Displaying items by tag: ICRA
Swuzzlebubble Leads But Autumn League Will Decide 2024 ICRA Boat of the Year Award
With this month's Autumn Leagues in Cork and Howth still to count, the overall winner for IRC and ECHO ICRA Boat of the Year 2024 remains undecided.
The defending IRC champion, the James Dwyer-driven Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble, lies third in her class after five races sailed at Royal Cork's October League last Sunday, and tops the ICRA Boat of the Year rankings while rival Annamarie Murphy's Grand Soleil 40, lying second, has a perfect scoreline in Class One of the Cork Harbour fixture.
For ECHO ICRA honours, the J24 Jupiter leads by a point from the Corby 25 Impetuous.
As of October 8th, the ICRA Boat of the Year 2024 points are as follows:
Northern Ireland Yachts Compete at Royal Irish's ICRA Nationals and IRC Euro Champs
Two of the three prestigious events hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire over the first half of September included five competing boats from Northern Ireland. John Minnis's Archambault 35 Final Call II and Paul Prentice's Sigma 33 Squawk raced in the Unio ICRA Nationals, and Final Call II also competed in the 18-strong fleet in the Maples Group IRC Europeans along with Ryan Wilson from Carrickfergus SC (Belfast Lough) and Quoile YC on Strangford Lough sailing the Mat 1010 Elixir, Alan Hannon originally from Belfast Lough but racing the JPK 1030 Coquine under the host club burgee and Michael Eames's new Sunfast 3600 Blacksmith from Royal Ulster and Strangford Lough YC.
Paul Prentice's Sigma 33 Squawk finished third in Cruiser 3 in the Unio ICRA event, counting two first places.
In the IRC European Championships, Final Call II finished 3rd overall, counting as best scores a second and four thirds over the nine races. The very light weather wasn't the team's favourite conditions, but they were pleased with that place and the first place in the Corinthian (non-professional) division.
Alan Hannon's JPK 1030 shone in Race 6 with a third and came in at 11th overall. Wilson's Mat 1010 was 13th counting two eighth places. Michael Eames Blacksmith had a disappointing 16th.
John and Suzie Murphy's J109 Outrageous from Howth emerged as Champion with a clinical performance dominating the fleet.
The event that drew the cream of Grand Prix racers to Dun Laoghaire involved a special partnership with RORC. Together with Royal Irish, they produced a format that was inclusive for Club, Regatta, and Professional sailors alike. This championship rounded off three high-class events in September.
John Minnis and his team enjoyed racing in the Europeans. "Great event! It was wonderfully hosted by RIYC, and what a host! Thank you, RIYC. Special thanks to RIYC Sailing Manager Mark McGibney and all the shore team. It was a truly amazing four days with the best team and a massive thank you to all the Final Call II team. Well done, boys!" The team was Gareth Flannigan (Helm), Warren Polly (Tactics), Michael Gunning (Main), Jeremy Tomalin (Trim 1), Jeff Flannigan (Trim 2), Knox Wilson (Mast), Ross Nolan (Mid Bow), Tom Finlay (Bow) and John Minnis (Pit).
Defending Champion 'Swuzzlebubble' of Royal Cork Leads ICRA Boat of the Year 2024 Competition
Reigning Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) Boat of the Year (IRC), David and James Dwyer's all-beating Swuzzlebubble looks on target to retain the cruiser-racer accolade after the latest update on the Boat of the Year Award scoreboard on September 3rd.
ICRA has updated the 2024 leaderboard following a summer of regattas that includes WIORA at Foynes on the Shannon Estuary, Calves Week at Schull in West Cork and the just-finished ICRA National Championships at the Royal Irish Yacht Club on Dublin Bay.
The vintage Half Tonner from Royal Cork that retained its IRC Two Crown at Dun Laoghaire with five first places, tops the ICRA Boat of the Year IRC table on 17 points, two clear of clubmates Nieulargo, the Grand Soleil 40, Nieulargo that skipped the ICRA Nationals. On the same 15 points is the newly crowned IRC Zero champion Johnny Treanor on the J112 Valentina.
The annual award, says ICRA, is an 'exciting opportunity for Irish sailors to showcase their racing skills on a national level'.
