Displaying items by tag: Charles Apthorp

18th May 2015

Four Wins Gives Apthorp & Green Flying Fifteen East Coast Title At Whitehead

#flyingfifteen – Frequent visitor to Ireland, UK Flying fifteen champion Charles Apthorp, sailing with Alan Green, produced four wins at the East Coast Championships to be unstoppable at a windy County Antrim Yacht Club at Whitehead yesterday. The National Yacht Club's David Gorman and Chris Doorly were second (on tie– break) in the 20–boat fleet with County Antrim's own Bryan Willis and John McPeake third. Full results downloadable below.

On Saturday three races were held in 10-25 knots of breeze from the west/sw. Being so close to the land it was shifty towards the shore and the wind coming around the headland also had an impact on conditions. Racing started at 2pm,

Race 1: the tide was going out towards the north and this held boats back on the line, the pin was favoured and with the wind out on the left it was important to get a good start. Gorman got a great start and soon tacked across the fleet, he led at the weather mark with Apthorp hot on his heels, Apthorp took the lead on the run and held it to the end, on the second beat Gormans outhaul broke and he was out of the race, not good to use your discard so early but he was up and running for the next race. Mc Cleery was second with Malcolm Crichton & Barry Bridges (SSC) third.
Race 2: The wind and rain were lashing the fleet at this stage. Apthorp won comfortably with Gorman chasing him all the way to be a comfortable second. There was confusion as to how many laps were sailed, after three there was no blue flag up so the fleet sailed another but it didn't affect positions. Chamberlain broke his jib halyard and at the weather mark there was a pile up involving three boats with the end result a large hole in Marcus Crichtons boat- no more sailing for him and his crew Roy.
Race 3: the boat end was favoured, Apthorp got away as Gorman got held up at the start by boats sailing over and not going up to keep clear as they should at the start, despite this he was up in third place at the weather mark behind Apthorp and McCleery. On the next beat the two leaders sailed to the left as Willis, Gorman and Mathews headed in towards the shore, this paid and the three were really close all the way to the finish line, the downwind leg was particularly exciting with boats vying for inside position at the last leeward mark. Local man Brian Willis & John McPeak deservedly won with Mathews second , Gorman third with Apthorp and McCleery back quiet a bit in fourth and fifth place.

On reaching the shore after the three races the well organised helpers on the slip were a welcome sight as were the soup and bread rolls. There was an excellent meal provided later in the club and the revelry in this fine club went on late into the night.

For Sunday the forecast was for the strong winds to continue but on arrival it was moderate, there was an early start so we could get in before the low tide.
In Race 4: Gorman got squeezed out at the start and had to turn round and start in the second lane at the committee boat, he headed in towards the shore but left paid and Apthorp led all the way with McKee, Chamberlain and Crichton all chasing. The wind was up now particularly further out of the shelter of the land and there was some great downwind sailing. On the last beat Gorman worked hard on the shifts and just managed to pip Chamberlain and Crichton on the line. The win was enough for Apthorp & Green to retain the title they won last season.
Race 5 was a triangle Olympic course with some hard reaches thrown in just to tire the already tired crews. Gorman lead at the weather mark but was overtaken on the reach by the heavier crew on Frequent Flyer. After some great reaches and close racing Apthorp and Gorman got well ahead of the pack on the second beat to finish in first and second place in the race and overall. Chamberlain was third with Irish Champion McCleery & Dougan fourth in Race 5. Small consolation for Gorman & Doorly is that they are back on top of the Irish Ranking table.

At the prize giving local class captain and Commodore thanked the sponsors and the many volenteers including the PRO and his team. On behalf of the winning crew Alan Green also thanked all involved in the club and also his fellow competitors who all made the effort to travel to this great part of the Irish coastline.

The next event is the Northern Championships which will be held in Whiterock Stangford Lough in June.

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Former Flying Fifteen World Champ Shows DBSC Fleet A Clean Pair of Heels

#ff – Visiting former world champion Charles Apthorp showed the Dublin Bay fleet a clean pair of heels winning the two DBSC races in Frequent Flyer with Alan Green as crew.

There were about ten boats training with Apthorp in light winds on a short course inside the harbour prior to the DBSC racing. Following the training everyone was keen to get going in the races and practice their new or improved skills. The wind had begun to build up from the se/south as forecast a the tide was flooding. Seventeen boats started the first race, in close racing the Meaghers who were sailing fantastically fast lead at the first mark followed by Apthorp/Green, Mulvin, Colman and Gorman. Apthorp gybed to the left of the course and took the lead but the Meaghers were tucked in behind them.

