Andrew Crosbie and Stephen O'Shaughnessy in the National 18 'Virtual MissFits' were the 2021 Ballinacurra Race winners hosted by Cove Sailing Club in conjunction with the National 18 dinghy class. 

Among other competing boats, Nine Eighteens contested the race that has traditionally been an annual pilgrimage from Royal Cork in Crosshaven to 'Jacko's Bar'.

As Afloat reported earlier, this year's Cove Sailing Club race was an open event and Commodore Niall Hawes gave a  start time at 3 pm near to the harbour's Spit Bank.

The race started from Committee boat Brisa Mar with OOD Joanna O’Brien onboard.

Class 1 started first with a quick dog leg down to 16 and back to no 20 then straight to Ballinacura.

Class 2 started straight after with a fleet of 9 with 4 Rankins in attendance with 2 young hopefuls Sam and Noah Dorgan racing Optimists.

The breeze began to drop as the fleet neared the corner of east ferry and the Race officer decided to finish Class 2 at the church in East Ferry.

Class 1 consisting largely of National 18’s carried on up the East Passage where the tide was flooding rapidly with the shifty breeze.

The race concluded with Class 1s finishing at South Quay in Ballinacurra with the committee boat Bris Mar braving the shallow channel to record the finish

There were two classes racing to Ballinacurra.

A number of Rankins (below), two catamarans (above), two RS400s and a few mixed dinghies including two Optimists also started the race.

An interesting course for Class 1 dinghies was set to send them round Spit buoy and run back to No. 20 buoy and then straight to Ballinacurra.

Winds were very light prior to the start with some boats towed the final quarter of a mile just to get to the line. 

The wind filled in for the start of the race to Ballinacurra with one National 18 dinghy over the line and having to return

Although largely a family affair, the race was not without some decent competition especially for the National 18 lead in Class One.

In very strong tide, the National 18s found it hard to keep spinnakers filled at East Ferry

Ballinacurra Race Results 2021

Class 1

1st National 18 Misfits Andrew Crosbie & Stephen O’Shaughnessy

2nd National 18 Puss in Boots Katie Dwyer, Tome Dwyer & Willy Healy

3rd National 18 Minnie’s Return Colin Barry, Ronan Kenneally & John O’Gorman.

Class 2

1st Rankin Maurice & Francis Kidney

2nd Rankin Owen O’Connell & Joe Keenan

3rd Rankin James & Suzanne Burke

There was also a special presentation to the youngest competitor Harry Coole who was just 10 years old.

Cove Sailing Club wish to thank all the competitors who ensured this historic race was well supported.

Thanks to Charles Dwyer of the National 18 class for helping organise with us, Joanne O’Brien and crew of the Bris Mar for providing committee boat duties, the Brooklands Bar for providing much needed libations and to Steven Byrne and Harry McDwyer for providing rescue cover.

Ballinacurra Race Photo Gallery By Bob Bateman

Cove Sailing Club in Cork Harbour is holding the Ballinacurra Race this Saturday (24th July) in conjunction with the National 18 dinghy class. 

The last race there was in 2019 but prior to that the 'Ballinacurra Cruising Club' would traditionally have an annual pilgrimage from Royal Cork in Crosshaven to 'Jacko's Bar'.

In part, the in-harbour cruise commemorated the fact that the Midleton pier was the final disembarkation point for the last commercial sailing ship in Cork Harbour.

The harbour channel for Ballinacurra is located near East Ferry but, say, harbour experts, it is slowly getting silted up and now limited to about five feet of draught.

Cove Sailing Club in Cork Harbour is holding the Ballinacurra Race to Midleton this Sat (24th July) in conjunction with the National 18 dinghy class. Photo: Bob Bateman

The channel to Ballinacurra is reportedly marked by plastic milk bottles and other similar buoyage.

Most boats venturing up that way go towards the top of the tide. But, say, locals, "you have to get out of it pretty sharpish or you can get caught".

The Cove Sailing Club race is an open event and Commodore Niall Hawes is keen to spread the news of the weekend fixture. 

The start time is 3 pm near to the harbour's Spit Bank.

There are three classes; class 1, Class Two (dinghies) plus local Rankin dinghies.

The prizegiving will be held outside Jacko's.

More here

Maurice Kidney's Rankin continues to lead the Wednesday Night Dinghy League at Cove SC in Cork Harbour on 7 points from Owen O'Connell.

The latter continues second in another Rankin on 9, with Joe Keenan making up the top trio in his Solo on 15 points.

There are 16 boats in the fleet.

While other clubs have found it a big enough challenge simply resuming sailing in a regulation-compliant way, the 101-year-old Cove Sailing Club in Cork Harbour has also been bringing its new marina on stream, and in addition to resuming club sailing, it staged the first open event of the delayed 2020 season, the Squib Southerns, on July 25th-26th. It has been a superb team effort, but all teams need effective leadership, and CSC Commodore Kieran Dorgan has been providing it in a family tradition - his father Barry was in the same role, while on the water Kieran himself is no stranger to the front of the fleet with his First 36.7 Altair.

