Slalom and U20 European Waszp Champion Charlie Cullen of the Royal St. George Yacht Club finished third in his first event of the season held in Imperia Italy. The event run by Dry Laps and Yacht Club Imperia from March 11th to 13th had a small but strong contingent of sailors, four of whom, including Cullen, finished in the top ten at last year’s Europeans in Lake Garda.

The three days followed with tight and tricky racing, with Imperia delivering big waves and strong winds. “It was great racing, after 10 races the top 5 boats were within 1 point of each other going into the last race, so I couldn’t have asked for a better challenge to start off the season,” said the Dun Laoghaire Harbour sailor.

Ettore Botticini of Italy took first overall with Enzio Savoini taking second and Cullen (second from right) taking the final spot on the podium

The next stop on the international Waszp calendar is the European Championships in Mar Menor Spain from April 11th to 17th where over 80 boats are expected to compete.

When renewing their annual membership subscription, all the Royal St George Yacht Club members are given the opportunity to make a voluntary contribution to charitable causes. For 50 years up to and including 2020, the money raised was spent on hosting pensioners living alone and from nursing homes in the parish and nearby to an Annual Lunch held during the Christmas period.

Due to Covid, this has not been possible in 2021 and 2022. However, the members of the George have continued to give generously, and the Club’s charitable fund has grown in that time. Like many other sports clubs, the pandemic had a positive side effect in that their membership grew as people sought out ways to spend family time together in a healthy environment. Hence, the Royal St George’s membership grew by over 200 new members since 2020.

From left to right: Robert Fowler, Conor Hickey (Crosscare), Richard O’Connor and Alan Kirwan

Therefore, in consultation with the Trustees of the charitable fund Robert Fowler and Alan Kirwan, the Operational Board are delighted to donate €6,000 to charities active in Dun Laoghaire. Cheques of €2,000 each were presented on Saturday to St Vincent de Paul, Crosscare and The Lions Club at the Royal St George.

Garry (SVdP volunteer) with RSTGYC's Richard O’Connor 

Commodore Richard O’Connor, along with Alan and Robert, were there along with representatives of each of the charities for the handover. Speaking at the event, he said, “These charities all do tremendous work in our local community. It is a real privilege to represent the Members of our Club giving back to those in need of help here in Dun Laoghaire.”

The Royal St George members also donated €2,000 to the RNLI earlier this year.

Former Flying Fifteen British Isles and Irish Champion Gerry Donleavy who died last year is one of three members of the Dun Laoghaire Flying Fifteen class to be honoured at the 2021 FF15 Trophy Awards Dinner in Dun Laoghaire Harbour this Friday.

The Royal St. George Yacht Club hosted event will celebrate the season's achievements on the water but the class will also commemorate its former helmsmen Donleavy, Jack Roy and Ross Doyle who all died in 2021.

Rosemary Roy, Jack's wife and flagship partner and the Chairman of the Irish Flying Fifteen Association of Ireland, Hammy Baker are guests of the Dun Laoghaire class for the evening.

The occasion will also be the last official function of outgoing Dun Laoghaire Class Captain, Neil Colin of the DMYC.

The successful defence of the Irish National FF Championships by Dun Laoghaire's John Lavery and Alan Green on Strangford Lough last August that will be saluted again on Friday was also rewarded last weekend with the National Yacht Club's O’Leary Cup for the best performance of the year in one designs.

Martin Byrne’s Jaguar Dragon Sailing Team finished in sixth place overall at the Marblehead Trophy in Vilamoura, Portugal on Saturday.

The Royal St George team comprised Byrne, Adam Winkelmann and John Simms.

The small 12 boat but very competitive fleet was topped by European Champion Jens Christensen from Denmark who launched a brand new Dragon for this event and won by six points.

Recent Gold Cup winner and Vendee Globe competitor Pieter Heerema from the Netherlands was second with the holder of the Marblehead Trophy and current European Champion Pedro Andrade from Portugal in third.

Results are here

The Royal St George Yacht Club has endorsed former Commodore Martin Byrne’s Jaguar Sailing Team as their representative at this week's Dragon Marblehead Trophy in Vilamoura, Portugal.

A four-time winner of the Irish Dragon Championship and a former Edinburgh Cup (British Nationals) winner Byrne has been competing on the international Dragon circuit for a number of years. But Covid related restrictions has curtailed his team’s activities over the last two seasons.

Normal service has almost resumed and his Jaguar Sailing Team is located in Vilamoura, Portugal for the Dragon winter series.