ICRA Boat of the Year IRC leaderboard (at September 3rd 2024)
Yacht | Points |
Swuzzlebubble | 17 |
Nieulargo | 15 |
ValenTina | 15 |
Rockabill VI | 10.5 |
Chimaera | 10 |
Bite The Bullet | 9 |
Jupiter | 9 |
Outrageous | 9 |
Snoopy | 8.5 |
Checkmate XX | 8 |
Storm | 7.5 |
Two Farr | 7.5 |
Aurelia | 7 |
Miss Whiplash | 7 |
Apache | 6 |
Desert Star | 6 |
Diamond | 6 |
Imp | 6 |
Indian | 6 |
Prince of Tides | 6 |
Searcher | 5.25 |
Joker II | 5 |
Blitz | 4.5 |
Coquine | 4.5 |
Fulmar Fever | 4.5 |
North Star | 4.5 |
Ruth | 4.5 |
Shilleagh | 4.5 |
Ealu | 4.5 |
Relativity | 4.5 |
Impetuous (GR) | 4 |
Jellybaby | 3.5 |
Xaviera | 3.5 |
Allig8r | 3 |
Alpaca | 3 |
Anchor Challenge | 3 |
Cavatina | 3 |
Cinnamon Girl | 3 |
Game Changer | 3 |
Mayrise | 3 |
Shotgunn | 3 |
Tiger | 3 |
Powder Monkey | 3 |
3 Cheers | 3 |
Saoirse | 3 |
Anteex | 3 |
Splashdance | 3 |
Tribal | 3 |
Caesium | 2 |
Fast Buck | 2 |
Final Call 2 | 2 |
Flyover | 2 |
Shelly D | 2 |
Lambay Rules | 2 |
Squawk | 2 |
Big Mac | 1.5 |
Ellida | 1.5 |
Guapa | 1.5 |
Insider | 1.5 |
Mata | 1.5 |
Prima Forte | 1.5 |
Toughnut | 1.5 |
Jalapeno | 1.5 |
Joxer | 1.5 |
Gung Ho | 1.5 |
Ibaraki | 1.5 |
Chameleon | 1 |
Jack | 1 |
Miss Charlie | 1 |
Mocking Joe | 1 |
Reavra Two | 1 |
Sloop John T | 1 |
ICRA Boat of the Year ECHO (at September 3rd 2024)
As announced in March, ICRA is also running an ECHO boat of the year prize, and that leaderboard (below) shows the Corby 25 Impetuous sharing the same 10.5 points as last weekend's IRC Three National Championship winner, the Wicklow-based J24, Jupiter. The all-conquering non-spinnaker competitor, the Elan 333, Bite The Bullet is next on nine.
Yacht | Points |
Impetuous (IRL) | 10.5 |
Jupiter | 10.5 |
Bite The Bullet | 9 |
Jap | 9 |
Nieulargo | 7.5 |
Miss Whiplash | 7 |
Swuzzlebubble | 6.5 |
ValenTina | 6 |
WOW | 6 |
White Mischief | 6 |
Aiilg8r | 5 |
Aris | 4.5 |
Brazen Huzie | 4.5 |
Cavatina | 4.5 |
Checkmate XX | 4.5 |
Chimaera | 4.5 |
Chinook | 4.5 |
Growler | 4.5 |
Javelin | 4.5 |
Prima Forte | 4.5 |
Sitele | 4.5 |
Slightly Steamy | 4.5 |
Snapshot | 4.5 |
Toughnut | 4.5 |
Two Farr | 4.5 |
Tribal | 4.5 |
Battle | 4.5 |
Searcher | 4 |
Outrageous | 4 |
Insider | 4 |
Just Jasmin | 4 |
Shelduck | 3.75 |
Apache | 3 |
Diamond | 3 |
Dilemma | 3 |
Gecko | 3 |
Incorrect | 3 |
Jellybaby | 3 |
Joxer | 3 |
Lady Minn | 3 |
Moxy | 3 |
Opal | 3 |
Prince of Tides | 3 |
Raptor | 3 |
Samphire | 3 |
Shilleagh | 3 |
Witchcraft | 3 |
Relativity | 3 |
Kerry Dream | 3 |
Val Kriss | 2.5 |
Jimmy Bum | 2.5 |
Fast Buck | 2 |
Flyover | 2 |
Joker II | 2 |
Impetuous (GBR) | 2 |
Crazy Diamond | 2 |
Playtime | 2 |
Alpaca | 1.5 |
Anchor Challenge | 1.5 |
Anteex | 1.5 |
Antix | 1.5 |
Big Mac | 1.5 |
Ealu | 1.5 |
Ellida | 1.5 |
Guapa | 1.5 |
Jalapeno | 1.5 |
Kilcullen | 1.5 |
Kopper Too | 1.5 |
No Excuse | 1.5 |
Rockabill VI | 1.5 |
Sairose | 1.5 |
Splashdance | 1.5 |
Ibaraki | 1.5 |
The BOTY competition is based on a boat's performance in the events listed in ICRA's BOTY 2 EVENTS held that year.
