Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Displaying items by tag: Winners

#Rowing: Ronan Byrne has retained his title on the Cork Sculling Ladder 2015/2016. The Shandon man was the overall winner, and also topped the junior and intermediate sections. Margaret Cremen from Lee was not only the top woman, but also took the junior 16 and junior 18 bow, along with the intermediate and club one and club two sections. In a revision of the final finishing positions, Dan Begley of Shandon Boat Club has been named as the Club One winner.

2015 – 2016 Cork Sculling Ladder Winners

Overall Winner  :  (1) Ronan Byrne  -  Shandon Boat Club  (retained)

Women’s Overall Winner  :  (49) Margaret Cremen  -  Lee Rowing Club

Section Winners

Men

Open :  (1) Ronan Byrne  -  Shandon Boat Club

Intermediate :  (1) Ronan Byrne  -  Shandon Boat Club

Novice :  (19) Hugh Sutton  -  Lee Rowing Club

Club 1 :  (4)  Dan Begley - Shandon Boat Club

Club 2 :  (7) Darragh Larkin  -  Lee Rowing Club 

Junior 18 :  (1) Ronan Byrne  -  Shandon Boat Club

Junior 16 :  (8) Barry O’Flynn  -  Cork Boat Club

Junior 15 :  (12) Thomas Murphy  -  Lee Rowing Club

Junior 14 :  (47) Tim Buckley  -  Lee Rowing Club

Junior 13 :  (115) Sean McCalgon  -  Lee Rowing Club

Junior 12 :  (151) Peter Leonard  -  Cork boat Club 

Masters A :  (20) Donal Smith  -  Shandon Boat Club

Masters B :  (21) Henrik Merz  -  Shandon Boat Club

Masters C :  (21) Henrik Merz  -  Shandon Boat Club

Masters D :  (56) Pat Peilow  -  Cork Boat Club

Masters E :  (56) Pat Peilow  -  Cork Boat Club

Masters F :  (66) Tony Corcoran  -  Lee Valley Rowing Club

Masters G :  (66) Tony Corcoran  -  Lee Valley Rowing Club

Masters H :  (166) Seamus Quain  -  Shandon Boat Club

Masters I :  (166) Seamus Quain  -  Shandon Boat Club

Women

Open :  (49) Margaret Cremen  -  Lee Rowing Club

Intermediate :  (49) Margaret Cremen  -  Lee Rowing Club

Novice :  (82) Marie Kidney  -  Lee Rowing Club

Club 1 :  (49) Margaret Cremen  -  Lee Rowing Club

Club 2 :  (49) Margaret Cremen  -  Lee Rowing Club

Junior 18 :  (49) Margaret Cremen  -  Lee Rowing Club

Junior 16 :  (49) Margaret Cremen  -  Lee Rowing Club

Junior 15 : (69) Anne O’Farrell  -  Cork Boat Club

Junior 14 :  (82) Marie Kidney  -  Lee Rowing Club

Junior 13 : (128) Jennifer Forde  -  Shandon Boat Club

Junior 12 : (128) Jennifer Forde  -  Shandon Boat Club

Masters A :  (132) Karen Corcoran O’Hare  -  Lee Valley Rowing Club

Masters B : (132) Karen Corcoran O’Hare  -  Lee Valley Rowing Club

Masters C : (155) Karen Dunne McCarthy  -  Cork Boat Club

Masters D : (157) Mary O’Callaghan  -  Lee Rowing Club

Masters E : (157) Mary O’Callaghan  -  Lee Rowing Club

 Results.

                           

                 

Saturday 26.03.2016.

 (22) Evan Curtin  -  Cork Boat Club bt  (16) David Higgins  -  Presentation College Rowing Club.   4L.

(50) Conor Twohig  -  Cork Boat Club bt  (45) Patrick Kenneally  -  Presentation College Rowing Club.   1 1/4L.

(25) Donal Smith  -  Shandon Boat Club bt   (20) Henrik Merz  -  Shandon Boat Club.  1 3/4L.                   

(47) Tim Buckley  -  Lee Rowing Club bt  (48) David Cosgrave  -  Shandon Boat Club.  5L.

 (82) Sophie Grey  -  Lee Rowing Club bt  (FC) (107) Hannah Cummins  -  Lee Rowing Club.  5L.

 (10) Liam O’Connell  -  Cork Boat Club bt  (11) Cathal Merz  -  Shandon Boat Club.  5L.

Starter / Umpires : Finbarr Desmond, Kieran O’Sullivan and Pat Hickey.

Sunday

 (FC)(91) Marie Kidney  -  Lee Rowing Club bt  (82) Sophie Grey  -  Lee Rowing Club.   5L. 

