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Lighter winds saw Peter O'Leary and David Burrows drop to fifth place overall and Italians Diego Negri and Enrico Voltolini continue at the top of the leaderboard after three more races at the Star European Championships in Dun Laoghaire.

The weather gods finally allowed a full day of racing at the Championship at Dun Laoghaire as a moderate westerly breeze allowed three races. It is hoped to have two races tomorrow ahead of the forecast of yet more heavy winds that have dominated the championship so far.

With their form unchanged since Sunday, Italians Negri and Voltolini extended their overall lead in the 26-boat fleet, counting one win plus a third place while discarding their eighth place in race six.

Polish 2008 World champion and past Finn Olympic Gold medallist Mateusz Kusznierewicz with Dominik Zycki also showed good pace, with a fifth place and a win yesterday while discarding a ninth in the hunt for the overall lead. Canada's Richard Clarke with Tyler Bjorn also moved up a place to third overnight as the final two races are slated for Friday – weather permitting.

Star European Championship 2011 at Royal St. George YC, Dun Laoghaire, Ireland

(Provisional overall standings after six races):

1st ITA Diego Negri & Enrico Voltolini
2nd POL Mateusz Kusznierewicz Dominik Zycki
3rd CAN Richard Clarke & Tyler Bjorn
4th FRA Guillaume Florent & Pascal Rambeau
5th IRL Peter O'Leary & David Burrows
6th POR Afonso Domingos & Frederico Melo

Published in Star

If winds ease tomorrow - and it is doubtful - three races of the Star European championships will be sailed to get the Dublin Bay regatta back on schedule.

High winds once again dictated the racing schedule at the Star European Championship at Dun Laoghaire on the third day of the series that has had two races out of the original eight-race programme completed.  

The overnight offshore gale eased slightly during the morning and a two-hour postponement by principal race officer David Lovegrove offered some hope of racing for the 27 crews waiting at the Royal St. George YC.  

However, gale force gusts continued and the programme was abandoned for the day leaving the sailors free to take the 20-minute train ride into the historic Dublin city-centre offering the famous Book of Kells at Trinity College, the Jameson Irish Whiskey centre and other attractions.

Star European Championship 2011 at Royal St. George YC, Dun Laoghaire, Ireland

(Overall standings after two races):

1st ITA Diego Negri & Enrico Voltolini
2nd FRA Guillaume Florent & Pascal Rambeau
3rd IRL Peter O'Leary & David Burrows
4th FRA Xavier Rohart Pierre & Alexis Ponsot
5th CAN Richard Clarke & Tyler Bjorn
6th POR Afonso Domingos & Frederico Melo

Photos HERE

Published in Star

Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) in Ireland Information

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is a charity to save lives at sea in the waters of UK and Ireland. Funded principally by legacies and donations, the RNLI operates a fleet of lifeboats, crewed by volunteers, based at a range of coastal and inland waters stations. Working closely with UK and Ireland Coastguards, RNLI crews are available to launch at short notice to assist people and vessels in difficulties.

RNLI was founded in 1824 and is based in Poole, Dorset. The organisation raised €210m in funds in 2019, spending €200m on lifesaving activities and water safety education. RNLI also provides a beach lifeguard service in the UK and has recently developed an International drowning prevention strategy, partnering with other organisations and governments to make drowning prevention a global priority.

Irish Lifeboat Stations

There are 46 lifeboat stations on the island of Ireland, with an operational base in Swords, Co Dublin. Irish RNLI crews are tasked through a paging system instigated by the Irish Coast Guard which can task a range of rescue resources depending on the nature of the emergency.

Famous Irish Lifeboat Rescues

Irish Lifeboats have participated in many rescues, perhaps the most famous of which was the rescue of the crew of the Daunt Rock lightship off Cork Harbour by the Ballycotton lifeboat in 1936. Spending almost 50 hours at sea, the lifeboat stood by the drifting lightship until the proximity to the Daunt Rock forced the coxswain to get alongside and successfully rescue the lightship's crew.

32 Irish lifeboat crew have been lost in rescue missions, including the 15 crew of the Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) lifeboat which capsized while attempting to rescue the crew of the SS Palme on Christmas Eve 1895.

FAQs

While the number of callouts to lifeboat stations varies from year to year, Howth Lifeboat station has aggregated more 'shouts' in recent years than other stations, averaging just over 60 a year.

Stations with an offshore lifeboat have a full-time mechanic, while some have a full-time coxswain. However, most lifeboat crews are volunteers.

There are 46 lifeboat stations on the island of Ireland

32 Irish lifeboat crew have been lost in rescue missions, including the 15 crew of the Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) lifeboat which capsized while attempting to rescue the crew of the SS Palme on Christmas Eve 1895

In 2019, 8,941 lifeboat launches saved 342 lives across the RNLI fleet.

The Irish fleet is a mixture of inshore and all-weather (offshore) craft. The offshore lifeboats, which range from 17m to 12m in length are either moored afloat, launched down a slipway or are towed into the sea on a trailer and launched. The inshore boats are either rigid or non-rigid inflatables.

The Irish Coast Guard in the Republic of Ireland or the UK Coastguard in Northern Ireland task lifeboats when an emergency call is received, through any of the recognised systems. These include 999/112 phone calls, Mayday/PanPan calls on VHF, a signal from an emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) or distress signals.

The Irish Coast Guard is the government agency responsible for the response to, and co-ordination of, maritime accidents which require search and rescue operations. To carry out their task the Coast Guard calls on their own resources – Coast Guard units manned by volunteers and contracted helicopters, as well as "declared resources" - RNLI lifeboats and crews. While lifeboats conduct the operation, the coordination is provided by the Coast Guard.

A lifeboat coxswain (pronounced cox'n) is the skipper or master of the lifeboat.

RNLI Lifeboat crews are required to follow a particular development plan that covers a pre-agreed range of skills necessary to complete particular tasks. These skills and tasks form part of the competence-based training that is delivered both locally and at the RNLI's Lifeboat College in Poole, Dorset

 

While the RNLI is dependent on donations and legacies for funding, they also need volunteer crew and fund-raisers.

© Afloat 2020