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A Harbour Seal photographed at Dun Laoghaire Marina on Dublin Bay, Ireland. Also known as the common seal, is a true seal found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines of the Northern Hemisphere. The most widely distributed species of pinnipeds, they are found in coastal waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Baltic and North seas. Photo: AfloatA photograph of a Harbour Seal taken at Dun Laoghaire Marina on Dublin Bay, Ireland. Also known as the common seal, this species can be found along temperate and Arctic marine coastlines throughout the Northern Hemisphere. They are the most widely distributed species of pinnipeds and can be found in the coastal waters of the northern Atlantic and Pacific oceans, as well as the Baltic and North Seas. Photo: Afloat

Displaying items by tag: grand league

#Rowing: The Skibbereen/UCC composite won the women’s eights with the final few strokes at the Cork Grand League Regatta today. NUIG led them coming up to the line, but the winners finished faster to win by three tenths of a second. Cork were the best junior 18 eight.

UCD won the men’s eights by holding off NUIG. The finish was close, but UCD had led down the course and refused to yield. Neptune took the junior 18 honours by holding off St Joseph’s of Galway in the B Final.

Cork Regatta, National Rowing Centre, Cork, Day Two (Selected Results)

Men

Eight – Division One – A Final: 1 UCD (N Farrell, R Thompson, E O’Connor, C O’Riada, E Gleeson, A Griffin, T Doherty, M Murphy; cox: O Reid; senior) 5:51.05, 2 NUIG (sen) 5:51.91, 3 UCD (inter) 6:05.098; 4 Cork (club one) 6:05.46. B Final: 4 Neptune (Jun 18A) 6:13.69.

Four – Div One – A Final: 1 NUIG (sen) 6:16.41. Four, coxed – Div Two – A Final: 1 Queen’s B (club two) 6:53.69, 2 St Michael’s (jun 18B) 6:56.53; 6 Presentation, Cork (jun 16) 7:33.61.

Sculling,

Quadruple, Div Two, coxed – A Final: 1 Carlow (jun 18B) 6:43.70; 3 Castleconnell (jun 16) 6:53.53; 4 Shandon (club two) 6:54.67.

Double – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (G O’Donovan, P O’Donovan; sen) 6:25.51, 2 Commercial, UCD (N Beggan, A Goff; sen) 6:27.62, 3 Skibbereen (M O’Donovan, S O’Driscoll; sen) 6:37.997; 5 Three Castles A (jun 18A) 6:49.76. B Final: St Michael’s (inter) 6:51.20.

Single – Div Two – A Final: 1 Three Castles (A Keogh; jun 16) 7:29.64, 2 Cappoquin (S Landers; club two) 7:35.39; 6 Killorglin (J McCarthy; Jun 18B) 7:52.86.

Women

Eight – Div One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen/UCC (O Hayes, F O’Keeffe, A Casey, E McCarthy A Keogh, E Hegarty, N Casey, D Walsh; cox C O’Connell; senior) 6:37.94, 2 NUIG (sen) 6:38.30; 5 NUIG (club one) 6:58.38. B Final: 1 Cork (jun 18A) 7:00.93; 2 Shandon (inter) 7:02.79.

Four – Div One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen, UCC (N Casey, E Hegarty, A Keogh, D Walsh; sen) 6:59.0. B Final: Col Iognaid (jun 18A) 7:39.68. Div Two, coxed – A Final: Trinity (club two) 7:41.79.

Sculling, Double – Div One – A Final: 1 Cork (inter) 7:19.591, 2 Lee (jun 18A) 7:23.45. B Final: 2 Carlow (club one) 7:40.31. Div Two – A Final: 1 Neptune (J Poh; club two) 8:40.47, 2 Kenmare (E Crowley; jun 18B) 8:42.76; 3 Neptune (N Clarke; jun 16) 8:46.62.

 

Published in Rowing

#Rowing: Coillte and Rowing Ireland have announced that Coillte will sponsor the Grand League regatta series. Coillte is a forestry management company which owns about seven per cent of the land cover of Ireland. It is also involved in renewable energy and panel products.

 The first leg of this year’s Coillte Grand League series is Skibbereen Regatta which is set for this weekend at the National Rowing Centre in Cork. Around 700 crews and 2,000 athletes compete at Skibbereen Grand League Regatta every year, with a six-lane race running every four minutes over two days – if the unpredictable Irish weather permits. It is a mammoth event and takes up to 100 volunteers to run successfully each year.

 Ciarán Fallon, Director of Stewardship and Public Goods at Coillte said: “Coillte is delighted to be supporting Rowing Ireland with this year’s Grand League series ahead of the Rio Olympics in August. Two of the three regattas in this year’s series are taking place at the National Rowing Centre,  located in Coillte’s Farran Forest Park in County Cork, one of our flagship parks, so we are encouraging people to turnout in large numbers to support this fantastic event. We are pleased to be able to extend our existing relationship with Rowing Ireland to be the title sponsor for this exciting series as the athletes prepares for Rio.”

 Hamish Adams, the chief executive of Rowing Ireland, said: “We have a long established and close relationship with Coillte through our location of the National Rowing Centre in Farran Forest Park. The development of further support from Coillte for the Grand League series further endorses our relationship and we welcome all to attend the upcoming events to experience a day of competitive racing in the majestic setting of Farran Forest Park.”

 The 2016 Coillte Grand League will include three regatta events that will each attract up to two thousand rowing competitors as well as five thousand plus spectators each day.

 The Coillte Grand League will take place at the following dates and venues:

9th and 10th April: Skibbereen Regatta, National Rowing Centre, Farran Forest Park, Co. Cork.

28th May: Metropolitan Regatta, Blessington Lake, Co. Wicklow.

25th and 26th June: Cork Regatta, National Rowing Centre,  Farran Forest Park, Co. Cork.

 The Grand League regatta series was established by Rowing Ireland in 2010 and has since become the premier domestic rowing league in Ireland, contributing to the development of numerous athletes at both junior and senior level. The series provides rowers at all levels with the opportunity to perform and develop their racing prowess in a fair and competitive environment.