1. (1) Ronan Byrne  -  Shandon Boat Club bt  (4) Dan Begley  -  Shandon Boat Club.   4L. 

Starter / Umpires :  Finbarr Desmond and Kieran O’Sullivan.

Tuesday

(82) Marie Kidney  - Lee RC bt (FC)C87) Claragh O’Sullivan  -  Cork Boat Club.   1 L.

Starter   / Umpires :  Finbarr Desmond and Kieran Hughes.

 

Cork Sculling Ladder 2015 - 2016
27/03/2016
Position
Club
Sculler
Grades
Leaders
1
Shandon Boat Club
Ronan Byrne #
J18, I, O
J18, I, O
2
Shandon Boat Club
Colm Hennessey #
I, O
3
UCC
Jack Casey
C1, I, O
C1
4
Shandon Boat Club
Dan Begley (FC)
C1, I, O
5
Shandon Boat Club
Stephen O'Sullivan
J18,I, O
6
Shandon Boat Club
Sean Lonergan
J18,C1, I, O
7
Lee Rowing Club
Darragh Larkin
J18, C2, C1, I, O
C2
8
Cork Boat Club
Barry O'Flynn
J16, J18, C1, I, O
J16
9
Shandon Boat Club
Stewart Channon
C1, I, O
10
Cork Boat Club
Liam O'Connell (FC)
J18, C1, I, O
11
Shandon Boat Club
Cathal Merz
C2, C1, I, O
12
Lee Rowing Club
Thomas Murphy
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
J15
13
Cork Boat Club
Barry Connolly
J16, J18, C1, I, O
14
Cork Boat Club
Feargal O'Sullivan
J18, C1, I, O
15
Lee Rowing Club
David Breen
J18, C1, I, O
16
Cork Boat Club
Evan Curtin (FC)
J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
17
Presentation College Rowing Club
David Higgins
J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
18
Shandon Boat Club
Conor Cudden
J18, C2, C1, I, O
19
Lee Rowing Club
Hugh Sutton
J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
Novice
20
Shandon Boat Club
Donal Smith
MA, C2, C1, I, O
MA
21
Shandon Boat Club
Henrik Merz
MA, MB, MC, C2, C1, I, O
MB, MC
22
Shandon Boat Club
Chris Horgan
MA, C1, I, O
23
Cork Boat Club
Cormac Corkery (FC)
J18, C2, C1, I, O
24
Lee Rowing Club
Peter Jackson
J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
25
Lee Rowing Club
Eoin Larkin
J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
26
Shandon Boat Club
Sam O'Neill
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
27
Cork Boat Club
Neil McCarthy
C1, I, O
28
Presentation College Rowing Club
Alan O' Keeffe
J18, C2, C1, I, O
29
Lee Rowing Club
Shane Crean
J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
30
Cork Boat Club
Conor McCarthy
J18, C2, C1, I, O
31
Shandon Boat Club
Alex Byrne (FC)
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
32
Shandon Boat Club
Eoin Gaffney
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
33
Cork Boat Club
James O'Leary
C1, I, O
34
Cork Boat Club
Danny Peilow
C1, I, O
35
Shandon Boat Club
Brian O'Keefe (FC)
MA, MB, C1, I, O
36
Cork Boat Club
Brian Crean #
MA, MB, MC, C1, I, O
37
Shandon Boat Club
William Ronayne (FC)
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
38
Lee Rowing Club
Ray Fitzgerald
J18, C2, C1, I, O
39
Cahir Rowing Club
David Heffernan #
MA, MB, C1, I, O
40
Cork Boat Club
Cian O'Sullivan
J16, J18, C1, I, O
41
Shandon Boat Club
Emmet Hickey
J18, C1, I, O
42
Cork Boat Club
David Collins
C1, I, O
43
Lee Rowing Club
Morgan O'Hara
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
44
Shandon Boat Club
Jerome Arrigan (FC)
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
45
Cork Boat Club
Conor Twohig (FC)
J18, C2, C1, I, O
46
Presentation College Rowing Club
Patrick Kennelly
J18, C2, C1, I, O
47
Lee Rowing Club
Tim Buckley
J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
J14
48
Shandon Boat Club
David Cosgrove
J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
49
Lee Rowing Club
Margaret Cremen
J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
WJ16, WJ18, WC2, WC1, WI, WO
50
Shandon Boat Club
Rob Diffley
MA, C2, C1, I, O
51
Cork Boat Club
Ross Cudmore (FC)
J18, C2, C1, I, O
52
Presentation College Rowing Club
Luke Guerin
J18, C2, C1, I, O
53
Lee Rowing Club
Luke Filan
J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
54
Shandon Boat Club
John O'Neill
MA, MB, MC, C2, C1, I, O
55
Lee Rowing Club
Conor O'Malley (FC)
J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
56
Cork Boat Club
Pat Peilow
MA, MB, MC, MD, ME, C1, I, O
MD, ME
57
Shandon Boat Club
Noel Carey
MA, MB, C2, C1, I, O
58
Cork Boat Club
Aidan O'Sullivan
J18, C1, I, O
59
Cork Boat Club
Kieran White (FC)
J18, C1, I, O
60
Presentation College Rowing Club
Jack O' Donovan
J18, C2, C1, I, O
61
Lee Rowing Club
Willow Littlewood
J18, C1, I, O
62
Shandon Boat Club
Jack Leggett
J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
63
Lee Rowing Club
Sam Jackson
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
64
Shandon Boat Club
Dan O'Neill
J16, J18, C1, I, O
65
Shandon Boat Club
James Hodkinson
C1, I, O
66
Lee Valley Rowing Club
Tony Corcoran #
MA, MB, MC, MD, ME, MF, MG, I, O
MF, MG
Results by Category Page 1 of 3
Cork Sculling Ladder 2015 - 2016