According to the rules, a boat's "Boat of the Year" score for a given year shall be the sum of the boat's Event Scores from the events listed in ICRA BOTY 2 EVENTS (downloadable here) held in that year.
A boat's Division Score shall be based on its overall series placing in an IRC or ECHO division at the event, with 3 points for 1st, 2 points for 2nd, and 1 point for 3rd, multiplied by the Division Weighting. The Division Weighting shall be the Event Weighting of the event the division is part of, adjusted according to certain criteria.
The events are divided into three categories: Championship events, National Regattas, and Regional events. The Championship events have the highest Event Weighting of x 2, followed by National Regattas with x 1.5 and Regional events with x 1.
Elan 333s Lift The Trophies in ICRA Non Spinnaker IRC, ECHO and RIYC's VPRS
As racing was reduced to five races at the Unio ICRA Nationals 2024 on Dublin Bay with no racing possible on Sunday, Colm Bermingham's Elan 333 Bite the Bullet from Howth won by a point in both non-spinnaker IRC and ECHO divisions at the Royal Irish Yacht Club hosted event.
Clubmate Splashdance, a Dufour 40, (J Beckett & A George) took second on IRC with Grainne and Sean O'Shea's Superseal 26–footer Gung-Ho third in a three boat IRC turnout.
In an eight-boat ECHO division, Tim Costello's Bavaria 35 Just Jasmin is second, and Splashdance is third.
In a third rating allocation for the non-spinnaker boats at the weekend, Johnnie Phillips and Noel Kidney's Elan 33 Playtime was the VPRS handicap winner (awarded by the Royal Irish Yacht Club) from Bermingham, with Splashdance third in an eight boat fleet.
IRC and ECHO results are below and VPRS are here
Wicklow J24 Crew are Crowned IRC Three Champions on Dublin Bay
The Wicklow J24 crew of Conor Haughton, Jonny Flood, Charles Heather and Garrett Kinnane beat defending IRC champion Quarter Tonner Snoopy for overall honours in IRC Class Three on Sunday (September 1) at the Unio ICRA National Championships at the Royal Irish Yacht Club on Dublin Bay.
Just one race of a maximum of two was possible on Course A on Sunday and while the Jupiter crew posted their worst result of the championship (a fifth) in a fitful southerly breeze rarely above five knots and Snoopy took the gun, the J24 crew took the win by a single point after six races sailed in the championships since Friday.
Paul Prentice's Sigma 33 Squawk finished third on 16 points.
Under the ECHO handicap, Jupiter won again from Stephen Mullaney's Sigma Insider. The First Class 8 Allig8r (Twomey, Foley, Hennessy, Ryan, O’Buachalla, Levins).
Howth J109 'Outrajeous' Does it Again in IRC One at Unio ICRA Nationals on Dublin Bay
The success of the J/109 in Ireland has been underlined, with boats of this marque filling the first five places of Cruisers 1 IRC in the UNIO ICRA Nats 2024. Why so? Well, the reality is that apart from the fact that this versatile boat is relatively numerous in Ireland, it also might be argued that as the granny of them all, the J/24, emerged from a garage in Connecticut in 1975, the entire range thus have their ancestry in the racing of Long Island Sound, in which success in lighter winds is a priority.
Certainly there's no doubt that sailors on other craft will tell you that a well-sailed J/109 is winning every which way in lighter breezes. But in addition to that, the J/109 is hugely popular here because she is of a size that fits well with the Irish scene, and is a very worthy successor to the remarkable cruiser-racers of the Dublin Bay 24 Class.
EXCELLENT COMPETITION
So not only does racing in Cruisers 1 with a J/109 give you excellent competition against sister-ships several of whom will have visiting rock stars on board, but as well, if you win overall even just once in an annual series like this, you've done something very special.
Do it two years running, and you're among the Gods. Which is what John and Suzie Murphy's Outrajeous has done. So when the definitive "Who Does What" statement was issued around dawn this morning like a thunderclap from the Murphy stronghold in the heights of the Hills of the Naul, we heard what they were saying.