Published in Rowing

#ROWING: Gráinne Mhaol/NUIG were pushed hard by UCD, but came away with the Division One eights title at Cork Grand League Regatta at the National Rowing Centre. NUIG came in third, despite having to do without the services of Kevin Neville, who had fallen ill during the heats. The experienced Gráinne Mhaol crew of Dave Mannion, Alan Martin, Cormac Folan and James Wall won the Division One four, while Skibbereen won the women’s four.

Andy Harrington of UCC won the Division One single sculls from Eimantas Grigalius of Three Castles and Fergus Fauvel, a New Zealander studying in Galway. Fauvel also rowed at number four for the winning eight.

Catríona Jennings of Commercial, who only took up rowing in the past two years after competing as a runner at the Olympic Games, won the Division One single sculls.

The timing system at the regatta, a bugbear at a number of Grand League events, caused some difficulties.  

Published in Rowing

ROWING: Queen’s Regatta has been cancelled. The Grand League Regatta was scheduled for May 17th at Castlewellan Forest Park in Co Down but redevelopment work at the venue has forced the abandonment of the event. The board meeting of Rowing Ireland this Saturday will consider whether the Grand League slot now left open could be filled by another regatta.

The Irish University Championships, originally scheduled for Blessington in June, have been switched to the National Rowing Centre in Cork and will be held on April 11th. Skibbereen’s two-day Grand League Regatta will be held on April 12th and 13th at the NRC.

Published in Rowing

# ROWING: SKIBBEREEN REGATTA: Skibbereen’s young stars burned brightly in the second finals session of their own eFlow Grand League regatta the National Rowing Centre in Cork today. A gusting tailwind may have caused the abandonment of junior 14 and junior 15 races, but the Skibbereen quadruple scull of Padraig Murphy, Aodhan Burns, Shane O’Driscoll and Gary O’Donovan mastered the conditions to set a good time of 5 minutes 56.31. O’Driscoll and O’Donovan, who will compete for Ireland at the World Under-23 Championships in three weeks’ time, also won the double impressively.

St Michael’s also continued their good run. They added wins in the women’s four and men’s pair to their earlier win in the women’s eight, and Sinead Jennings was by an impressive margin the fastest women’s single sculler home, though she will not be credited as winner: she had entered as a lightweight but then chose not to weigh in as one.

The women’s pairs title went to Cork Boat Club. The last race of the day, the men’s Division One eights, was won by NUIG’s intermediate crew, though their one rival in the race, UCC, did not finish.

Skibbereen eFlow Grand League Regatta, National Rowing Centre, Cork (Selected Results)

Men

Eight – Division One – A Final: 1 NUIG (inter) 5:52.01, UCC did not finish. Division Two – A Final: 1 UCC (nov) 6:12.96, 2 UCD (nov) 6:15.12, 3 Cork (jun 18B) 6:20.05;

Four, coxed – Divsion One – A Final: 1 UCC (inter) 6:29.66, 2 NUIG (inter) 6:32.9, 3 Trinity (inter) 6:33.60; 4 St Michael’s (jun 18A) 6:45.78. B Final: NUIG (inter) 6:42.18. Division Two – A Final: 1 Athlunkard (jun 18B) 6:54.06, 2 UCC (nov) 6:56.06, 3 NUIG (nov) 6:56.65.

Pair – Division One – A Final: 1 St Michael’s B (K O’Connor, M O’Brien; sen) 6:52.69, 2 St Michael’s C (sen) 6:55.62, 3 Clonmel (jun 18A) 6:55.97. B Final: St Joseph’s (jun 18A) 7:14.02; 4 Commercial (inter) 7:35.29. C Final: Blackrock College (jun 18A) 7:39.55.

Sculling, Quadruple – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (sen) 5:56.31, 2 Skibbereen (sen) 6:06.99, 3 Carlow (sen) 6:08.43; 4 Lee (jun 18) 6:13.32. B Final: Carlow/Three Castles (sen) 6:27.75. Division Two, coxed – A Final: Cork (jun 16) 6:50.15, 2 Killorglin (jun 16) 7:02.41, 3 UCD (nov) 7:10.71; 5 Shandon (jun 18B) 7:19.98. B Final: Cappoquin (nov) 7:10.77.

Double, Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (S O’Driscoll, G O’Donovan; sen) 6:35.67, 2 Three Castles (sen) 6:40.66, 3 Shandon (jun 18A) 6:51.27; 5 Skibbereen (inter) 6:59.08. B Final: Garda (inter) 6:58.12. C Final: Athlone (jun 18A) 7:08.38. Division Two: Waterford (jun 18B) 7:14.89, 2 Shandon (jun 16) 7:17.91, 3 Lee (jun 18B) 7:24.85. B Final: Skibbereen (jun 16) 7:59.45.

Single – Division One – A Final: 1 Lee Valley (J Keohane, sen) 7:12.18, 2 Three Castles (Grigalius, sen) 7:20.89, 3 Skibbereen (Ryan, jun 18A) 7:21.59; 4 Skibbereen (Burns, u23) 7:22.59; 6 Clonmel (Prendergast, inter) 7:23.44. B Final: Portadown (McKeown, inter) 7:31.83. C Final: 1 Three Castles (Corcoran, inter) 7:42.87; 2 Clonmel (Channon, lwt) 7:45.65. D Final: Skibbereen (Barry, inter) 7:57.57. Division Two – A Final: 1 Castleconnell (E Whittle, jun 16) 7:38.19, 2 Lee (White, jun 18B) 7:40.50, 3 Shandon (Begley, jun 18B) 7:43.82; 5 Univ of Limerick (Koyayashi; nov) 7:39.35. B Final: Waterford (Goff, jun 16) 7:41.25. C Final: Skibbereen (McCarthy, nov) 7:53.80. D Final: UCD (Toland, nov) 8:05.52.

Women

Eights – Division One – A Final: 1 St Michael’s (sen) 6:32.25, 2 UCD (sen) 6:34.32, 3 Skibbereen (sen) 6:38.68. B Final: 1 Cork (jun 18B) 6:51.83, 2 Commercial (inter) 6:52.26. Division Two – A Final: 1 Trinity (nov) 7:04.35, 2 Shannon (nov) 7:16.68, 3 Garda (nov) 7:40.33; 4 Shandon (jun 18B) 7:55.26.