27/03/2016
67 Lee Rowing Club Eimear Cummins J18, C1, I, O
68 Shandon Boat Club Chelsey Minihane J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
69 Cork Boat Club Anne O'Farrell J15, J16, J18, C1, I, O WJ15
70 Shandon Boat Club Jennifer Crowley J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
71 Presentation College Rowing Club James Ginnelley J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
72 Lee Rowing Club Maedhbh Heaney J18, C1, I, O
73 Cork Boat Club Amy Mason J18, C2, C1, I, O
74 Presentation College Rowing Club Daniel Ghori J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
75 Cork Boat Club Aine Rice J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
76 Lee Rowing Club Tony Donlon J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
77 Presentation College Rowing Club Cormac O'Connell J18, C2, C1, I, O
78 Presentation College Rowing Club Harry Scannell J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
79 Lee Rowing Club Jennifer Murphy J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
80 Presentation College Rowing Club Tom Walsh J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
81 Lee Rowing Club Luke Lee J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
82 Lee Rowing Club Maria Kidney (FC) J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
Women's Novice,
WJ14
83 Lee Rowing Club Sophie Gray J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
84 Shandon Boat Club Julie Harrington J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
85 Cork Boat Club Erika Deasy J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
86 Lee Rowing Club Ronan O'Callaghan J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
87 Cork Boat Club Claragh O'Sullivan J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
88 Shandon Boat Club Mia Kovacs J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
89 Presentation College Rowing Club Tom Murphy J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
90 Cork Boat Club Ciara McCarthy J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
91 Lee Rowing Club Muireann Heaney J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
92 Cork Boat Club Ciara Murphy J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
93 Lee Rowing Club Jani Vermaak J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
94 Cork Boat Club Sinead Hegarty J18, C2, C1, I, O
95 Presentation College Rowing Club Ben Corcoran J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
96 Presentation College Rowing Club Sam Crean J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
97 Lee Rowing Club Aoife Cummins J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
98 Cork Boat Club Aoife Higgins J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
99 Fermoy RC Erin O'Sullivan J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
100 Cork Boat Club Jane Duggan J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
101 Cork Boat Club James O'Halloran MA, MB, MC, MD, ME, C1, I, O
102 Cork Boat Club Matt Mallen J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
103 Cork Boat Club Hannah Dupuis J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
104 Shandon Boat Club Mide Dinneen J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
105 Presentation College Rowing Club Misha O Flynn J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
106 Presentation College Rowing Club Mel Holohan J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
107 Lee Rowing Club Hannah Cummins (FC) J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
108 Shandon Boat Club Aine Hosford J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
109 Lee Rowing Club Eabha Keely J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
110 Lee Rowing Club Ciara Murphy J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
111 Cahir Rowing Club Katie Sutcliffe J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
112 Lee Rowing Club Emma Breen J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
113 Lee Rowing Club Neasa Coleman J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
114 Shandon Boat Club Megan Cuttriss J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
115 Lee Rowing Club Sean McCalgon
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I,
O
J13
116 Cork Boat Club Julie Mackey J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
117 Cork Boat Club Katie McCarthy J15, J16, J18, C1, I, O
118 Presentation College Rowing Club Liam Rooke J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
119 Cork Boat Club Moira O'Sullivan J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
120 Lee Rowing Club Andrew Sheehan
