Displaying items by tag: Royal Cork Yacht Club
Former Champions Head to Royal Cork for First Ever Cork Harbour Mermaid National Championships
For the first time, The DBSC Mermaids are holding their annual Championship in Crosshaven over 4 days from 1st - 4th August hosted by the Royal Cork Yacht Club. The fleet has enjoyed numbers in excess of 25 to 30 boats at its most recent championships but this year’s event is shaping up to be something special with a fistful of former champions deciding to rejoin the fray and relive old memories and try to put the current crop of recent younger winners under a little pressure.
Current form would have to recognise Daragh Mc Cormack, last year’s champion on home waters, in his exceptional boat Innocence no 188, as the firm favourite. He won the Munster’s earlier this year and dominated the Skerries regatta last weekend. In the hands his club mate Vincent Mc Cormack Innocence was also a clear winner in a competitive fleet at the Leinster’s during the Volvo Regatta earlier this month.
Regular winner Jonathan O'Rourke in Tiller Girl 77 will be certain to be in the hunt as will Mark Boylan, the youngest ever winner a few years ago in a very windy Galway Bay.
Sam Shields, twice winner, has bought the famous Helen 76 and completely rebuilt her and would have high expectations of being in the frame with his experienced crew.
Also returning is the noted Rush sailor Paddy Dillon, another former winner, in Wild Wind 131 who will be anxious to build on his experience with the outstandingly successful J 109 Storm Team over the last couple of years. A solid 2nd in Skerries as his first outing in years consolidates his credentials for consideration as a serious contender.
Long-time Mermaid stalwart, Derek Joyce has refurbished his unbeatable steed from the 2000s, Zeila 187 and he will be attempting to match Roger Bannon’s record of six wins over the years. It is also expected that Roger Bannon might be there with rumours circulating that Kate Grimes is returning from Dubai especially for the event to crew for him.
News is also circulating of several rebuilding projects around the country with the hope that some may make it to the starting line in Crosshaven, including Nichapando 114 and Perhaps 111.
Exciting times for this iconic class!
Miss Whiplash Wins First Race of Royal Cork Yacht Club's July League (Photo Gallery Here!)
In the first race of the Ronan Enright Solicitors July League at Royal Cork Yacht Club last night, Ronan and John Downing's Half Tonner Miss Whiplash was the winner of the 19-boat IRC Spinnaker division writes Bob Bateman.
It was a light wind race with the breeze from a Westerly direction in Cork Harbour. From a Committee Boat start, the fleet sailed to Cage then to Corkbeg, with a beat to 8, a run to 7 and a beat again to 10.
Second overall was the Bolero Bandit with the Jones Family J109, Jelly Baby third. Results are here.
Royal Cork Yacht Club's Round the Island Race Photo Gallery
First overall in Saturday's Royal Cork Yacht Club's annual Round the Island Race in Cork Harbour was the Sunfast 32, Bad Company (Desmond/Ivers/Deasy).
The RCYC race was part of the North Sails Open League and had a finish at the Naval Base at Haulbowline.
This year's keelboat race edition had a smaller entry than normal due to the event coinciding with Crosshaven's Trad Sail festival.
Kieran Collin's Olson 30 Coracle IV was second in the IRC Spinnaker division with the Jones family's J109 JellyBaby third.
In IRC White Sails, Derry Good's Exhale won from Sean Hanley's HB 31 Luas. Third was Leonard Donnery's No Gnomes, a Nicholson 33.
See photo gallery by Bob Bateman below
A group of 29er and RS200 sailors took a well-deserved exam study break to attend the annual Royal Sprint Championship last weekend hosted by the Royal Cork Yacht Club. Two beautiful days of 29er & RS200 racing were held in 10 – 14 knots of wind near the oil refinery in Cork Harbour.
The 29er winning team with an impressive seven (seven) bullets over ten races was Lola Kohl crewed by Chris Bateman.
In second place, capturing the remaining three (three) bullets, was Dawson Kohl and Sophie Crosbie. Third place was Atlee Kohl and Jonathan O’Shaughnessy, closely followed by Rory O’Sullivan and Rob Keal in fourth place.
Meanwhile in the RS200’s – David Jones and Griff Kelleher took home first while Jack Young & Ellie Aneiros were a close second.
Special thanks to the event volunteers who made this event possible: Race Officer Andrew Crosbie, Paul Keal, Brian and Mary Jones, Sandie O’Shaughnessy, Linda O’Keefe and Barbie Kohl.
16 boats raced in last night's Royal Cork Yacht Club's Thursday night series in Cork Harbour sponsored by UK Sailmakers Ireland in a light ESE breeze writes Bob Bateman
Spinnaker fleets one and two took a beat to Corkbeg (RCYC course 93) across an ebbing tide and eased sheets to number 14 off Cuskinny a turn right to beat to East Ferry 2 back via number 12 and finish at the cage.
The five-boat whitesail fleet was given a race out the harbour to number three and then back to Cage Buoy.