Four, coxed – Division One – A Final: 1 St Michael’s (sen) 7:16.4, 2 UCC (inter) 7:26.04, 3 UCD (inter) 7:37.30.

Four – Division One – A Final: 1 St Michael’s (u23) 7:02.51 UCD 7:07.05, 3 Cork BC (jun 18A) 7:12.39 B Final: Skibbereen (sen) 7:17.44. Division Two – A Final: 1 Shannon (nov) 7:39.91, 2 Trinity (nov) 7:46.61, 3 Commercial (nov) 7:48.44; 4 Shandon (jun 16) 8:22.77.

Pairs – Division One – A Final: 1 Cork (sen) 7:49.94, 2 NUIG (inter) 8:01.08, 3 St Michael’s (jun 18A) 8:24.34. B Final: Trinity (u23) 8:12.81.

Sculling

Quadruple – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (Jun 18A) 7:01.73, 2 Skibbereen (sen) 7:05.47, 3 St Michael’s (jun 18A) 7:20.57. Division Two (coxed) – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (nov) 7:39.92, 2 Killorglin (jun 16) 7:53.61, 3 St Michael’s (jun 16) 8:07.04.

Double – Division One – A Final: 1 Three Castles (H Walshe, E Moran, sen) 7:13.57, 2 St Michaels (sen) 7:27.81, 3 NUIG (inter) 7:38.38; 4 Castleconnell (jun 18A) 8:02.90. Division Two – A Final: 1 Carlow (jun 18B) 8:04.89, 2 Lee (jun 18B) 8:13.12, 3 Lee (jun 16) 8:17.70. B Final: Graiguenamanagh (jun 18B) 8:29.09. C Final: Tralee (jun 18B) 8:47.99.

Single, Division One – A Final: S Jennings (timing only) 7:50.11; 1 St Michael’s (S Clavin; lwt) 7:59.46, 2 Three Castles (B Quinn; lwt) 8:04.89, 3 Cork (M O’Neill, sen) 8:07.75. B Final: 1 Shandon (Horgan, lwt) 8:17.53, 2 Lee Valley (Corcoran-O’Hare; inter) 8:20.80. C Final: 1 UCC (O’Mahony, inter) 8:30.14; 2 Fermoy (Sohun, jun 18A) 8:31.03. Division Two – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (Hegarty; nov) 8:25.21, 2 St Michael’s (Murphy, jun 16) 8:29.40, 3 Killorglin (Ryan, nov) 8:50.30; 4 Lee (McGrath; jun 18B) 8:57.62. B Final: Cappoquin (Laughlin; jun 16) 9:00.90. C Final: Fermoy (Bouanane; jun 18B) 9:25.66.

Published in Rowing

# ROWING CORK REGATTA: Timing problems gave the organizers difficulties on Friday, the first day of the Cork City Regatta at the National Rowing Centre, but races ran to schedule today and there were some very competitive times in good conditions. There was general agreement that the  complexity of the timing system at the Grand League regattas will have to be looked at as the series progresses.

Cork eFlow Grand League Regatta, Selected Results

Men

Eight – Division One – A Final: 1 Grainne Mhaol/NUIG (sen) 5:46.5, 2 NUIG (inter) 5:51.4, 3 St Michael’s 5:54.8; 5 St Joseph’s Col (jun 18A) 5:58.4. B Final: Trinity (inter) 6:12.8.

Division Two – A Final: 1 UCC (nov) 6:05.2, 2 Trinity (nov) 6:06.4, 3 UCD (nov) 6:06.9; 4 Col Iognaid (jun 16) 6:21.8. B Final: Neptune (jun 18B) 6:53.6.  

Four – Division One – A Final: 1 Grainne Mhaol (sen) 6:03.6, 2 Grainne Mhaol/NUIG (sen) 6:08.9, 3 St Michael’s (sen) 6:09.7; 4 Presentation, Cork/St Joseph’s (sen – trialling) 6:25.3.

Four, coxed – Division One - A Final: 1 Trinity (sen) 6:21.2, 2 NUIG (inter) 6:21.8, 3 Skibbereen (sen) 6:32.2; 4 St Joseph’s (jun 18A) 6:40.0. Division Two – A Final: 1 Univ of Limerick (nov) 6:43.1, 2 UCD (nov) 6:44.8, 3 Athlunkard (jun 18B) 6:55.2. B Final: 1 Col Iognaid (jun 16) 6:55.1. C Final: Trinity (nov) 7:05.1.

Sculling

Quadruple – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (sen) 6:07.7, 2 Shandon (jun 18A) 6:12.0, 3 UCC (sen) 6:12.7. B Final: Neptune (jun 18A) 6:22.6.

Double – Division Two – A Final: 1 Lee (jun 18B) 6:54.4, 2 Cork (jun 18B) 7:01.3, 3 Skibbereen (nov) 7:03.7; 5 Shandon (jun 16) 7:40.6. B Final: Trinity (nov) 7:20.6, 2 Clonmel (jun 16) 7:27.1. C Final: Col Chiarain (jun 16) 7:35.3. D Final: Blackrock Col (jun 18B) 7:53.4.

Single – Division Two – A Final: 1 Cork (Higgins) 7:29.8, 2 Sligo (Patterson) 7:37.3, 3 University of Limerick (Kobayashi) 7:40.8. B Final: Cork (Higgins) 7:47.8. C Final: Lee (Turner) 7:56.0. D Final: Skibbereen (McCarthy) 8:05.1

Women

Eight – Division One – A Final: 1 Trinity (sen) 6:39.1, 2 UCD (under-23) 6:40.7, 3 Shannon (jun 18) 7:05.7; 4 Queen’s (inter) 7:06.3. Division Two – A Final: 1 Trinity (nov) 7:05.8, 2 Commercial (nov) 7:08.3, 3 Athlunkard (nov) 7:19.3; 4 Shannon (jun 16) 7:31.6. B Final: NUIG (nov) 7:24.3.

Four – Division One – A Final: 1 NUIG/St Michael’s (u23) 6:45.3, 2 St Michael’s (u23) 7:00.4, 3 UCD (sen) 7:02.0. B Final: Skibbereen (jun 18A) 7:13.8.