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I,
O
121 Cork Boat Club Caoilinn Hughes J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
122 Presentation College Rowing Club Jacques Mattieu J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
123 Shandon Boat Club Anna Hernon J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
124 Lee Rowing Club Aoife Coleman J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
125 Lee Rowing Club Abbie Cummins J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
126 Cork Boat Club Ross Madden J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
127 Cork Boat Club Stephanie Murphy J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
128 Shandon Boat Club Jennifer Forde
J12, J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2,
C1, I, O
WJ12, WJ13
129 Cork Boat Club John Kearney J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
130 Presentation College Rowing Club Jack Murphy J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
Results by Category Page 2 of 3
Cork Sculling Ladder 2015 - 2016
27/03/2016
131
Presentation College Rowing Club
Alex Guerin
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
132
Lee Valley Rowing Club
Karen Corcoran O'Hare +
WMA, WMB, C2, C1, I, O
WMA, WMB
133
Lee Rowing Club
Alex O'Mahony
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
134
Shandon Boat Club
Aisha McCarthy
J18, C2, C1, I, O
135
Cork Boat Club
Claire Ryan
N, C2, C1, I, O
136
Shandon Boat Club
Sinead Buckley
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
137
Cork Boat Club
James Kelly
J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
138
Cork Boat Club
Siofra O'Flynn
J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
139
Shandon Boat Club
Ciara Harrington
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
140
Cahir Rowing Club
Nollaig Heffernan
WMA, WMB, N, C2, C1, I, O
141
Lee Rowing Club
Robyn Smith
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
142
Cork Boat Club
Seana Hughes
J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
143
Shandon Boat Club
Meave Reardon
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
144
Presentation College Rowing Club
Brian McGrath
J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
145
Cork Boat Club
Eve Kelly
J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
146
Lee Rowing Club
Gemma Albone
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
147
Presentation College Rowing Club
Ibrahim Salih
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
148
Lee Rowing Club
Jane O'Riordan
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
149
Cork Boat Club
Hannah Gahan
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
150
Presentation College Rowing Club
Callum O' Donovan
J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
151
Cork Boat Club
Peter Leonard
J12, J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
J12
152
Cork Boat Club
Robert Neff
J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
153
Lee Rowing Club
Ashling Gaffney
J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
154
Cork Boat Club
Emma Hanley
N, C2, C1, I, O
155
Cork Boat Club
Karen McCarthy
WMA, WMB, WMC, N, C2, C1, I, O
WMC
156
Lee Rowing Club
Bevin Ford
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
157
Lee Rowing Club
Mary O'Callaghan
MA, MB, MC, MD, ME, N, C2, C1, I, O
WMD, WME
158
Cork Boat Club
Katie Hughes
J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
159
Presentation College Rowing Club
Omar Elbastawaisi
J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
160
Lee Rowing Club
Alex Toderica
J12, J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
161
Cork Boat Club
David Law
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
162
Shandon Boat Club
Orla Gaffney
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
163
Lee Rowing Club
Alex Stradnic
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
164
Cork Boat Club
Oscar Moore
J14, J15, J16, J18, C2, C1, I, O
165
Shandon Boat Club
Jim Conroy
MA, MB, MC, MD, ME, MF, C1, I, O
166
Shandon Boat Club
Seamus Quain
MA, MB, MC, MD, ME, MF, MG, MH, MI, C1, I, O
MH, MI
167
Presentation College Rowing Club
Ciaran Odlum
J13, J14, J15, J16, J18, N, C2, C1, I, O
# denotes : Former Sculling Ladder Overall Winner
+ denotes : Former Sculling Ladder Women's Overall Winner.
Results by Category Page 3 of 3
Published in Rowing
A win is a win, there and then. But when sail boat racing is first-past-the-post, there's only one plotline to follow, whereas the likes of the Round Ireland Yacht Race never fails to produce sub-plot after sub-plot, races within races. It is Ireland's greatest floating soap opera, and it's full of cliffhangers.