Results are here
420 Girls to the Fore Again at the 2019 Youth Nationals at RCYC
The 2019 Irish Sailing Youth National Championships hosted by Royal Cork Yacht Club provided wild oscillations in weather conditions over the four days of planned racing. Thursday was certainly the calm before the arrival of Storm Hanna and three races for the 420 class were completed in light and fickle conditions. Friday dawned with raceable conditions in the morning but the oncoming storm would have provided little opportunity to get on the water and over to the race area and back again before the onset of the strong winds around lunchtime thereby forcing the cancellation of racing. Saturday looked as if it would provide perfect 420 sailing conditions in the strong breeze at the tail end of the storm but a long postponement eventually saw racing eventually cancelled late in the afternoon.
Sunday dawned with fog and no wind, but the fleet launched at 8:30 in the morning to head out to the race course and they were eventually rewarded with a modest breeze in bright sunshine. The Ferguson sisters from the National Yacht Club provided consistency over the two days of racing with five race wins to retain the title again this year after their win in Dun Laoghaire in 2018. In second place with two race wins were another female crew of Lucy Kane and Emma Gallagher followed by Morgan Lyttle and Patrick White in third position.
The Youth Nationals has traditionally been used by the 420s for team selections to travel to the European or World Championships each year. As Afloat.ie reported earlier here, Nicola and Fiona Ferguson will represent Ireland at the World Championships at Vilamoura in Portugal whilst the qualifiers for the 2019 Junior European Championships at Vilagarcia de Arousa on the North East coast of Spain are as follows:
- Lucy Kane (East Antrim Boat Club) and Emma Gallagher (Malahide Yacht Club)
- Morgan Lyttle Royal (St. George Yacht Club) and Patrick Whyte (Lough Ree Yacht Club)
- Ben Graf and Alexander Farrell (Lough Ree Yacht Club)
Royal Cork Yacht Club and their team of volunteers and race officials are to be congratulated on running a magnificent event under testing weather conditions.
A Howth Yacht Club brother and sister Jamie and Eve McMahon emerged on top of the 200-plus entries at the Irish Sailing Youth Championships sailed in Cork over the weekend in five classes. Both were competing in the single-handed Laser Radial event where Jamie won the class and Eve finished as best girl in fifth overall out of 27 entries.
Prizes were presented this evening on the lawn at the Royal Cork Yacht Club in Cork Harbour.
See photo gallery of prizewinners by Bob Bateman below
Youth Sailing Titles Decided at Royal Cork Yacht Club
In Cork Harbour, five youth national sailing titles were decided at the four-day Irish Sailing Youth Championships hosted by the Royal Cork Yacht Club in Crosshaven though Storm Hannah disrupted the event programme writes Bob Bateman.
Ferguson victory in 420
In a commanding performance, defending champions Nicola and Fiona Ferguson from the National Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire won the double-handed 420 class counting no fewer than five race wins.
Although hopes were high that the high winds would ease sufficiently on Saturday afternoon, near gale force gusts continued into the evening. However, light winds on the final day allowed every class to sail between two and four races each to complete their championship series.
McMahons Win in Radial
Howth brother and sister Jamie and Eve McMahon emerged on top in the singlehanded Laser. Both were competing in the single-handed Radial event where Jamie won the class and Eve finished as best girl in fifth overall out of 27 entries.
The pair qualify to be part of the Ireland squad at the Youth World Sailing Championships in Poland this July subject to Eve achieving a qualifying result at an international regatta next week.
"Host club victory went to Cillian Foster in the single-handed Laser 4.7"
4.7 result for Foster
Host club victories went to Cillian Foster in the single-handed Laser 4.7 (subject to protest) while in the single-handed Topper 5.3 event while Darragh Collins was the winner, second was Oisin MacSweeney and Lola Kohl took third.
Dwyer Matthews Wins in Oppies
The series was also a selection trials event for the International Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland to decide the national squads for international events this season. Cork's James Dwyer Matthews who won the weekend's event tops the list 28 and will lead the world championship team.
Full results are here
Scroll down for photo gallery of today's action. Prizegiving photos are here.
Today's second day of racing at the Irish Youth Sailing Championships was scrubbed in anticipation of the arrival of Storm Hannah at Royal Cork Yacht Club this morning.
Optimist class racing, however, did go ahead on a sheltered race course on the Curlane Bank at the Cork Harbour venue.
Tomorrow's racing schedule has been postponed for one hour to gauge the conditions before a further decision on the championships is made.
Kinsale's O'Suilleabhain Leads Radial Irish Youths at Royal Cork Yacht Club (Photo Gallery Here!)
After a light and flukey start, Royal Cork Yacht Club sailed three races for 420s and Laser Radial classes in the first day of competition at the Irish Sailing Youth National Championships in Cork Harbour today writes Bob Bateman
In the ten–boat 420 class, the National Yacht Club's Nicola Ferguson on five points has a two-point lead from East Antrim's Lucy Kane with Morgan Lyttle of the Royal St. George Yacht Club a point behind in third.
In the 28-boat Radial class, Micheal O'Suilleabhain of Kinsale on five points leads last weekend's Munster Championship winner Jamie McMahon of Howth Yacht Club by one point. Local hopes are with Atlee Kohl of RCYC on 11–points.
In the Optimist class selection trials, James Dwyer Matthews leads this 60-boat event by just three points over Howth's Rocco Wright.
A fourth, additional race had been planned in light of forecasts of gales on Friday but after six hours on the water the fleets racing in the Cuskinny and Curlane Bank areas of Cork Harbour were sent ashore.
Racing continues tomorrow subject to forecast. Full results are here
Scroll down for photo gallery of today's action