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Displaying items by tag: IRC Two

The quirky Classic Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble (James Dwyer, RCYC) may have found the ferocity of the winds in Friday's early races not quite to her taste, but with Olympian Andy Beadsworth on the mainsheet, she was flying today, winning everything that happened in IRC2 Division of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta.

Stephen Quinn's Lambay RulesStephen Quinn's J97 Lambay Rules Photo: Bob Bateman

Slightly down the fleet, however, there's a changed picture, as Howth's two J/97s, Stephen Quinn's Lambay Rules and Colin Kavanagh's Jeneral Lee, have moved themselves into second and third overall through consistency. However, it should be noted that Swuzzlebubble's wins have by no means been horizon jobs - she took the final race by just 45 seconds from Brendan Foley's First Class 8 Alligbr (RStGYC).

Brendan Foley's First Class 8 Allig8r (RStGYC)Brendan Foley's First Class 8 Allig8r (RStGYC) Photo: Afloat

The 2023 regatta, the ninth edition of Ireland's largest sailing event, concludes on Sunday with two final races for most classes and a great festival of sailing across the waterfront and Dun Laoghaire town as four sailing clubs come together for the biennial event; Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club and National Yacht Club.

Published in DL Regatta: Cr 2

Double British Olympic keelboat sailor Andy Beadsworth is on board Dave Dwyer's Royal Cork Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble for an IRC Two contest in this week's Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta, where strong winds are forecasted to get the four-day regatta off to an exciting start on Thursday afternoon.

Beadsworth and Dwyer, who previously sailed together on the Mills 39 Marinerscove in RORC Commodore's Cup campaigns, will renew their long-standing friendship at Ireland's biggest sailing event. 

The Nottingham helmsman who sailed Solings at Atlanta and Sydney is also a double Dragon class world champion and has previously competed on the Dublin Bay race track.

 Sovereign's Cup champion Swuzzlebubble is a favourite for IRC Two honours at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta Photo: Bob Bateman Sovereign's Cup champion Swuzzlebubble is a favourite for IRC Two honours at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta Photo: Bob Bateman

As Afloat reported earlier, Dun Laoghaire's IRC Two division may be one of the hardest to call, given the developing strong wind forecast that threatens 30-knot gusts from the south on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

It's a forecast, however, that the Swuzzlebubble skipper appears to relish: "We discussed it this AM. We reckon there will be some relief inshore and should be incredible conditions for the regatta. Looks like it could be a brilliant Sailors' regatta".

Swuzzlebubble is a favourite for IRC Two honours, and Beadsworth's presence will only improve those odds for last month's Sovereign's Cup champion.

Published in DL Regatta: Cr 2
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Marine Leisure & Aquatic Tourism

Domestic coastal tourism expenditure was approximately €698 million in 2018, while domestic marine tourism generated €381 million.

Activities such as walking/ running along the coast, swimming and beach visitations are among the most popular activities for domestic visitors on both day and overnight trips.

While participation rates in pursuits such as bird and wildlife watching in coastal areas and visiting nature reserves, etc. in coastal areas were lower, these activities did see the highest frequency of both day and overnight trips for those active in these activities. 

According to the National University of Galway (NUIG) research the average expenditure per coastal day trip in 2018 was calculated at €95. The equivalent for coastal overnight trips was €310. The estimated water-based activity expenditure per person per trip across the sample was €56 rising to €73 for the subsample that actually undertake waterbased activities on their coastal visits. The results also indicate that domestic tourists undertake the majority of their marine activities on the West and South coasts of Ireland and that there are notable differences in participation rates across age groupings, social classes and by family makeup.

A domestic tourist is defined in this report as a person who spends at least one night away from home on their trip. Total expenditure by domestic tourists in coastal areas was estimated to be €698 million in 2018, which represents 35% of the total expenditure by domestic tourists (using the broader Fáilte Ireland measure for domestic tourists that includes business trips equating to 10.92 million in total trips and €2,006 million in total revenue).

The marine-related activity expenditure, or what might truly be referred to as domestic marine tourism, is estimated to generate revenue of €381 million with €172 million being spent on water-based activities. Marine tourism makes up an estimated 19% of total domestic tourism expenditure.

Marine Leisure Tourism - FAQ

Coastal tourism refers to land-based and water-based tourism activities taking place on the coast for which the proximity to the sea is a condition including also their respective services. Coastal and Marine Tourism & Leisure are seen as one of the Blue Economy (BE) sectors that can help unlock the potential of multi-use of space at sea by engaging with Blue Growth (BG) sectors such as Aquaculture and Marine Renewable Energy among others.

Sports: sailing, surfing, diving and fishing Heritage: Unesco coastal villages, archaeological sites of interest, biospheres and historical points of interest Arts: coastal museums, art galleries, museums, wrecks Education: Eco-tourism, field courses, NGOs. Food: Seafood restaurants, Seafood festivals

NUI Galway carried out a survey of domestic residents in Ireland in 2019 as part of a survey entitled "Valuing and understanding the dynamics of Ireland's Ocean Economy". The purpose of the household survey was to profile the domestic market for single-day trips (leisure) and overnight trips (tourism) for coastal and marine-related activities in Ireland. The results of the survey are also used to estimate what proportion of an Irish resident's total domestic tourism expenditure is in coastal areas (coastal tourism) and what proportion is spent on undertaking marine-related activities (marine tourism).

The NUI results highlight the important contribution that Ireland's marine and coastal resources make to the leisure experiences of the general population and the importance of the domestic tourism market to local coastal economies. The analysis indicates that domestic coastal tourism expenditure was approximately €698 million in 2018, while domestic marine tourism generated €381 million. Activities such as walking/ running along the coast, swimming and beach visitations are among the most popular activities for domestic visitors on both day and overnight trips. While participation rates in pursuits such as bird and wildlife watching in coastal areas and visiting nature reserves, etc. in coastal areas were lower, these activities did see the highest frequency of both day and overnight trips for those active in these activities. Satisfaction with the available marine-related leisure facilities was also found to be very high across all activities.

©Afloat 2020