This week they compete in the prestigious Marblehead Trophy where they will be one of the only Corinthian teams in a small but very hot lineup of international Dragon champions which includes the current Gold Cup and European Champions as well as multiple Olympic medalists.

It’s no surprise that Byrne’s crew includes Adam Winkelmann (RIYC) who has shared in all of the team's successes and is completed by Laser veteran and offshore helm John Simms from Royal Ulster YC.

Byrne’s told Afloat he was relieved the team successfully negotiated the crew weigh-in procedure and that their impressive form in the recent Portuguese National Championships, where they were unlucky to finish 5th, would be no indication as to the "daunting challenge" facing them this week.

More here

15 Waszp foiling dinghies, including with three from the UK, contested last weekend's National Championships on Dublin Bay.

As Afloat reported earlier here,  it was hard, fast sailing in heavy winds and choppy conditions at the Royal St George Yacht Club event.

Now a class video (below) shows off more of the high speed foiling action from the Bay. 

UK sailor Ross Banham as overall winner in 8.2 m fleet, followed by Arthur Fry, both from Hayling Island sailing club, UK. Henry Start of the RSGYC came a close third overall and was National Waszp champion in this fleet.

In the 6.9m fleet overall winner and national winner was Emily Conan RSGYC, followed closely by Kate Tingle RSGYC /RCYC in second and Tom Hogan RSGYC in third place.

Tom was also first master. Elysia O’Leary RSGYC was first Irish female in 8.2 fleet and Max Goodbody RSGYC/RIYC was first under 19 years in the 8.2m fleet.

Prizewinners are photographed below by Simon McIlwaine

Waszp 2021 National Championship Prizewinners at the Royal St. George Yacht Club Photo: Simon McIlwaine

The Royal St. George YC has announced the launch of a unique Laser (ILCA) sprint regatta series in association with sponsor Grant Thornton.

The Laser dinghy fleet in Dun Laoghaire and across the country has been having a bumper season with record attendance numbers at various regional and national events. The Royal St. George YC, with probably the largest Laser fleet in the country, has just announced a unique series of one-day regattas to encourage more people into the sport.

Commencing on October 9th, with a ‘Race with Champions’ event, the regatta series will consist of 4 events between now and next summer. The ‘Race with Champions’ format sees national champions from across the 4.7, Radial and Standard rigs in the Laser invited to compete with sailors of all levels of experience in a fun yet competitive event format.

Each regatta comprises five short races of 20-30 minutes in duration with separate prize categories across the different rigs, genders and ages. There is particular emphasis from the race committee on ensuring a fast-paced and fun event for competitors of all ages and abilities. Novice sailors are most welcome as this provides a unique format to be involved in racing at the highest level across the Irish fleet.

"Over 100 Lasers in the Royal St. George YC across all ages"

Speaking at the announcement of the series, Royal St. George YC Laser class captain, Brendan Hughes said, “We’re delighted to announce the launch of the Grant Thornton ILCA Sprint Regatta series and are very grateful to our sponsors for making this possible. The purpose behind the series is to provide a format for more sailors to have an opportunity to experience racing in a Laser, in a relaxed yet competitive environment. We now have over 100 Lasers in the Royal St. George YC across all ages and we’re eager to provide them with as many opportunities as possible to have fun on the water.”

Royal St. George YC Laser class captain, Brendan Hughes
Mick Shelley of Grant Thornton Ireland is himself a Laser sailor and he said that; “Sailing and in particular Laser sailing is a great sport for both male and female, young and old to be involved in. The modest cost of the Laser dinghy has meant that sailing has become accessible to many people and Grant Thornton Ireland are proud to be associated with this series.”

Despite Covid restrictions, The Irish 12 Foot Dinghy Championship took place in Dun Laoghaire Harbour in both 2020 and 2021. This year the entry numbers were reduced due to one dinghy being trapped in Mayo with a broken trailer, and the painting of another dinghy not been completed in time. Despite this, the championship was hard-fought and the deserved winner was Margaret Delany's 100-year-old 'Cora', which was built by Camper and Nicholson in Gosport or Southampton for Lieut. Colonel the Hon. Claud Maitland Patrick Brabazon, son of the 12th Earl of Meath in 1921.

In race one over a triangular course with about 6 knots of breeze, 'Cora' was a premature starter, and despite her excellent speed, she could not get near Andrew and George Miller in 'Pixie'. Third place was taken by David and Henry Shackleton in the beautifully prepared 'Scythian', and Gail Varian and Gavin Johnston in 'Albany' were fourth.