Four, coxed – Division One – A Final: 1 UCD (inter) 7:22.3, 2 NUIG (inter) 7:24.0, 3 UCD (inter) 7:29.5. B Final: Trinity (inter) 7:38.0. Division Two – B Final: 1 Shannon (nov) 7:38.3, 2 Galway (nov) 7:38.5, 3 NUIG (nov) 7:46.9. B Final: Shandon (jun 16) 7:55.4.

Sculling, Quadruple – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (sen) 6:59.0, 2 Cork (jun 18A) 7:04.8, 3 St Michael’s (jun 18A) 7:07.1. B Final: Col Iognaid (jun 18A) 7:33.3. Division Two, coxed – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (nov) 7:34.6, 2 Killorglin (jun 16) 7:38.7, 3 Neptune (jun 16) 7:43.8; 4 Commercial (jun 18B) 7:54.1. B Final: Carrick-0n-Shannon 8:20.8.  

Double – Division One – A Final: 1 S Jennings/C Lambe (timing only) 7:02.1, 2 Three Castles (sen) 7:12.6, 3 Skibbereen (sen) 7:27.3; 4 UCC (inter) 7:44.1. B Final: 1 St Michael’s (u23) 7:40.9, 2 Castleconnell (jun 18A) 7:56.1; 4 Col Iognaid (jun 18A) 8:50.9.

Division Two – A Final: 1 Carlow (jun 18B) 7:46.3, 2 Skibbereen (jun 16) 7:59.6, 3 Lee (jun 18B) 8:04.6; 4 Skibbereen (nov) 8:05.2. B Final: St Michael’s (jun 18B) 8:21.8. C Final: Cork (nov) 8:33.9.

Published in Rowing

# ROWING CORK REGATTA: Grainne Mhaol/NUIG dominated the final race of the day, the A Final of the men’s eight at Cork Regatta today, with NUIG’s intermediate eight second. Grainne Mhaol had also won the men’s four.

Trinity also had a good day, winning the women’s eight and shading the men’s coxed four – they had .6 of a second to spare over NUIG. Skibbereen were strong in the sculling events, with wins in the men’s and women’s quadruple sculls and the men’s double – the Ireland under-23 crew of Gary O’Donovan and Shane O’Driscoll.

The men’s junior four which was trialling for a place at the Coupe de la Jeunesse (Kevin Fallon and Jack Smyth of St Joseph’s, and twin brothers David and Brian Keohane of Presentation, Cork) landed their places. The women’s four which hopes to represent Ireland at the World Under-23 Championships (Lisa Dilleen, Aifric Keogh, Ailish Sheehan and Emily Tormey) also won their final.

Sinead Jennings and Claire Lambe impressed when they teamed up in a double scull, winning well and setting a good time of seven minutes 2.1 seconds.

Published in Rowing

# ROWING: Young crews took full advantage of the absence of some of the big guns at Queen’s Regatta at Castlewellan today. The women’s Division One eights of the first eFlow Grand League regatta of the season gave Galway Rowing Club the chance to showcase their ambitious tyros – all but cox Aifric O’Regan are juniors – and they won from UCD’s intermediates and Portora’s junior eight. The men’s Division One single sculls was won by 18 year old Andy Harrington from clubmate Jack Casey, who is just 17. The two later teamed up to win the Division One double sculls’ title.

The top prize on the day, the Division One men’s eights, was taken by the Queen’s University senior crew, but they got quite a battle from the junior eight from St Joseph’s of Galway.   

Queen’s Regatta, Castlewellan, Co Down (1500 m), Saturday (Selected Results: Division One comprises senior (open, under-23 and lightweight), intermediate and junior 18A grades; Division Two comprises novice, junior 18 B and junior 16 grades.

Men

Eight, Division One – A Final: 1 Queen’s (sen) 4:54.68, 2 St Joseph’s (jun 18) 4:58.83, 3 Portora (jun 18) 5:11.50; 5 Queen’s (u23) 5:29.67. Division Two – A Final: 1 UCC (nov) 4:46.02, 2 Queen’s (nov) 4:47.92, 3 Belfast (nov) 4:53.10; 4 Portora (jun 16) 4:54.56; 6 Coleraine AI (jun 18B) 5:10.46. B Final: RBAI (jun 18B) 5:00.66.

Four, coxed, Division One – A Final: 1 Queen’s (sen) 5:01.13, 2 UCC (inter) 5:06.40, 3 Galway (jun) 5:10.30. B Final: Commercial (inter) 5:23.13. Masters: 1 Belfast BC/Belfast RC 5:48.15, 2 Bann 5:54.23, 3 Portadown 6:33.67. Division Two – A Final: 1 UCC (nov) 5:47.67, 2 Queen’s (nov) 5:57.21, 3 Blackrock (jun 18B) 6:01.14; 4 Methodist (jun 16) 6:06.18. B Final: Queen’s (nov) 6:03.00. C Final: Belfast RC (nov) 6:02.89.

Pair, Division One – A Final: 1 Queen’s (u23) 5:24.30, 2 Queen’s (sen) 5:27.59, 3 Queen’s (sen) 5:31.41. B Final: 1 Commercial (sen) 5:38.89; 2 Shandon (jun 18) 5:40.43; 5 Neptune (inter) 5:57.68. C Final: Portora (inter) 5:44.35. D Final: Commercial (sen) 5:47.30.

Sculling,

Quadruple, Division One – A Final: 1 Commercial (sen) 5:09.64, 2 Lee (jun 18) 5:14.69, 3 Garda (inter) 5:23.44. B Final: Neptune (jun 18) 5:27.68.

Division Two, coxed – A Final: 1 Cork (jun 16) 5:30.30, 2 Commercial (jun 18B) 5:33.79, 3 Lee (jun 18B) 5:34.68. B Final: RBAI (jun 18B) 5:53.44. C Final: 1 Portadown (jun 18B) 6:20.67; 2 Sliog (nov) 6:25.96.

