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Dublin Bay Boating News and Information

Displaying items by tag: onedesign keelboats

Howth Yacht Club’s WD-40 Autumn League, sponsored by Team PR Reilly, got off to a blustery start on Sunday (25th September), with the ten classes encountering fresh 26-knot southerlies, stronger gusts and tough sea conditions.

 

Perhaps it was the post-Rugby World Cup match euphoria or the gale forecast that was off-putting, but whatever the reason, around a quarter of the 150 boats entered for this year’s WD-40 Autumn League didn’t make it to the starting line for the first race of the series! As it was, some boats experienced gear damage and others were unable to complete the course.

 

It’s been a good season for Pat Kelly’s ‘Storm’ and the run continued with a comfortable win in Class 1 on IRC while ‘Tiger’ (Harris/Hughes) took the spoils on ECHO in a race which saw the first four boats crossing the line within a minute.

 

Line honours by a minute converted into a bigger IRC win for Anthony Gore-Grimes’ ‘Dux’ over second-placed ‘Superhero’ (Byrne/Banahan) in Class 2 and was also enough to earn top spot on ECHO too, in that case ahead of ‘Indigo’ (Ritchie/Eadie).

 

In Class 3, Antrim visitor Alfred Mayrs’ ‘Quickflash’ and ‘Starlet’ (Ed Bourke) battled it out at the head of the fleet, with the local boat taking the gun and ECHO honours (ahead of ‘Shenanigans’ – Douglas/Keane, MYC) and the northern crew heading the IRC standings.

 

Another visitor, Paul Tully of Dun Laoghaire Marina on ‘White Lotus’, clearly enjoyed heading the dozen Howth boats in Class 4 (White Sails) on ECHO while Colm Bermingham’s ‘Bite the Bullet’ did enough to beat ‘Changeling’ (Kieran Jameson) into second place on IRC. In the other White Sail division – Class 5 – ‘Demelza’ (Ennis/Laudan) had a good win over bigger rivals on ECHO and Harry Byrne’s Alphida’ topped the IRC rankings.

 

The Etchells was a match-racing affair, in effect, with Jay Bourke’s ‘Dirty Protest’ having a fairly comfortable margin of victory over ‘Glance’ (O’Reilly/Dix) while in the J24s, national champion Flor O’Driscoll (‘Hard on Port’) had a similar lead over second-placed ‘Crazy Horse’ (Mossy Shanahan). A feature of the J24 event is two boats – ‘Scandal’ and ‘Kilcullen’ – being sailed by two HYC Development Squad crews and they finished 3rd and 4th respectively.

 

The biggest entry and biggest fleet on the day was the Puppeteers and national champions ‘Harlequin’ (Clarke/Egan) filled their accustomed position at the top of the standings, with two minutes to spare over ‘Mojo’ (Callen/Stanley), although that order was reversed under the HPH handicap.

 

Biggest scratch win of the day was in the Squibs where ‘Kerfuffle’ (Craig/Ruane) had over 6 minutes in hand over ‘Too Dee’ (Dave Sheahan) and almost as big a win on HPH over ‘Arctic Fox’ (G.Barry). Only 22 seconds separated ‘Oona’ (Peter Courtney) and ‘Isobel’ (the Turveys) in the Seventeens after an hour and a half’s racing, but the latter had the consolation of winning on HPH.

 

The WD-40 Autumn League, sponsored by Team PR Reilly and supported by H.B.Dennis Airside and Windguru, continues next Sunday, 2nd October, with the second race in the 6-race series.

Class 1 IRC
1. Storm, P Kell, HYC
2. Equinox, R McDonald, HYC
3. Tiger, Harris/Hughes, HYC

Class 1 ECHO
1. Tiger, Harris/Hughes, HYC
2. Riot, B Linehan, HYC
3. Storm, P Kelly, HYC

Class 2 IRC
1. Dux, A Gore-Grimes, HYC
2. Indigo, Ritchie/Eadie, HYC
3. Maximus, P Kyne, HYC

Class 2 ECHO
1. Dux, A Gore-Grimes, HYC
2. Indigo, Ritchie/Eadie, HYC
3. Maximus, P Kyne, HYC

Class 3 IRC
1. Quickflash, A Mayrs, ABSC
2. Starlet, E Bourke, HYC
3. Goyave, Camier/Fitzpatrick, MYC

Class 3 ECHO
1. Starlet, E Bourke, HYC
2. Shenanigans, Douglas/Keane, MYC
3. Goyave, Camier/Fitzpatrick, MYC

Class 4 IRC
1. Bite the Bullet, C Bermingham, HYC
2. Changeling, K Jameson, HYC
3. White Lotus, P Tully, DLM

Class 4 ECHO
1. White Lotus, P Tully, DLM
2. Sojourn, Lacy/Blandford, HYC
3. Bite the Bullet, C Bermingham, HYC

Class 5 IRC
1. Alphida, H Byrne, HYC
2. Demelza, Ennis/Laudan, HYC
3. Voyager, J Carton, HYC

Class 5 ECHO
1. Demelza, Ennis/Laudan, HYC
2. Alphida, H Byrne, HYC
3. Voyager, J Carton, HYC

Etchells
1. Dirty Protest, J Bourke, HYC/GSC
2. Glance, O'Reilly/Dix, HYC

J24
1. Hard on Port, F O'Driscoll, HYC
2. Crazy Horse, M Shanahan, HYC
3. Scandal, HYC Dev Red, HYC

Puppeteer Scratch
1. Harlequin, Clarke/Egan, HYC
2. Mojo, Callen/Stanley, HYC
3. Gold Dust, Walls/Browne, HYC

Puppeteer HCap
1. Mojo, Callen/Stanley, HYC
2. Harlequin, Clarke/Egan, HYC
3. Flycatcher, Dillon/Wright, HYC

Squib Scratch
1. Kerfuffle, Craig/Ruane, HYC
2. Too Dee, D Sheahan, HYC
3. Arctic Fox, G Barry, HYC

Squib HCap
1. Kerfuffle, Craig/Ruane, HYC
2. Arctic Fox, G Barry, HYC
3. Too Dee, D Sheahan, HYC

17 Footer Scratch
1. Oona, P Courtney, HYC
2. Isobel, B & C Turvey, HYC
3. Deilginis, Deilginis, HYC

17 Footer HCap
1. Isobel, B & C Turvey, HYC
2. Oona, P Courtney, HYC
3. Deilginis, Deilginis, HYC

Published in Howth YC

Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

© Afloat 2020