Howth Yacht Club has nominated Dave Maguire's 'Team Valkyrie' to represent Ireland and HYC at the Rolex New York Invitational Cup 2023 in the autumn.
Two top Irish sailing teams, one from Dublin and one from Cork, will contest the Cup this September off Rhode Island.
Howth Yacht Club and Royal Cork Yacht Club are in the line-up of twenty teams from 15 countries competing.
In the lead-up to the Invitational, Maguire and his crew are competing on the Cape 31 Race Circuit with a crew of seven. The Invitational will be raced in the IC37, a high-performance boat with a crew of nine.
Half Ton Cup Champion Dave Cullen, the Commodore of ICRA, is the HYC team manager.
Maguire says the final crew panel for the Invitational is almost complete, with eight of the nine on-the-water crew confirmed. "We are currently interviewing for the ninth member, a female 2nd Bow position," he says.
Olympic skiff campaigner Johnnny Durcan takes time off the wire in the 49er dinghy to be the HYC spinnaker trimmer, and RS Aero and SB20 champion Daragh Sheridan is calling tactics.
"The HYC team is selected from some of the best talent in Ireland", according to the North Dublin club. All have competed regularly internationally and represented Ireland in various classes.
Howth Yacht Club's core team for the Rolex New York Invitational Cup 2023
Several team members hold National and International titles. Coaches Whyte and Schreyer are former US Olympic and University Coaches. Many team members have raced together in various sports boat classes, including the SB20, J80, SB20 and Cape 31.