Double, Division One – A Final: 1 Shandon (jun 18) 5:28.89, 2 UCC (sen) 5:39.42, 3 Queen’s/Skibbereen (sen) 5:40.43; 4 Garda (inter) 5:50.04. B Final: Commercial (inter) 5:55.04. Division Two – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (nov) 6:00.22, 2 Cork (jun 18B) 6:00.81, 3 Lee (jun 18B) 6:05.43. B Final: UCD (nov) 6:02.19; 5 Galway (jun 16) 6:55.56. C Final: Commercial (jun 16) 6:31.34. D Final: Belfast RC (jun 18B) 6:55.86.

Single, Division One – A Final: 1 Shandon (A Harrington, jun 18) 5:39.79, 2 Shandon (Casey, jun 18) 5:41.78, 3 Lee (Mitchell, jun 18) 5:43.58; 5 Skibbereen (Murphy, sen) 5:45.40. B Final: Lee (Buckley, jun 18) 5:45.19; 3 Commercial (McKenna, inter) 5:52.13. C Final: Commercial (Dowling, sen) 5:40.29; 6 UCC (Griffin, lwt) 6:05.03. D Final UCC (O’Leary, lwt) 5:56.23. E Final: Carrick-on-Shannon (Cox, inter) 6:01.09.

Division Two – A Final: 1 Sligo (Patterson, nov) 5:50.62, 2 UCC (Stanton, nov) 5:51.69, 3 Lee (White, jun 18B) 5:58.15; 5 Cork (O’Connell, jun 16) 6:01.16. B Final: Cork (Dennehy, jun 18B) 5:56.0. C Final: Portadown (McKeown, nov) 5:50.70. D Final: Skibbereen (McCarthy, jun 16) 6:00.19. E Final: Lee (Larkin, nov) 6:02.12. F Final: Commercial (Meade, nov) 6:18.68. G Final: Cappoquin (Buckley, jun 16) 6:09.72.  

Women

Eight, Division One – A Final: 1 Galway (u23) 5:16.95, 2 UCD (inter) 5:18.53, 3 Portora (jun 18) 5:19.02; 5 Queen’s (inter) 5:31.06. Division Two – A Final: 1 Queen’s (nov) 5:50.98, 2 Portora (jun 16) 5:55.82, 3 UCD (nov) 6:01.23. B Final: Commercial (jun 18B) 6:21.01.

Four, Division One – A Final: 1 Portora (jun 18) 6:18.20, 2 Methodist Col (jun 18) 6:35.28.

Four, coxed, Division One – A Final: 1 UCD (inter) 5:44.98, 2 Commercial (inter) 5:50.63, 3 Commercial B (inter) 5:51.29. B Final: Queen’s B (inter) 5:56.77.

Pair, Division One – A Final: Bann (inter) 6:32.44, 2 Skibbereen (u23) 6:34.73, 3 Shandon (jun 18) 6:40.69; 4 Commercial (inter) 6:41.64. B Final: Cork (sen) 7:00.21.

Sculling, Quadruple, Division One – A Final: 1 Galway (jun 18) 5:31.91, 2 Shandon (inter) 5:34.77, 3 UCD (inter) 5:49.23.

Division Two, coxed – A Final: 1 Galway (jun 18B) 5:52.76, 2 Lee (nov) 6:00.32, 3 Bann (jun 18B) 6:02.19; 4 Methody (jun 16) 6:03.27. B Final: Cork (nov) 6:01.03. C Final: Athlunkard (nov) 6:18.70. D Final: Portadown (jun 16) 6:33.53.

Double, Division Two – A Final: 1 Muckross (jun 18B) 6:02.82, 2 Skibbereen (jun 16) 6:09.52, 3 Lee (jun 18B) 6:20.55; 5 Skibbereen (nov) 6:34.51. B Final: Methody (jun 18B) 6:25.72. C Final: Portadown (jun 16) 7:06.44.

Single, Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (O Hayes, lwt) 6:49.79, 2 Commercial (Dolan, lwt) 6:59.90, 3 Skibbereen (Dinneen, u23) 7:05.76; 5 Skibbereen (Hegarty, jun 18) 7:13.89; 6 Lee Valley (Corcoran-O’Hare, inter) 7:26.55. B Final: Shandon (Horgan, inter) 7:09.86.

Division Two – A Final: 1 Bann (E Barry, jun 16) 6:46.61, 2 Commercial (Foley, nov) 6:48.65, 3 Commercial (Lambe, jun 16) 6:57.22. B Final: Offaly (Mooney, jun 16) 7:04.65. C Final: Belfast BC (Cameron, nov) 7:29.49.

Published in Rowing

UCD stand on top of the Grand League points table after the first regatta of the season. Skibbereen, the hosts of last month's regatta are in second. Trinity, who won the Irish University Championships, have good showing for both their women's club, DULBC, and the men's club.  

Below is the  Grand League Rowing points table. Next up for the Grand League series: Queens Regatta, May 14th, Metro Regatta, May 28th and Cork & Monkstown Regatta, July 2nd.

  
Overall Club Points After Skibbereen Regatta  
1 U.C.D. BC 187
2 Skibbereen RC 119
3 Shandon BC 107
4 St. Michaels Rowing Club 103
5 Dublin University Ladies BC 94
6 Cork BC 92
7 NUI Galway BC 82
8 Commercial RC 72
9 Neptune RC 71
10 Dublin University BC 55
11 Muckross RC 53
12 U.C.C. RC 49
13 University of Limerick RC 47.5
14 Carlow RC 46
15 St. Josephs College RC 43
16 Shannon RC 41
17 Fermoy RC 40
18 Clonmel RC 32
19 Athlunkard BC 29
20 Lee RC 29
21 Galway RC 20
22 Killorglin RC 18.5
23 Cappoquin 17
24 Tralee RC 17
25 Three Castles Rowing Club 15
26 Garda Siochana BC 14
27 Colaiste Chiarain RC 12
28 Lee Valley RC 12
29 Workmens RC 12
30 Old Collegians BC (Walshe) 10
31 Presentation College RC 10
32 Graiguenamanagh BC 9
33 Fossa RC 7
34 Grainne Mhaol RC 4
35 Castleconnell BC 1
 