Kinsale overnight leader Colm Dunne at the helm of Allegro held off a strong Northern Ireland Challenge to win the Squib Southern Championships at Cove Sailing Club this afternoon.

As reported earlier, 13 boats contested the championships in Cork Harbour but no one was able to overhaul Dunne who counted three race wins on the windward-leeward courses.

Second place after five races sailed in the one-design keelboat competition went to Royal North of Ireland's Gordon Patterson. Third place went to Patterson's Belfast Lough club-mate Peter Wallace, skipper of Toy for the Boys.

Results are here

Bob Bateman's Day Two Photo Gallery below

Colm Dunne and Rob Gill's Allegro from Kinsale Yacht Club leads the 2020 Squib Southern Championships after three races sailed in Cork Harbour yesterday.

Scroll down for Bob Bateman's photo gallery of Day one racing below.

The Cove Sailing Club hosted event is the first on design championships of the season and was sailed over windward-leeward courses on the Eastern Bank of the Harbour.

13 are competing including three Northern Ireland entries and a strong seven boat turnout from Kinsale.

Racing so far has been in light to medium westerly breezes.

Royal North of Ireland's Peter Wallace, on five points, trails Dunne by two points with Dunne's club-mate Ian Travers five points off the lead.

The Championship resumes this morning with a first gun at 10.55

Results are here

The first major Class championships this season and the first in Cork Harbour will go ahead at Cove Sailing Club next weekend. The Squib Southerns will be based at the new Cove SC clubhouse and marina at Whitepoint.

The event and the marina are a big boost for the harbour town. Cobh has long-needed facilities for visiting boats. Several previous attempts to build a marina there failed. Cove Sailing Club, which celebrated its centenary last year, undertook its own project. It was not without difficulties and financial pressures which did create some internal club difficulties. At one stage another club, the Great Island Sailing Club, was formed and organised cruiser racing while remaining club members devoted their attention to getting the marina built. They succeeded, the new marina is now in operation, the clubs have re-united, with Great Island ceasing activities and members back in Cove Sailing Club which is a busy place at present.

Race Officers get the first race away from Cove Island Sailing Club's new marina pontoons Photo: Bob Bateman

There is also a new clubhouse and dinghy sailing is resuming, with training courses also going ahead.

Kieran Dorgan is Cove Sailing Club’s Commodore and is my Podcast guest this week, discussing the developments and the economic boost which the marina will provide to the town of Cobh. I started by asking him about the Squibs Southern Championships next weekend, with racing on Saturday and Sunday, July 25 and 26:

Cove Sailing Club’S first evening league of the season was won by Commodore Dorgan’s Altair, a First 36.7 David Doyle’s Sigma 33, Musketeer, was second and Norman Allen’s Impala, Nadia, third. Twelve yachts raced.

The first cruiser race of the Cove Sailing Club season was started from the brand new Cove Marina in Cork Harbour on Friday, July 10.

Cove Race Officer Brian Curtis got 12 boats away using the marina and the flagstaff at the Naval Base on Haulbowline as a transit.

A downwind start saw most of the fleet hug the Spit Bank to dodge worst of the tide.

The course then featured a run down to Cuskinny 13 mark then out to harbour to 12 before a short beat and a fetch to the finish line.

As Afloat reported previously, Cove Saling Club’s new marina pontoons were put to immediate use with yachts and motorboats occupying the new berths since the opening up of sailing activity on 8th June.

First race photos by Bob Bateman below

Cove Saling Club’s brand new marina pontoons have been put to immediate use in Cork Harbour with yachts and motorboats occupying the new berths since the opening up of sailing activity on 8th June.

Coronavirus restrictions delayed the original expected completion date in April, but the berthing pontoons are fully assembled and connected to the gangway that was installed earlier this year.

New Cove Marina

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the Cork Harbour club has also been working on upgrades to its dinghy park facilities including a new meeting room, office and kitchen at Whitepoint in Cobh.

Cove Sailing Club dinghy parking facilities Photo: Bob Bateman

Colm McDonagh has shared images of further progress on Cove Saling Club’s new marina pontoons in time for the opening up of sailing activity from tomorrow, Monday 8 June.

Coronavirus restrictions delayed the original expected completion date in April, but the berthing pontoons are now well into assembly before connection to the gangway that was installed earlier this year.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the Cork Harbour club has also been working on upgrades to its dinghy park facilities including a new meeting room, office and kitchen at Whitepoint in Cobh.

What a fantastic addition the @CoveSailingClub marina will be. Really coming together now. @CobhTourism @CobhHarCham @CobhTidy @hashtagcobh2020 @AfloatMagazine @jonathanlee0312 @KENNYTCORK @CathalRasmussen @eucoolroute @royalcork @deshocks @PortofCork pic.twitter.com/cq6n8Gi2gJ

— Cobh Gifts by CMcDonaghPhoto (@C1McD) June 5, 2020

It’s expected the club will shortly provide an update on summer sailing events and courses upon the latest relaxing of restrictions — which allow members within the same county or 20km to visit, and for bigger groups to sail while observing social distancing.