawn of the club. Enjoyed by all.

Royal Cork Yacht Club was the venue for the Admiral's Chace midsummer's BBQ

See the 2021 Admiral's Chace photo gallery below by Bob Bateman

After the second race of Royal Cork Yacht Club's June League 2021, Michael McCann's Etchells 22 leads the Spinnaker IRC division of 22 boats with a perfect scoreline of two wins so far.

Last night's combined club race featured breezy sailing conditions as cruiser-racing returns to strength in Cork Habour.

McCann also leads the ECHO division. 

In the 13-boat IRC White Sails division, Kieran O'Brien's MG335 Magnet leads. 

Full results are here and Bob Bateman's photo gallery of the second race in the series is below.

The Weather Gods were smiling on the Royal Cork Yacht Club on Monday evening in Cork Harbour as members gave a triumphant welcome home to the Murphy family's Nieulargo, the overall winner of last week's Dun Laoghaire Dingle Race.

Denis and Annamarie Murphy's successful Grand Soleil 44, was the winner of the 2020 inaugural Fastnet 450 Race (from Dun Laoghaire to Cork) and this year adds the D2D title. 

RCYC Admiral Colin Morehead welcomed the victorious boat and crew back to the club with a special Royal Cork five gun salute and a reception on the lawn at Crosshaven, in accordance with the club's ancient rules as Afloat's WM Nixon described last Saturday here

After an epic 14th edition of the D2D that attracted a 38-boat fleet for last Wednesday's spectacular start on Dublin Bay, the Murphy's lifted the trophy at Saturday's prizegiving in Dingle, County Kerry.

As Afloat previously reported, Crosshaven & Kinsale yachts shared the spoils. 

The Murphy family’s consistently successful campaign reached Dingle on Friday morning at 09:27 hrs and immediately corrected into an overall lead in the D2D which she never lost.

All of Afloat's D2D coverage in one handy link is here