 
Mens Division 1 After Skibbereen Regatta  
1 U.C.D. BC 74
2 Skibbereen RC 65
3 Neptune RC 39
4 Dublin University BC 30
5 Carlow RC 28
6 Commercial RC 28
7 Lee RC 24
8 Cork BC 22
9 NUI Galway BC 22
10 Muckross RC 21
11 St. Josephs College RC 17
12 University of Limerick RC 17
13 St. Michaels Rowing Club 15
14 Lee Valley RC 12
15 Shandon BC 12
16 Presentation College RC 10
17 Fossa RC 7
18 Garda Siochana BC 6
19 U.C.C. RC 6
20 Workmens RC 5
21 Grainne Mhaol RC 4
22 Three Castles Rowing Club 3
23 Clonmel RC 1
 
 
Mens Division 2 After Skibbereen Regatta
1 St. Michaels Rowing Club 38
2 Cork BC 33
3 Neptune RC 32
4 U.C.D. BC A 27
5 St. Josephs College RC 26
6 Dublin University BC 25
7 Shannon RC 24
8 Shandon BC 23
9 U.C.C. RC 23
10 Fermoy RC 21
11 Athlunkard BC 17
12 Carlow RC 12
13 Cappoquin RC 11
14 University of Limerick RC 11
15 Commercial RC 9
16 Skibbereen RC 9
17 Tralee RC 9
18 Workmens RC 7
19 Clonmel RC 6
20 Graiguenamanagh BC 6
21 NUI Galway BC 6
22 Lee RC 5
23 Colaiste Chiarain RC 4
24 Muckross RC 1
 
 
Womens Division 1 After Skibbereen Regatta  
1 U.C.D. BC 61
2 Dublin University Ladies BC 47
3 Skibbereen RC 45
4 Shandon BC 40
5 St. Michaels Rowing Club 38
6 NUI Galway BC 29
7 Muckross RC 23
8 Killorglin RC 14.5
9 Three Castles Rowing Club 12
10 Old Collegians BC 10
11 University of Limerick RC 9.5
12 Clonmel RC 9
13 Cork BC 9
14 U.C.C. RC 9
15 Athlunkard BC 1
 
 
Womens Division 2 After Skibbereen Regatta  
1 Dublin University Ladies BC 47
2 Commercial 35
3 Shandon BC 33
4 Cork BC 28
5 NUI Galway BC 25
6 U.C.D. BC 25
7 Galway RC 20
8 Fermoy RC 19
9 Shannon RC 17
10 Clonmel RC 16
11 St. Michaels Rowing Club 12
12 Athlunkard BC 11
13 U.C.C. RC 11
14 University of Limerick RC 10
15 Colaiste Chiarain 8
16 Garda Siochana BC 8
17 Muckross RC 8
18 Tralee RC 8
19 Cappoquin 6
20 Carlow RC 6
21 Killorglin RC 4
22 Graiguenamanagh 3
23 Castleconnell BC 1
Published in Rowing

The first Grand League rowing regatta of the season, hosted by Skibbereen at the National Rowing Centre in Cork, came successfully through a bout of fog. The fastest crew on the day were the University of Limerick/Garda senior eight, while John Keohane of Lee Valley and Becky Quinn of Three Castles were the fastest single scullers.

 Skibbereen Regatta, National Rowing Centre, Cork, Sunday

Men

Eight – Divison One – A Final: 1 University of Limerick/Garda (senior) 6:01.02, 2 Trinity (under-23/senior) 6:03.05, 3 Neptune (intermediate) 6:04.69; 5 St Joseph’s (junior 18A) 6:12.15. 

Division Two – A Final: 1 Trinity A (novice) 6:29.64, 2 UCC (nov) 6:35.37, 3 Trinity B (nov) 6:45.81; 4 St Michael’s (jun 16) 7:19.31. B Final: 1 UCD B (nov) 6:58.60, 2 St Joseph’s (jun 16) 7:01.38, 3 NUIG (nov) 7:07.41.

Four – Division One – A Final: 1 UCD A (senior) 6:22.39, 2 UCD B (sen) 6:29.47, 3 Commercial (sen) 6:34.00.

Four, coxed – Division One - A Final: Trinity (intermediate) 6:39.28, 2 Univ of Limerick (senior) 6:39.96, 3 UCD  B (inter) 6:45.00.  B Final: 1 Neptune (intermediate) 6:57.16, 2 Fossa (inter) 6:58.80, 3 NUIG (inter) 6:59.36); 5 Presentation (jun 18A) 7:21.80. Division Two – A Final: 1 UCC (novice) 6:55.61, 2 Cappoquin (nov) 6:59.11, 3 UCD A (nov) 7:02.33; 5 St Joseph’s A (jun 16) 7:23.49. B Final: 1 Workmen’s (novice) 7:10.14, 2 Clonmel (jun 16) 7:20.88, 3 St Michael’s (jun 16) 7:29.93.

Pair – Division One – A Final: 1 UCD B (senior) 7:07.81, 2 UCD A (sen) 7:11.76, 3 Commercial (sen) 7:19.40; 4 NUIG (inter) 7:25.25; 6 St Joseph’s (jun 18) 7:36.35. B Final: 1 Presentation (jun 18) 7:25.43, 2 St Michael’s (senior) 7:32.99, 3 Lee (jun) 7:33.60. C Final: Commercial/Carlow (u23/sen) 7:33.31.

Sculling, Quadruple – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (senior) 6:24.80, 2 Skibbereen (jun 18A) 6:27.50, 3 Carlow (jun 18A) 6:27.92. Division Two (coxed) – A Final: 1 Carlow (jun 18B) 7:09.09, 2 Neptune (jun 18B) 7:10.97, 3 Cork (jun 16) 7:11.23. B Final: 1 Neptune (jun 16) 7:23.32, 2 Col Chiarain (jun 16) 7:45.88, 3 Fermoy (jun 16) 7:55.38.

Double – Division One – A Final: 1 Muckross (senior) 6:46.41, 2 Skibbereen (sen) 6:55.41, 3 Cork/Neptune 7:04.47; 4 Lee (intermediate one) 7:06.39; 5 Skibbereen (jun 18A) 7:16.16. B Final: 1 UCC (intermediate) 7:09.84, 2 Neptune (jun 18A) 7:11.74, 3 Lee (jun 18A) 7:21.59. Division Two – A Final: 1 Cork (jun 16) 7:18.41, 2 Univ of Limerick (novice) 7:19.23, 3 Shannon (jun 16) 7:22.42; 5 Athlunkard (jun 18B) 7:40.98. B Final: 1 Graiguenamanagh (jun 18B) 7:41.55, 2 Lee (jun 16) 7:43.06, 3 Tralee (jun 18B) 7:48.74.

