Fresh from success in the SCORA Kinsale to Baltimore feeder race, Ireland's leading cruiser-racing crews gathered in Schull Harbour Hotel on Monday evening as the 2026 Calves Week Regatta officially got under way.
The opening reception welcomed competitors, organisers, sponsors and supporters ahead of four days of racing in the waters of Roaringwater Bay and around Carbery's Hundred Isles.
Among those attending were the crew of Rosmarina, winners of IRC honours in Saturday's SCORA Kinsale to Baltimore Race, together with Powder Monkey of the National Yacht Club, which claimed victory in the ECHO division. The crew of Magnet, which finished third overall in the feeder race, was also represented as competitors prepared for Ireland's premier West Cork cruiser regatta.
Feeder Form — (L–R) Calves Week Organising Committee member Mark Murphy, Ronan Twomey of Rosmarina, winner of the IRC division in the SCORA Kinsale to Baltimore feeder race, crew Jake Varley, Patrick D'Arcy and representative of Chris Moore's National Yacht Club's Powder Monkey, winner of the ECHO division, at the opening reception for the 2026 Quintas Capital Calves Week Regatta.
More than 80 boats and an estimated 600 sailors have assembled in Schull for what is expected to be the largest Calves Week fleet since the club's Centenary Regatta.
Racing gets under way at 11.30am on Tuesday in a light westerly breeze of around 8 to 10mph, but crews can expect conditions to strengthen steadily through the afternoon as west-northwesterly winds build to 20 to 25mph, promising an increasingly demanding opening day on Roaringwater Bay.
Ready to Race — The crew of Magnet, which finished third overall in the SCORA Kinsale to Baltimore feeder race, gather at the opening reception for the 2026 Quintas Capital Calves Week Regatta in Schull.
Seven divisions will contest courses ranging from windward-leeward racing to longer coastal challenges, with Classes Zero, One and Two also competing under ORC alongside the established IRC and ECHO handicap systems.
Monday's reception provided an opportunity for crews from around Ireland to meet before racing, while Schull Harbour Sailing Club welcomed competitors to one of the highlights of the Irish sailing calendar.
During the reception, Oonagh Buckley of the Calves Week Organising Committee and Jack Allen, Commodore of Schull Harbour Sailing Club, displayed one of the regatta trophies that will be contested during the week.
Daily prizegivings will take place at Schull Harbour Hotel throughout the regatta, with racing concluding on Friday.