Before the race got on the water, the scene was set onshore with a storyboard lifted from Galway '09. In a bid to mirror the Volvo Ocean Race stop-over, the Round Ireland was smartly enmeshed with a successful town festival in Wicklow, drawing in thousands of non-sailing civilians, many of whom hung out on the cliffs to watch one of the best-attended starts in years.

The backbone for this year's story was Tonnerre de Breskens III, owned by Dutchman Piet Vroon. The crew arrived in Wicklow with a brace of RORC victories, leading RORC's offshore table, and went into the race as favourites. The first twist in Tonnerre's plot came before the starter's gun, when Vroon ended up in hospital, from where he would follow the race as his crew sailed on without him. However, that would be the only bump in their road. Tonnerre led from start to finish, both on the water and on handicap. Vroon's crew brought home the trophy for their ailing skipper in the race's happy ending.

There was drama in their wake, though. Not the high-octane 60-knot knock-down drama of 2008, but good stuff nonetheless. Bernard Guoy's Inis Mor chased hard to no avail, and in the end they just couldn't do it. Theirs was the story of the weary, the plucky but the ultimately unlucky. In 2008 gear failure put them out of the running, but in 2010 it was Tonnerre's sheer perfection that relegated Inis Mor to the runner-up spot. You would be hard pressed to find an error in their race, and they deserved the second slot.

There were other big guns, of course. Mick Liddy and Mark Pollock's Daft.com Class 40 was a drama mini-series all of its own, with a blind co-skipper in a high-powered double-hander seeming a deluded concept to many. Until the batteries died they were churning out their own stories, uploading video content to beat the band. Of course, directorial priorities shifted when their electrics went as they headed up the west coast. Pollock's input was limited to nearly nil without electronics, meaning Liddy became all but a solo sailor without relief, helming non-stop for four days. Their initially promising position was eroded in the last third of the race as fatigue bit hard.

No similar excuses for the biggest boat in the race, the Open 60 Spirit of Rosslare Europort, which by all accounts should have made hay in some heavier airs off the west coast and come home first for line honours. However, they couldn't capitalise on that. Some will say that Tonnerre was better suited to the conditions than the larger Open 60, while others will dismiss that as folly.

The dogfights, then, the meat-and-veg of the story, were in IRC 1. Visit Malta Puma, another hot contender from the Solent, was in charge for much of the race while things were quietly making their way up the west coast. In the Round Ireland, as in Irish history, things have a way of kicking off around the north-east corner. As the tides and light airs played with the fleet, the lead changed hands six times between Inistrahull and the finish, with Fujitsu and Visit Malta Puma match-racing down the Irish Sea, and Bejaysus and Aquelina doing the same behind them.

Visit Malta Puma would emerge victorious, and in the meantime, the leaders of Class 2 and the double-handers were passing the mouth of Strangford Lough and crossing Dundrum Bay. Psipina and Dinah would trade tacks all the way to Wicklow, with Paddy Cronin in Psipina (joined by John Loden) making it two in a row in the two-handers overall. Second place, however, would go to one of the backmarkers.

Theirs was the rags-to-riches tale of this Round Ireland. Brians Flahive and Byrne took a boat all but written off and kitted it out for the 704-mile offshore. Noonan Boat Oystercatcher was the racing equivalent of a transplant patient, with a large portion of its port side removed and rebuilt by its owner, boatbuilder Graham Noonan, also Flahive's boss. Ten days before the race, the pair were rigging the tiny Gibsea with a spinnaker for the first time, and as the front of the fleet slowed, they rocketed on into second, not bad for a major offshore debut.

And while champagne corks were popping on land, there were still cups of tea being handed up to the rail from many galleys along the Irish Sea coast. The finish to the Round Ireland was prolonged, but deciding the results was not as strung out an affair as years gone by, the winner having been decided well in advance of the last finishers' arrival.

The question mark at the end of this story leaves things open for an innovative sequel. Dropped into the narrative mid-race were questions in the national media over how more racers might be tempted to Wicklow for 2012. The festival was, no doubt, a good start, but what of the date? Would moving it away from the annual date of the 1700-boat Solent carnival that is the Round the Island, putting further distance between it and Cork Week make sense? Would it make for a greater foreign entry? Eight of the 36 entries this year were from outside of Ireland - who's to say that couldn't be doubled or tripled?

That's a script yet to be written. For Round Ireland 2010, the credits are rolling. Wicklow SC can be proud that they delivered yet another successful edition of Ireland's classic offshore, and the various actors can take a deserved bow for playing their part in another home-produced oceanic drama.

Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Trophy Winners

Line Honours - Denis Doyle Trophy
Tonnerre de Breskens 3 - Piet Vroon

IRC Overall - Norman Barry Trophy
Tonnerre de Breskens 3 - Piet Vroon
Inis Mor - Bernard Gouy
Visit Malta Puma - Philippe Falle

Class 7 / Two Handed - The Noonan Trophy
Psipsina - John Loden & Paddy Cronin
Noonan Boats Oystercatcher - Brian Flahive
& Bryan Byrne
Alchimiste - Michael Murphy & Alex Voye

Class Super 0
Spirit of Rosslare Europort - Alan McGettigan

Class 0 - Mew Island Trophy
Tonnerre de Breskens 3 - Piet Vroon
Inis Mor - Bernard Gouy
Pride of Wicklow - James Gair/David O'Gorman

Class 1 - Tuskar Cup
Visit Malta Puma - Philippe Falle
Fujitsu - Andrew Britton
Aquelina - James Tyrrell