Single – Division One – A Final: 1 Lee Valley (Keohane; senior) 7:16.01, 2 Carlow (Brady; inter) 7:27.80, 3 Skibbereen (Murphy; sen) 7:29.58. B Final: 1 Skibbereen (O’Donovan; jun 18A) 7:25.42, 2 Grainne Mhaol (Mannion; senior) 7:32.01, 3 Three Castles (Folan; inter) 7:36.08. C Final: Clonmel (Prendergast; inter) 7:42.81. D Final: Univ of Limerick (Sheehan; inter) 8:00.00. E Final: Skibbereen (Murphy; inter) 8:18.69.

Division Two – A Final: 1 Neptune (Griffin; novice) 7:56.42, 2 Shandon (Casey; jun 16) 8:13.04, 3 Shannon (Radic; jun 18) 8:18.06. B Final: 1 Shandon (Harrington; jun 16) 8:16.11, 2 Shandon (Coffey; jun 18) 8:27.98, 3 Shannon (O’Carroll; novice) 8:28.98. 

Women

Eight – Division One – A Final: 1 St Michael’s (jun 18A) 6:50.43, 2 Trinity (senior) 6:54.23, 3 NUIG (intermediate) 6:57.04; 5 Trinity (u23/senior) 7:06.39. Division Two – A Final: 1 NUIG (novice) 7:13.61, 2 UCC (nov) 7:14.07, 3 UCD (nov) 7:16.71; 5 Cork (jun 16) 7:23.04; 6 Commercial (jun 18B) 7:25.69. B Final: 1 Trinity C (novice) 7:22.23, 2 Killorglin (jun 16) 7:33.24, 3 Trinity B (nov) 7:34.28; 7 Athlone (jun 16) 10:00.83.

Four – Division One – A Final: 1 Muckross (senior) 7:23.62, 2 UCD (senior) 7:29.41, 3 Trinity (senior) 7:31.83; 4 Clonmel (junior 18A) 7:59.65.

Four, coxed – Division One – A Final: 1 Trinity (inter) 7:45.79, 2 NUIG (inter)  7:50.28, 3 UCD (inter) 8:01.89. Division Two – A Final: 1 Trinity (novice) 7:51.33, 2 NUIG (nov) 7:57.33, 3 Galway (jun 16) 8:01.52; 6 Clonmel (jun 18B) 8:18.28. B Final: 1 UCD B (nov) 8:06.59, 2 Trinity B (nov) 8:15.39, 3 Fermony (jun 18B) 8:30.62.

Pair – Division One – A Final: 1 St Michael’s (jun 18A) 8:13.64, 2 UCD (u23/senior) 8:18.20.

Sculling

Quadruple – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (u23/sen) 7:23.48, 2 UCD (senior) 7:33.75, 3 Shandon (junior) 7:46.03. Division Two – A Final: 1 Cork (jun 16) 8:01.23, 2 Commercial (jun 16) 8:12.81, 3 Galway (jun 16) 8:21.32. B Final: 1 Cappoquin (jun 16) 8:40.69; 3 Commercial (nov) 8:59.23. C Final: Cork (novice) 8:39.28.

Double – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (u23/sen) 7:48.93, 2 Univ of Limerick/Killorglin (senior) 8:01.02, 3 Skibbereen (jun 18) 8:06.83. B Final: 1 Shandon (jun 18A) 8:25.22, 2 St Michael’s (inter) 8:27.17, 3 UCC (inter) 8:52.65.  Division Two – A Final: 1 Fermoy (jun 16) 8:17.80, 2 Shannon (novice) 8:22.14, 3 Univ of Limerick (nov) 8:26.38; 7 Carlow (jun 18B) 9:04.96. B Final: 1 St Michael’s (jun 16) 8:39.32, 2 Commercial (jun 16) 8:41.44, 3 Shandon (jun 18B) 8:59.64.

Single – Division One – A Final: 1 Three Castles (Quinn; lightweight) 8:17.41, 2 Skibbereen (Fitzgerald; inter one) 8:21.39, 3 Old Collegians (Walshe; senior) 8:27.23. B Final: 1 Trinity (Dolan; u23/senior) 8:21.16, 2 St Michael’s (O’Brien; jun 18A) 8:33.33, 3 Univ of Limerick (O’Sullivan; senior) 8:38.31.

Division Two – A Final: 1 Shandon (Mertz; jun 18B) 8:52.83, 2 Athlunkard (Green; jun 18B) 9:00.19, 3 Trinity (Dowling; novice) 9:16.15; 5 Tralee (Deady; jun 16) 9:46.58.

Published in Rowing
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For all you need on the Marine Environment - covering the latest news and updates on marine science and wildlife, weather and climate, power from the sea and Ireland's coastal regions and communities - the place to be is Afloat.ie.

Coastal Notes

The Coastal Notes category covers a broad range of stories, events and developments that have an impact on Ireland's coastal regions and communities, whose lives and livelihoods are directly linked with the sea and Ireland's coastal waters.

Topics covered in Coastal Notes can be as varied as the rare finding of sea-life creatures, an historic shipwreck with secrets to tell, or even a trawler's net caught hauling much more than just fish.

Other angles focusing the attention of Coastal Notes are Ireland's maritime museums, which are of national importance to maintaining access and knowledge of our nautical heritage, and those who harvest the sea using small boats based in harbours where infrastructure and safety pose an issue, plying their trade along the rugged wild western seaboard.

Coastal Notes tells the stories that are arguably as varied as the environment they come from, and which shape people's interaction with the natural world and our relationship with the sea.

Marine Wildlife

One of the greatest memories of any day spent boating around the Irish coast is an encounter with Marine Wildlife. It's a thrill for young and old to witness seabirds, seals, dolphins and whales right there in their own habitat. And as boaters fortunate enough to have experienced it will testify, even spotting a distant dorsal fin can be the highlight of any day afloat. Was that a porpoise? Was it a whale? No matter how brief the glimpse, it's a privilege to share the seas with Irish marine wildlife.