OUTRAJEOUS CREWING ARRANGEMENTS
"Neil Spain (my long time friend and crewmate) is the driver/helm of Outrajeous" writes John Murphy, "and has been our driver since Suzie took a step back with the arrival of our four children. Also worth noting that two of those children now form part of the crew Thomas (16) and Charlie (13), Mid Bow. (Suzie is meanwhile sailing on First 50 Checkmate XX in Class Zero in this series, as she has done on a regular basis since returning to competitive sailing in recent years).
"Ross McDonald does indeed sail with us as an invaluable part of our crew, but as Trim 1 on Jib, with Paddy Good trimming downwind. I allow myself the privilege of trimming the mainsail. Rory O'Sullivan is on Bow, Cuan Whelan on Mast, Aoife McDonald (nee English) on Nav, Killian Collins on Tactics, and Derek Moynan in the Pit.
"They're a brilliant team, and we are very lucky to have each and every one of them" concludes John. "In these "crew sparse" times, please give credit where it is due, before we lose any more good people to our sport..............."
RED HOT 420 DINGHY TALENT
Dear reader, you'll have to work some of this out for yourself. It seems to be not so long since Neil Spain was a very hot new talent emerging from the 420 Class. As for Mrs Murphy throwing in her lot with the Checkmate crowd, you can make of that what you will.
Meawhile, the reality is that Outrajeous (please note the "J") has emerged from some of the best racing seen this season as overall Cruiser 1 IRC winner on (2), 2, 1, 1, 1, 1, which is stratospheric - it gives her just five points to the 10 of second-placed Chimaera (Barry Cunningham) of the host club, while John Maybury's Joker II is third on 11.
CRUISERS 1 ECHO
For all those J/109s in Cruisers 1, ECHO acquired extra meaning in what was effectively a One-Design class, with ultra-close margins. To add to the sense of occasion, two of the most distinguished names in Irish sailing past and present battled for the title, with the Goodbody family of Dun Laoghaire racing White Mischief (not all J/109s have a J in their name), and squaring off against the Donegan family of Cork and Kinsale in Jalapeno.
It went right to the wire, with both concluding on 9 points after discard. But as Jalapeno was DSQ in Race 4, White Mischief wins on countback. As to third place overall on ECHO in Cruisers 1, the performance handicap system couldn't quite keep up with the stellar performance of Outrajeous, and she is third.
National Yacht Club's ValenTina is IRC Zero Winner at Unio ICRA Nationals
It says much for the sparkling quality of the sailing on Friday and Saturday that the final day's (Sunday) cancellation of all racing in the Cruisers 0/Cruisers 1 area in the early afternoon was accepted with equanimity by most boats and a comfortably philosophic attitude by those leaders whose placing on Saturday night held good.
There had been hope that, as the ebb started to make against the fitful easterly airs, things might sharpen up a bit. But those in the fleet of "cruisers" who have actually cruised recalled the number of times - on remote and rugged coasts - when their hopes that the wind would ease with the ebb had been fulfilled, and thus their pessimism for racing purposes today proved accurate.
So another great regatta of the 2024 season concludes for Johnny Treanor's J/112e ValenTina (National Yacht Club), one of the newest boats in the fleet and now the overall IRC winner in Cruisers 0, with many wins ahead of her if they keep refreshing her successful techniques.
HEALTHY INTERACTION
The winning helming by Nicole Hemeryck (24) was a classic case of the healthy interaction which is a result of sailors from all sectors being cheek by jowl on Dun Laoghaire's crowded multi-club waterfront, for she last figured prominently in Afloat.ie as an ace junior Laser sailor in the National YC, becoming our Junior Sailor of the Month in December 2016
In fact, it could reasonably be argued that any campaigning cruiser-racer owner-skipper in the Dun Laoghaire who isn't keeping a predatory eye on the rising talent in the junior dinghy classes is missing an opportunity to strengthen his or her crewing base.
ValenTina's full lineup speaks for itself: Nicole Hemeryck – Helm, Arran Holman - tactician, John Treanor – Skipper, Adam Winkelmann – Main, Dan Thompson – Trim, Alan Roche – Trim, Julie Caulfield - Nav / Pit, Ciaran Campbell – Mast, Ollie O'Carroll – Bow, Andrew Conan - Mid Bow. Boat Prep by Evan O'Connor.