Class 2 - Fastnet Cup
Raging Bull - Matt Davis
Psipsina - John Loden & Paddy Cronin
Dinah - Barry Hurley & Hannah White

Class 3 - Skelligs Cup
Noonan Boats Oystercatcher -
Brian Flahive & Bryan Byrne
Alchimiste - Michael Murphy & Alex Voye
Cavatina - Ian Hickey/Eric Lisson

Class 4 - Tory Island Trophy
Noonan Boats Oystercatcher -
Brian Flahive & Bryan Byrne
Cavatina - Ian Hickey/Eric Lisson
Gumdrop - Derek Gilmore

Class 5 / Classic - Michael Jones Trophy
Cavatina - Ian Hickey/Eric Lisson

Class 6 / Sigma 38 - Larry Ryan Trophy
Persistance - Jerry Collins

ISORA Trophy
Raging Bull - Matt Davis

Irish Cruiser Racing Association -
Round Ireland Trophy
Aquelina - James Tyrrell

Team Kinsale Yacht Club Trophy
Team 'RORC': Tonnerre de Breskens 3 - Piet Vroon / Visit Malta Puma - Philippe Falle / Psipsina - John Loden & Paddy Cronin Team 'Go Hard or Go Home': Pride of Wicklow - James Gair/David O'Gorman / Aquelina - James Tyrrell / Noonan Boats Oystercatcher - Brian Flahive & Bryan Byrne

More on the Round Ireland Yacht Race:

Round Ireland Yacht Race 2010 Review

Round Ireland Yacht Race, Ireland's top offshore fixture

A Round up of 80 stories on the 2010 Round Ireland Yacht Race
Published in Round Ireland

The Irish Coast Guard

The Irish Coast Guard is Ireland's fourth 'Blue Light' service (along with An Garda Síochána, the Ambulance Service and the Fire Service). It provides a nationwide maritime emergency organisation as well as a variety of services to shipping and other government agencies.

The purpose of the Irish Coast Guard is to promote safety and security standards, and by doing so, prevent as far as possible, the loss of life at sea, and on inland waters, mountains and caves, and to provide effective emergency response services and to safeguard the quality of the marine environment.

The Irish Coast Guard has responsibility for Ireland's system of marine communications, surveillance and emergency management in Ireland's Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) and certain inland waterways.

It is responsible for the response to, and co-ordination of, maritime accidents which require search and rescue and counter-pollution and ship casualty operations. It also has responsibility for vessel traffic monitoring.

Operations in respect of maritime security, illegal drug trafficking, illegal migration and fisheries enforcement are co-ordinated by other bodies within the Irish Government.

On average, each year, the Irish Coast Guard is expected to:

  • handle 3,000 marine emergencies
  • assist 4,500 people and save about 200 lives
  • task Coast Guard helicopters on missions

The Coast Guard has been around in some form in Ireland since 1908.

Coast Guard helicopters

The Irish Coast Guard has contracted five medium-lift Sikorsky Search and Rescue helicopters deployed at bases in Dublin, Waterford, Shannon and Sligo.

The helicopters are designated wheels up from initial notification in 15 minutes during daylight hours and 45 minutes at night. One aircraft is fitted and its crew trained for under slung cargo operations up to 3000kgs and is available on short notice based at Waterford.

These aircraft respond to emergencies at sea, inland waterways, offshore islands and mountains of Ireland (32 counties).

They can also be used for assistance in flooding, major inland emergencies, intra-hospital transfers, pollution, and aerial surveillance during daylight hours, lifting and passenger operations and other operations as authorised by the Coast Guard within appropriate regulations.

Irish Coastguard FAQs

The Irish Coast Guard provides nationwide maritime emergency response, while also promoting safety and security standards. It aims to prevent the loss of life at sea, on inland waters, on mountains and in caves; and to safeguard the quality of the marine environment.

The main role of the Irish Coast Guard is to rescue people from danger at sea or on land, to organise immediate medical transport and to assist boats and ships within the country's jurisdiction. It has three marine rescue centres in Dublin, Malin Head, Co Donegal, and Valentia Island, Co Kerry. The Dublin National Maritime Operations centre provides marine search and rescue responses and coordinates the response to marine casualty incidents with the Irish exclusive economic zone (EEZ).

Yes, effectively, it is the fourth "blue light" service. The Marine Rescue Sub-Centre (MRSC) Valentia is the contact point for the coastal area between Ballycotton, Co Cork and Clifden, Co Galway. At the same time, the MRSC Malin Head covers the area between Clifden and Lough Foyle. Marine Rescue Co-ordination Centre (MRCC) Dublin covers Carlingford Lough, Co Louth to Ballycotton, Co Cork. Each MRCC/MRSC also broadcasts maritime safety information on VHF and MF radio, including navigational and gale warnings, shipping forecasts, local inshore forecasts, strong wind warnings and small craft warnings.

