Although the Puppeteer 22 first appeared from Chris Boyd of Killyleagh on Strangford Lough in 1978, it was 1983 by the time some keen-to-upsize Squib sailors in Howth saw the potential of this user-friendly little sloop, with her sparse but usable accommodation, and a fractional rig that made for a much less-challenging crewing proposition than the powerful masthead -rigged Ruffian 23 to which she was inevitably compared.

By the time the Howth sailors became interested, local Puppeteer classes in the north had waxed and in some cases already waned. Yet in the best One Design traditions of the Greater Dublin area, once the Howth group became committed, they stayed committed, and while several ordered new boats, others found they already had a selection of second-hand craft to choose from to build a long-lasting local OD class

Designer and builder Chris Boyd helms the Puppeteer 22 prototype (restored to be the 2020 National Champion) on a trial sail in Strangford Lough in September 1978. Photo: W M Nixon

By 1985 the new class was up and running at its Howth base, and thriving so much that in due course an entire section of the then-new marina seemed to be filled almost exclusively with Puppeteers, ironically putting them in the berths nearest to Howth House where Herbert Boyd (absolutely no known relation to Chris Boyd) had designed the Howth 17s in the Autumn of 1897.

Yet the Seventeens and the Puppeteers happily co-exist, for each fills a very different niche in sailing, and by the turn of the Century, Puppeteer number in Howth were such that they regularly were mustering keen racing fleets of between 25 and 30 boats.

Puppeteers in strength in Howth Marina. In the background at the centre of the photo is Howth House, where Herbert Boyd designed the Howth 17s in the Autumn of 1897. Photo: W M Nixon

This means that in and around the Howth peninsula, there are mow Puppeteers which are more than forty years old. And while some are still immaculate, others are showing their age and then some, such that in one well-worn case, the family donated the boat last winter to the club.

Anywhere else, this might have been seen as a landfill proposition, to be quietly dealt with making as little fuss as possible. However, HYC's Simon Knowles - owner-skipper of the J/109 Indian – is action-man in normal times. But as Ireland was clearly heading into abnormal forced inaction with the COVI-19 lockdown looming, he offered to take on the little boat as a project to help pass the time. There was just enough space for a restoration up at his house house, and the eventual result - he stopped counting after logging 300 man hours on the job - is a little boat now rather better than new.

Puppeteers club racing - in a "normal year", their numbers will push above 20 for events like this. If the COVID-19 disruption continues into next season, it may well be that the class's availability of safe totally-local racing will see others joining those who have already taken on "tired" Puppeteers to make them race-ready. Photo: W M Nixon

But this particular piece of rejuvenation didn't take part in last weekend's Puppeteer 22 Nationals at Howth, as the Knowles energy was suddenly re-directed into the pop-up Fastnet 450 "Offshore Race That Came Out Of Nowhere", in which Indian gave a very good showing of herself. However, that campaign meant that the new-from-old Puppeteer didn't go afloat.

But there was another Puppeteer restoration coming down the line which did hit the Nationals start on Saturday morning. This was Shiggy Shiggy, Puppeteer No 1 that Afloat Magazine sail-tested on Strangford Lough way back in September 1978, and which Paul McMahon has been quietly beavering away restoring for something like two and a half years now. As longtime Puppeteer 22 sailor and keeper of the Class Records Neil Murphy now tells us, this was a Born-Again Event which rang all the bells:

Puppeteers Get New Champion by Neil Murphy

In a season where many key sailing events classed as 'National' have been chalked off as COVID consequences, the Puppeteer Class became one of the exceptions over the Aug 29th/30th weekend. With the sponsorship of Sutton Cross Pharmacy, Howth YC hosted the Class Championships, and after 6 races in a variety of conditions, the winner was Shiggy Shiggy, owned by Paul McMahon and Laura Ni hUallachain, while the winner on handicap was Philip & Roslyn Byrne's Odyssey.

Whilst the fleet racing in Howth YC in a 'normal' year extends to 20 boats and better with the hope of some visitors from the Northern Ireland fleet for the Championships, the COVID fallout and the complexities of putting a crew together for a weekend-long series - when club evening races are proving so popular - brought the entry on Day One down to eleven boats.

The competitors were greeted on a very grey Saturday by a 20 knots-plus northerly breeze with a lumpy sea that offered the fleet plenty of challenges, but not the conditions most of the crews had hoped for. Race Officer Harry Gallagher and his management team had a choice of course configurations to draw from - Windward Leeward, Triangle plus Windward Leeward or around the Howth YC fixed marks using one of the Club's week-night courses.