Due to some ambiguity as to whether the boats were required to pass through the start-finish line on intermediate rounds race two was scrapped. All the crews went ashore for a sociable lunch in the Royal St George Yacht Club, where they were joined by some former 12 foot dinghy sailors and discussions ranged from absent friends to travel to international regattas.

Margaret Delany in the 100-year-old Cora dinghy

In the afternoon, the breeze had increased slightly. Again 'Pixie' dominated partly because 'Cora' was obliged to take a penalty turn soon after the start. The finishing order after two laps was 'Pixie', 'Cora', 'Albany' and 'Scythian'. The third race was controlled by 'Cora', who was pushed hard by 'Albany', which had better upwind speed. 'Pixie' was third and 'Scythian' fourth. The final race again fell to 'Cora' who sailed a faultless race to win the championship on countback as winner of the last race.

At the prize-giving at the Royal St George Yacht Club, championship chairman Vincent Delany congratulated the Irish 12 Foot dinghy Championship winner, wished 'Pixie' the best of luck at her forthcoming regatta in Monaco. Delany thanked the Windyridge Garden Centre for their sponsorship of the prizes for the event and looked forward to an increased entry for the 2022 Irish champion

This was the first-ever Irish Championships for the Bray Droleen Class, despite the 12-foot catboats being designed by William Ogilvy in 1896. How was this the case? The nine boat fleet raced regularly between 1897 and 1902, and thereafter the fleet in Bray collapsed for a number of reasons. In the 19th century, there were no races for the Droleens except off Bray Promenade and some east coast regattas. There was no racing for the Class in the 20th Century. Since 2013, many boats have been built in various parts of the country, so when they came together for a championship in Dun Laoghaire on 29 August, this was their first National Championship.

The Droleens had previously raced in Kingstown and sailed from Bray to compete at the Kingstown Township Regatta. This year all but one Droleen arrived by road trailer, and one arrived on a 20-ton seaweed truck which managed to stop the traffic in Dun Laoghaire while unloading its precious cargo.

Bray Droleens - Windyridge, Galway Girl and Bray Heritage

In race one, held in a six-knot breeze, Mark Delany sailing Philip Harvey's 'Windyridge' which was built in Cavan by Paddy Sheridan, dominated and took the gun with Jim Horgan's self-built 'Galway Girl' in second place. Paul and Tony Finnegan's 'Bray Heritage, ' which was built by a team of volunteers under Frank DeGroot, was late for the start and was unable to make an impression. Race two resulted in the same finishing order, 'Galway Girl' being hampered by the enclosed environment of Dun Laoghaire harbour and preferring the open waters of Greatman's Bay off Connemara. All the competitors came ashore for a sociable lunch in the clubhouse and conversations about boats and boatbuilding and how to rig the Droleens to best effect. In the first afternoon race over a smaller course, 'Windyridge' again dominated while 'Galway Girl' retired and 'Bray Heritage' was challenged by the light winds. In the final race 'Windyridge' managed to pull off a port tack start, much to the surprise of the other competitors.

Galway Girl

Windyridge

At the prize-giving at the Royal St George Yacht Club, championship chairman Vincent Delany expressed a hope that the Droleens would compete together again before the end of the season, and hopefully in Bray, and including Michael Weed's beautiful 'Donegal' Droleen.

The Royal Saint George Yacht Club welcomes youth team racers from around the country for its Elmo Trophy competition on August 28th and 29th in Dun Laoghaire Harbour on Dublin Bay.

The event will be sailed in three flights of Firefly dinghies, where teams of six crews will race each other in a round-robin format.

Download the Notice of Race below

Teams must consist of six members from the same club, school or dinghy association. At least two members must be aged 16 and under on 31st December 2021. All team members must be aged 19 or under on 31st December 2021 and still attending second level education in 2021 (i.e. the event is not aimed at University Students).

The home team will hope to defend the trophy won by 'Curious George' in 2019 when 130 races were sailed over the weekend.

This year will see some new entrants such as Glandore Harbour Yacht Club, who have been training in a fleet of Fireflies already this season.

The Royal St. George's Elmo Trophy

The unique format of the event looks to split teams into pools of equal standards to ensure close racing for all while allowing every pool to have a chance to qualify for the quarter-finals.

To be placed on the entry list, email John Sheehy – [email protected]

Download the Notice of Race below as PDF document