The Irish Coast Guard handles about 3,000 marine emergencies annually, and assists 4,500 people - saving an estimated 200 lives, according to the Department of Transport. In 2016, Irish Coast Guard helicopters completed 1,000 missions in a single year for the first time.

Yes, Irish Coast Guard helicopters evacuate medical patients from offshore islands to hospital on average about 100 times a year. In September 2017, the Department of Health announced that search and rescue pilots who work 24-hour duties would not be expected to perform any inter-hospital patient transfers. The Air Corps flies the Emergency Aeromedical Service, established in 2012 and using an AW139 twin-engine helicopter. Known by its call sign "Air Corps 112", it airlifted its 3,000th patient in autumn 2020.

The Irish Coast Guard works closely with the British Maritime and Coastguard Agency, which is responsible for the Northern Irish coast.

The Irish Coast Guard is a State-funded service, with both paid management personnel and volunteers, and is under the auspices of the Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport. It is allocated approximately 74 million euro annually in funding, some 85 per cent of which pays for a helicopter contract that costs 60 million euro annually. The overall funding figure is "variable", an Oireachtas committee was told in 2019. Other significant expenditure items include volunteer training exercises, equipment, maintenance, renewal, and information technology.

The Irish Coast Guard has four search and rescue helicopter bases at Dublin, Waterford, Shannon and Sligo, run on a contract worth 50 million euro annually with an additional 10 million euro in costs by CHC Ireland. It provides five medium-lift Sikorsky S-92 helicopters and trained crew. The 44 Irish Coast Guard coastal units with 1,000 volunteers are classed as onshore search units, with 23 of the 44 units having rigid inflatable boats (RIBs) and 17 units having cliff rescue capability. The Irish Coast Guard has 60 buildings in total around the coast, and units have search vehicles fitted with blue lights, all-terrain vehicles or quads, first aid equipment, generators and area lighting, search equipment, marine radios, pyrotechnics and appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE). The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and Community Rescue Boats Ireland also provide lifeboats and crews to assist in search and rescue. The Irish Coast Guard works closely with the Garda Siochána, National Ambulance Service, Naval Service and Air Corps, Civil Defence, while fishing vessels, ships and other craft at sea offer assistance in search operations.

The helicopters are designated as airborne from initial notification in 15 minutes during daylight hours, and 45 minutes at night. The aircraft respond to emergencies at sea, on inland waterways, offshore islands and mountains and cover the 32 counties. They can also assist in flooding, major inland emergencies, intra-hospital transfers, pollution, and can transport offshore firefighters and ambulance teams. The Irish Coast Guard volunteers units are expected to achieve a 90 per cent response time of departing from the station house in ten minutes from notification during daylight and 20 minutes at night. They are also expected to achieve a 90 per cent response time to the scene of the incident in less than 60 minutes from notification by day and 75 minutes at night, subject to geographical limitations.

Units are managed by an officer-in-charge (three stripes on the uniform) and a deputy officer in charge (two stripes). Each team is trained in search skills, first aid, setting up helicopter landing sites and a range of maritime skills, while certain units are also trained in cliff rescue.

Volunteers receive an allowance for time spent on exercises and call-outs. What is the difference between the Irish Coast Guard and the RNLI? The RNLI is a registered charity which has been saving lives at sea since 1824, and runs a 24/7 volunteer lifeboat service around the British and Irish coasts. It is a declared asset of the British Maritime and Coast Guard Agency and the Irish Coast Guard. Community Rescue Boats Ireland is a community rescue network of volunteers under the auspices of Water Safety Ireland.

No, it does not charge for rescue and nor do the RNLI or Community Rescue Boats Ireland.

The marine rescue centres maintain 19 VHF voice and DSC radio sites around the Irish coastline and a digital paging system. There are two VHF repeater test sites, four MF radio sites and two NAVTEX transmitter sites. Does Ireland have a national search and rescue plan? The first national search and rescue plan was published in July, 2019. It establishes the national framework for the overall development, deployment and improvement of search and rescue services within the Irish Search and Rescue Region and to meet domestic and international commitments. The purpose of the national search and rescue plan is to promote a planned and nationally coordinated search and rescue response to persons in distress at sea, in the air or on land.

Yes, the Irish Coast Guard is responsible for responding to spills of oil and other hazardous substances with the Irish pollution responsibility zone, along with providing an effective response to marine casualties and monitoring or intervening in marine salvage operations. It provides and maintains a 24-hour marine pollution notification at the three marine rescue centres. It coordinates exercises and tests of national and local pollution response plans.