Idyllic conditions on Day 2 for Neil Murphy on the helm of Yellow Peril. Photo: Harry Gallagher

To make the opening race less demanding for the less well practiced, the first race used a Club course and a pattern that was to become apparent over the weekend was quickly established – the lead being battled for between defending champions Yellow Peril (Murphy / Costello), 2019 Autumn League winners Trick or Treat (Alan Pearson & Alan Blay) and the newbies to the Puppeteer fleet on Shiggy Shiggy, sail number 1. Through dramas of broaches, fluffed gybes, gusts and place changes, the first race made its way to a conclusion with Yellow Peril taking the win and Trick or Treat and Shiggy in second and third.

Shiggy Shiggy (so good it was named twice) was purchased in 2018 by its current owners in a 'somewhat tired' condition. After being lavished with TLC over the last two winters and during the 2020 lockdown by Laser and SB20 ace Paul McMahon, she now looks as well and is certainly better kitted out than at any time in her 42-year history. with a mix of new sails from both UK Sails and North, with the latter supplying the spinnaker and no 2 jib, she is also probably going quicker than when first launched as the Puppeteer 22 prototype in September 1978.

Sunday was a day transformed

Howth's Puppeteers catch the last of the proper summer (Hybernia Drone Works by Brian Maguire)

After the excess of the first race, the wind eased enough over the following two races to allow most of the fleet hoist their larger headsails but the racing stayed just as close and the waves and temperature just as unpleasant. After three races, Trick or Treat and Shiggy had made it a three-way split of the winners' guns to leave Trick or Treat as overnight leaders with only two points covering the first three boats. However, the conditions over the day left three of the fleet out of action for Sunday through rudder loss, deck damage and mechanical problems.

Clinching it. The new champion confirms the title by winning the final race from Trick-or-Treat (Alan Pearson & Alan Blay). Photo: Harry Gallagher

Sunday brought more benign conditions – 8 to 10 knots with sunshine and a flatter sea. Shiggy was quickly out of the traps and took the win in Race 4 with Yellow Peril just behind and Gannet (T Chillingworth) pushing Trick or Treat all the way to the line before Trick or Treat grabbed third. Race 5 saw Shiggy and Yellow Peril again in the top spots, but this time Gannet bagged the third rather than see it escape at the last minute. Going into the last race, the title chase was down to just two boats, Shiggy being the favourite and only having to finish third or better to win the title while Yellow Peril had to win and rely on Shiggy having a calamity. Shiggy again led Yellow Peril home with Gannet getting another third. Four wins and two thirds from six races is a winning score in any fleet and Shiggy Shiggy was confirmed as the 2020 Puppeteer 22 Class Champion.

The winning crew on their boat are (left to right) Ronan Cobbe, Terry Rowan, owner-restorer Paul McMahon, and Graham Curran. Photo: Harry Gallagher
The winner of the handicap event was Odyssey, which sailed a very consistent series and was always on the heels of the leading group on the water. Odyssey also collected the dubious honour of being the only boat called OCS at a start, despite the numerous close shaves that resulted from crews seeking to check the awareness of the Race Officer before breathing sighs of relief at the broadcast of 'Clear start'.

Handicap overall winners on Odyssey were (left to right) Grainne Costigan, Philip Byrne, Roslyn Byrne and Francis Hand. Photo: Harry Gallagher

A socially distanced presentation of the winners' cups was carried out ashore with the Class's appreciation for the continued sponsorship of Sutton Cross Pharmacy acknowledged by Class Captain, Peter Wilson, who also thanked the Race Management team and the Jury Chairman, Emmet Dalton. Hopefully, the volume of Arnica, Voltarol and other remedies required after Saturday's bruise-inducing racing will not overly deplete the sponsor's stocks.

Puppeteer National Championship Howth Yacht Club Results

Puppeteer National Championship Howth Yacht Club Provisional Results (Scratch) as of 22:14 on August 30, 2020

HOWTH YACHT CLUB.  PUPPETEER NATIONALS (O'ALL) 25/07/2010  Puppeteer  SCRATCH:  1, Ibis G May (8.00);  2, Harlequin Clarke/Egan (21.00); 3, Yellow Peril N Murphy (26.00);  Puppeteer  ECHO:  1, Arcturus McAuliffe/McDermott (8.00);  2, Sanderling D & B Jennings (9.00);  3, Nefertari Morgan/Murray (22.00)