Two classic Irish yachts are turning heads in the perfect sailing conditions of the first two days of racing at the Simply Blue Sovereign's Cup Regatta off Kinsale. 

The immaculately restored O'Keeffe family's gaff cutter Lady Min of 1902 vintage and the Sisk family's Marian Maid, built in 1954, are both racing in the White Sails Two division.

Re-born. The restored Lady Min raced at Cork Week 2022 and is racing this week at the 2023 Simply Blue Sovereign's Cup off Kinsale Photo: Bob Bateman

Designed and built in Schull by Maurice O'Keeffe in 1902, Lady Min was acclaimed as the Best Restoration Under 40ft by Classic Boat Magazine in April in celebration of the meticulous work carried out by Tiernan Roe of Roe Boats of Ballydehob for Simon O'Keeffe, who is at the heart of a four-generation family involvement with this very special boat.

The O'Keeffe family's gaff cutter Lady Min of 1902 is racing at the 2023 Simply Blue Sovereign's Cup off Kinsale Photo: Bob Bateman

Marian Maid at Kinsale

The vanished-hulled Marian Maid is racing again and has recently travelled from her home port of Dun Laoghaire back to the south coast to compete at this week's biennial Sovereign's Cup. 

It's easy to see why the Knud Reimers designed Marian Maid made something of a splash in the Yachting World Annual of 1954 Photo: Bob Bateman

As Afloat reported recently, the eight-metre cruiser-racer is owned by George and Hal Sisk and Hal's son Owen and immaculately restored by Jimmy Murphy and Peter Sweetman and Sisk boat specialist Ian Squire with the team at Rossbrin Boatyard in West Cork, where the up-dating mods have included the installation of an electric auxiliary engine.

The yawl-rigged Marian Maid was built in the Marian Year of 1954 for John Sisk by Dalkey Shipyard on Dublin Bay Photo: Bob Bateman

Marian Maid was spotted at Crosshaven Tradfest in Cork Harbour last Sunday evening, as Afloat reported here, before the yawl began racing this week in White Sails Two Division.

Designed with the 1954 RORC rule  in mind, Marian Maid’s rig leads to no less than six headsails, two jibs, a boom foresail with a reef, a working foresail, and a foresail for reaching Photo: Bob Bateman