The first Irish Coast Guard volunteer to die on duty was Caitriona Lucas, a highly trained member of the Doolin Coast Guard unit, while assisting in a search for a missing man by the Kilkee unit in September 2016. Six months later, four Irish Coast Guard helicopter crew – Dara Fitzpatrick, Mark Duffy, Paul Ormsby and Ciarán Smith -died when their Sikorsky S-92 struck Blackrock island off the Mayo coast on March 14, 2017. The Dublin-based Rescue 116 crew were providing "top cover" or communications for a medical emergency off the west coast and had been approaching Blacksod to refuel. Up until the five fatalities, the Irish Coast Guard recorded that more than a million "man hours" had been spent on more than 30,000 rescue missions since 1991.

Several investigations were initiated into each incident. The Marine Casualty Investigation Board was critical of the Irish Coast Guard in its final report into the death of Caitriona Lucas, while a separate Health and Safety Authority investigation has been completed, but not published. The Air Accident Investigation Unit final report into the Rescue 116 helicopter crash has not yet been published.

The Irish Coast Guard in its present form dates back to 1991, when the Irish Marine Emergency Service was formed after a campaign initiated by Dr Joan McGinley to improve air/sea rescue services on the west Irish coast. Before Irish independence, the British Admiralty was responsible for a Coast Guard (formerly the Water Guard or Preventative Boat Service) dating back to 1809. The West Coast Search and Rescue Action Committee was initiated with a public meeting in Killybegs, Co Donegal, in 1988 and the group was so effective that a Government report was commissioned, which recommended setting up a new division of the Department of the Marine to run the Marine Rescue Co-Ordination Centre (MRCC), then based at Shannon, along with the existing coast radio service, and coast and cliff rescue. A medium-range helicopter base was established at Shannon within two years. Initially, the base was served by the Air Corps.

The first director of what was then IMES was Capt Liam Kirwan, who had spent 20 years at sea and latterly worked with the Marine Survey Office. Capt Kirwan transformed a poorly funded voluntary coast and cliff rescue service into a trained network of cliff and sea rescue units – largely voluntary, but with paid management. The MRCC was relocated from Shannon to an IMES headquarters at the then Department of the Marine (now Department of Transport) in Leeson Lane, Dublin. The coast radio stations at Valentia, Co Kerry, and Malin Head, Co Donegal, became marine rescue-sub-centres.

The current director is Chris Reynolds, who has been in place since August 2007 and was formerly with the Naval Service. He has been seconded to the head of mission with the EUCAP Somalia - which has a mandate to enhance Somalia's maritime civilian law enforcement capacity – since January 2019.

  • Achill, Co. Mayo
  • Ardmore, Co. Waterford
  • Arklow, Co. Wicklow
  • Ballybunion, Co. Kerry
  • Ballycotton, Co. Cork
  • Ballyglass, Co. Mayo
  • Bonmahon, Co. Waterford
  • Bunbeg, Co. Donegal
  • Carnsore, Co. Wexford
  • Castlefreake, Co. Cork
  • Castletownbere, Co. Cork
  • Cleggan, Co. Galway
  • Clogherhead, Co. Louth
  • Costelloe Bay, Co. Galway
  • Courtown, Co. Wexford
  • Crosshaven, Co. Cork
  • Curracloe, Co. Wexford
  • Dingle, Co. Kerry
  • Doolin, Co. Clare
  • Drogheda, Co. Louth
  • Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin
  • Dunmore East, Co. Waterford
  • Fethard, Co. Wexford
  • Glandore, Co. Cork
  • Glenderry, Co. Kerry
  • Goleen, Co. Cork
  • Greencastle, Co. Donegal
  • Greenore, Co. Louth
  • Greystones, Co. Wicklow
  • Guileen, Co. Cork
  • Howth, Co. Dublin
  • Kilkee, Co. Clare
  • Killala, Co. Mayo
  • Killybegs, Co. Donegal
  • Kilmore Quay, Co. Wexford
  • Knightstown, Co. Kerry
  • Mulroy, Co. Donegal
  • North Aran, Co. Galway
  • Old Head Of Kinsale, Co. Cork
  • Oysterhaven, Co. Cork
  • Rosslare, Co. Wexford
  • Seven Heads, Co. Cork
  • Skerries, Co. Dublin Summercove, Co. Cork
  • Toe Head, Co. Cork
  • Tory Island, Co. Donegal
  • Tramore, Co. Waterford
  • Waterville, Co. Kerry
  • Westport, Co. Mayo
  • Wicklow
  • Youghal, Co. Cork

Sources: Department of Transport © Afloat 2020