Thanks to our location in the North Atlantic, there appears to be no shortage of marine life to observe. From whales to dolphins, seals, sharks and other ocean animals, the Marine Wildlife category documents the most interesting accounts around our shores. And we're keen to receive your observations, your photos, links and video clips, too!

Also valuable is the unique perspective of all those who go afloat, from coastal sailing to sea angling to inshore kayaking to offshore yacht racing, as what they encounter can be of great importance to organisations such as the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG). Thanks to their work we now know we share the seas with dozens of species who also call Ireland home. But as impressive as the list is, the experts believe there are still gaps in our knowledge. Next time you are out on the ocean waves, keep a sharp look out!

Weather

As an island in the North Atlantic, Ireland's fate is decided by Weather more so than many other European countries. When storm-force winds race across the Irish Sea, ferry and shipping services are cut off, disrupting our economy. When swollen waves crash on our shores, communities are flooded and fishermen brace for impact - both to their vessels and to their livelihoods.

Keeping abreast of the weather, therefore, is as important to leisure cruisers and fishing crews alike - for whom a small craft warning can mean the difference between life and death - as it is to the communities lining the coast, where timely weather alerts can help protect homes and lives.

Weather affects us all, and Afloat.ie will keep you informed on the hows and the whys.

Marine Science

Perhaps it's the work of the Irish research vessels RV Celtic Explorer and RV Celtic Voyager out in the Atlantic Ocean that best highlights the essential nature of Marine Science for the future growth of Ireland's emerging 'blue economy'.

From marine research to development and sustainable management, Ireland is developing a strong and well-deserved reputation as an emerging centre of excellence. Whether it's Wavebob ocean energy technology to aquaculture to weather buoys and oil exploration, the Marine Science category documents the work of Irish marine scientists and researchers and how they have secured prominent roles in many European and international marine science bodies.

Power From The Sea

The message from the experts is clear: offshore wind and wave energy is the future. And as Ireland looks towards the potential of the renewable energy sector, generating Power From The Sea will become a greater priority in the State's 'blue growth' strategy.

Developments and activities in existing and planned projects in the pipeline from the wind and wave renewables sector, and those of the energy exploration industry, point to the future of energy requirements for the whole world, not just in Ireland. And that's not to mention the supplementary industries that sea power projects can support in coastal communities.

Irish ports are already in a good position to capitalise on investments in offshore renewable energy services. And Power From The Sea can even be good for marine wildlife if done properly.

Aside from the green sector, our coastal waters also hold a wealth of oil and gas resources that numerous prospectors are hoping to exploit, even if people in coastal and island areas are as yet unsure of the potential benefits or pitfalls for their communities.

Changing Ocean Climate

Our ocean and climate are inextricably linked - the ocean plays a crucial role in the global climate system in a number of ways. These include absorbing excess heat from the atmosphere and absorbing 30 per cent of the carbon dioxide added to the atmosphere by human activity. But our marine ecosystems are coming under increasing pressure due to climate change.

The Marine Institute, with its national and international partners, works to observe and understand how our ocean is changing and analyses, models and projects the impacts of our changing oceans. Advice and forecasting projections of our changing oceans and climate are essential to create effective policies and management decisions to safeguard our ocean.

Dr Paul Connolly, CEO of the Marine Institute, said, “Our ocean is fundamental to life on earth and affects so many facets of our everyday activities. One of the greatest challenges we face as a society is that of our changing climate. The strong international collaborations that the Marine Institute has built up over decades facilitates a shared focusing on our changing ocean climate and developing new and enhanced ways of monitoring it and tracking changes over time.

“Our knowledge and services help us to observe these patterns of change and identify the steps to safeguard our marine ecosystems for future generations.”

The Marine Institute’s annual ocean climate research survey, which has been running since 2004, facilitates long term monitoring of the deep water environment to the west of Ireland. This repeat survey, which takes place on board RV Celtic Explorer, enables scientists to establish baseline oceanic conditions in Irish waters that can be used as a benchmark for future changes.

Scientists collect data on temperature, salinity, water currents, oxygen and carbon dioxide in the Atlantic Ocean. This high quality oceanographic data contributes to the Atlantic Ocean Observing System. Physical oceanographic data from the survey is submitted to the International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) and, in addition, the survey contributes to national research such as the VOCAB ocean acidification and biogeochemistry project, the ‘Clean Atlantic’ project on marine litter and the A4 marine climate change project.

Dr Caroline Cusack, who co-ordinates scientific activities on board the RV Celtic Explorer for the annual survey, said, “The generation of long-term series to monitor ocean climate is vital to allow us understand the likely impact of future changes in ocean climate on ecosystems and other marine resources.”

Other activities during the survey in 2019 included the deployment of oceanographic gliders, two Argo floats (Ireland’s contribution to EuroArgo) and four surface drifters (Interreg Atlantic Area Clean Atlantic project). The new Argo floats have the capacity to measure dissolved ocean and biogeochemical parameters from the ocean surface down to a depth of 2,000 metres continuously for up to four years, providing important information as to the health of our oceans.

During the 2019 survey, the RV Celtic Explorer retrieved a string of oceanographic sensors from the deep ocean at an adjacent subsurface moored station and deployed a replacement M6 weather buoy, as part of the Irish Marine Data Buoy Observation Network (IMDBON).

Funded by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, the IMDBON is managed by the Marine Institute in collaboration with Met Éireann and is designed to improve weather forecasts and safety at sea around Ireland. The data buoys have instruments which collect weather and ocean data including wind speed and direction, pressure, air and sea surface temperature and wave statistics. This data provides vital information for weather forecasts, shipping bulletins, gale and swell warnings as well as data for general public information and research.

“It is only in the last 20 years, meteorologists and climatologists have really began to understood the pivotal role the ocean plays in determining our climate and weather,” said Evelyn Cusack, Head of Forecasting at Met Éireann. “The real-time information provided by the Irish data buoy network is particularly important for our mariners and rescue services. The M6 data buoy in the Atlantic provides vital information on swell waves generated by Atlantic storms. Even though the weather and winds may be calm around our shores, there could be some very high swells coming in from Atlantic storms.”