With her final total of 5pts to the 11 of the second-placed Impetuous, ValenTina was in something of a series of her own, but the organisers will be well-pleased with the fact that second on IRC went to the Welsh-based Corby-designed Impetuous, while Third OA on 12 points was lifted by the Jones family from Royal Cork YC Crosshaven with their J/122 Jellybaby.
Impetuous is campaigned by the Miller, Crompton & Hodges partnership, which sounds like a much-respected law firm in Shrewsbury, but we're happy to be persuaded otherwise.
CRUISERS 0 ECHO
There are those who would argue that the top three under the ECHO performance handicap should be completely different from the trio leading IRC, but as it happens Impetuous gets into this as well, coming in at third. We hope they have plenty of spare jerseys to keep their numerous trophies safely wrapped while sailing back to Abersoch and Pwllheli.
The winner is the Farr 42 WOW, closely associated with the Sisk family. But as they were also campaigning the immaculate classic Marian Maid – built by their father in Dun Laoghaire in 1954 – it was Tim Kane's name on the scoresheet for WOW's victory.
Second overall on ECHO in Cruisers 0 with a scoreline of (3), 2, 2, 3, 3 was Pete Smyth's Ker 46 Searcher, looking black and beautiful and barely recognisable as the former emerald blue Tonnere de Breskens that won the 2010 Round Ireland Race for the great Piet Vroon. It all now seems a very long time ago, yet Searcher is one of those very special classics that always looks as modern as tomorrow, even if calling her a "Cruiser" in Dublin Bay style is a nonsense. But there you go – it's better than "Sundry Lidded Boats"
Royal Cork Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble Retains IRC Two Crown at Unio ICRA Nationals with a Nine Point Margin
Royal Cork's James Dwyer looks completed a successful defence of his ICRA IRC Two crown after scoring five wins from six races at the Unio ICRA National Championships at the Royal Irish Yacht Club on Dublin Bay on Sunday.
Just one race was possible on Course A and Dwyer made no mistake by wrapping up the championships with a win in a fitful southerly breeze rarely above five knots.
The vintage Half Tonner – the ICRA Boat of the Year for 2023 – beat the nine-boat fleet by a margin of nine points.
Dwyer's winning crew are Oisin McSweeney, Connor Horgan, Tom Flannery, Milly Haylett, Brian Henneghan, John McCann and David Dwyer
Another Half-Tonner, Miss Whiplash, skippered by Dwyer's Munster clubmate Ronan Downing took second overall on 14 points with the Howth Yacht Club J97, Lambay Rules, skippered by Stephen Quinn third on 17.
Fergal Noonan's Corby 25 Impetuous won the ECHO handicap division from Miss Whiplash with Frank Whelan's A31 Crazy Diamond from Greystones third.
ICRA Non Spinnaker: Bermingham's 'Bite the Bullet' Leads in IRC and ECHO by a Point
After five races sailed at the Unio ICRA Nationals 2024 on Dublin Bay, Colm Bermingham's Elan 333 Bite the Bullet from Howth continues to lead by a point in both non-spinnaker IRC and ECHO divisions at the Royal Irish Yacht Club hosted event.
Clubmate Splashdance, a Dufour 40, (J Beckett & A George) lies second on IRC with Grainne and Sean O'Shea's Superseal 26–footer Gung-Ho third in a three boat IRC turnout.
In an eight-boat ECHO division, Tim Costello's Bavaria 35 Just Jasmin is second, and Splashdance is third.
For a second day, light but stable easterly winds allowed a full programme of races to be staged on Dublin Bay, with two Sunday's final two races – again in forecast light winds – to bring the championships to a conclusion.
ICRA Class Three: Wicklow J24 Crew On Top in IRC After Five Races
The Wicklow J24 crew of Conor Haughton, Jonny Flood, Charles Heather and Garrett Kinnane have a four-point lead over defending IRC champion Quarter Tonner Snoopy in IRC Class Three after five races sailed on Saturday at the Unio ICRA National Championships at the Royal Irish Yacht Club on Dublin Bay.
For a second day, light but stable easterly winds allowed a full programme of races to be staged on Dublin Bay, with two Sunday's final two races – again in forecast light winds – to bring the championships to a conclusion.
Paul Prentice's Sigma 33 Squawk lies third on 11 points.
Under the ECHO handicap, Jupiter leads from Squawk with another Sigma, Flyover (David Marchant and John McDonald), lying third.