Youghal Harbour comes alive this Sunday when the only round of the ISA National Powerboat Championships to be held in Cork this year rolls into town and down the slipway. This will be the penultimate round of this year's series and with points tight at the top of each class, competitive racing is guaranteed. The organisers of this round - Youghal Bay Boat Club - have been working hard to design courses that will ensure tight exciting racing with the whole event happening right in front of Youghal quays. Padraig Brooks - Commodore of Youghal Bay Boat Club tells us "This is the first time our new club has held powerboat racing here in Youghal. We hosted a round of the Championships across in Ardmore back in July which proved to be an enormous success with huge crowds and fantastic racing and now we look forward to welcoming the racing fleets and spectators to the waters of Youghal for what's expected to be a memorable round of the championship. The layout of the quays allows for great viewing and we hope people will come down and enjoy the racing".

Four classes are expected to race this Sunday - 29th August: The F2 & F4 classes look light waterborne jet fighters and can attain speeds approaching 200 kilometres an hour, the T850 fleet are an exciting monohull class, while the P750 class (better known as Thundercats) will make a welcome return to these waters following a highly successful international race back in 2008. Expect lots of noise, tons of excitement and a great spectacle for a wonderful family afternoon.

This is another exciting event for the recently formed Youghal Bay Boat Club. At the start of the Summer large crowds turned out to enjoy their Open Day which was followed closely by 'WindQuest' - an inter-club sailing competition - and then a competitive sea-angling competition in July. Given the natural amenities in the area it's perhaps little surprise that a club in this East Cork town should have proved so active.

Racing on Sunday begins at 12.30 and continues throughout the afternoon with several races in each class. Music and commentary on the day will be provided by Community Radio Youghal and the centre of the action will be Nealon's Quay (next to 'The Quays' bar).

Youghal Boat Club hosts its first national powerboat race hosted this weekend. Commodore Padraig Brooks sends this report: "All of our committee have been working hard these past few weeks, in conjunction with the Ardmore Pattern Festival committee to bring you the very best event possible. Thankfully everything is now in place and we eagerly anticipate the morning of Sunday, July 25th when we take to the water.
With a little bit of luck on our side, weatherwise, we should be racing in front of thousands of spectators on a exciting course right in the heart of lovely Ardmore Bay. The layout of the town means that this is a really great location both for those watching and those competing.
Racing will be in the P750 (Thundercat/Zapcat) fleet and the nature of same makes for an extremely spectator-friendly event. At time of typing we're hoping to have the largest ever domestic fleet of these boats gathered in Ardmore. Timings for the weekend are as follows:
Friday night - several of the boats are launching to watch the festival fireworks from the water

Saturday 1400-1630: Casual run-out and shake-down of the boats

Sunday 1230-1630: Full round of the ISA P750 National Powerboat Championships

Aside from the racing, Ardmore will be bursting with great activity for the whole family this weekend. We'd love to see you down here, and if you make it, be sure to come over and say hello.