On the next beat the wind shifted to the south, Gorman got up to second and Colman third, it became a soldiers race for the remaining two laps but as Gorman got stuck in traffic with other boats Colman was quick to pounce and take second place with Gorman third, the Meaghers fourth and Dumpleton/McNeilly fifth

The second race started after the PRO changed the course, by now the wind was force 4/5 and we were given 4 laps- it was going to be a long afternoon! The fleet split going up the beat and Athorpe came to the weather mark first from the right side with Gorman second from the left side. Downwind the fleet bunched up but on the beats it was generally favoured to go right towards the shore and the shallower waters for less tide. Not a lot changed in the race, crews were busy hanging in there in the by now windy conditions. Athorpe won the race comfortably with Gorman second, Dumpleton third and Colman fourth. Club Rear Commodore and fireball sailor Frank Cassidy was helming in 3773 with Joe Hickey crewing and finished sixth.

Once again it was great racing and fantastic to see such a large turnout. Special thanks to Charles Apthorp for coming over and coaching and racing with us. A lot was learnt and hopefully it can be put in practice when the fleet travel to Cushendall for the Northern Championships this weekend. Once ashore and packed the fleet had a very enjoyable bbq in the NYC organised by our class captain Nikki and her committee.

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World Champion to Coach Dun Laoghaire Flying Fifteen Fleet

#flyingfifteen – British Flying fifteen ace Charles Apthorp will lead a training day for one of Dublin's biggest one design keelboat fleets on Saturday, June 7th.

The former World and British champion from Hayling Island Sailing Club will focus initially on the critical area of mast set-up in the 20–foot keelboat.

The training will start at 10am at the National Yacht Club before on the water tuition that will lead into DBSC racing where the class has been achieving turnouts of up to 18 boats for Bay competition.

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Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta

From the Baily lighthouse to Dalkey island, the bay accommodates six separate courses for 21 different classes racing every two years for the Dun Laoghaire Regatta.

In assembling its record-breaking armada, Volvo Dun Laoghaire regatta (VDLR) became, at its second staging, not only the country's biggest sailing event, with 3,500 sailors competing, but also one of Ireland's largest participant sporting events.

One of the reasons for this, ironically, is that competitors across Europe have become jaded by well-worn venue claims attempting to replicate Cowes and Cork Week.'Never mind the quality, feel the width' has been a criticism of modern-day regattas where organisers mistakenly focus on being the biggest to be the best. Dun Laoghaire, with its local fleet of 300 boats, never set out to be the biggest. Its priority focussed instead on quality racing even after it got off to a spectacularly wrong start when the event was becalmed for four days at its first attempt.

The idea to rekindle a combined Dublin bay event resurfaced after an absence of almost 40 years, mostly because of the persistence of a passionate race officer Brian Craig who believed that Dun Laoghaire could become the Cowes of the Irish Sea if the town and the local clubs worked together. Although fickle winds conspired against him in 2005, the support of all four Dun Laoghaire waterfront yacht clubs since then (made up of Dun Laoghaire Motor YC, National YC, Royal Irish YC and Royal St GYC), in association with the two racing clubs of Dublin Bay SC and Royal Alfred YC, gave him the momentum to carry on.

There is no doubt that sailors have also responded with their support from all four coasts. Running for four days, the regatta is (after the large mini-marathons) the single most significant participant sports event in the country, requiring the services of 280 volunteers on and off the water, as well as top international race officers and an international jury, to resolve racing disputes representing five countries. A flotilla of 25 boats regularly races from the Royal Dee near Liverpool to Dublin for the Lyver Trophy to coincide with the event. The race also doubles as a RORC qualifying race for the Fastnet.

Sailors from the Ribble, Mersey, the Menai Straits, Anglesey, Cardigan Bay and the Isle of Man have to travel three times the distance to the Solent as they do to Dublin Bay. This, claims Craig, is one of the major selling points of the Irish event and explains the range of entries from marinas as far away as Yorkshire's Whitby YC and the Isle of Wight.

No other regatta in the Irish Sea area can claim to have such a reach. Dublin Bay Weeks such as this petered out in the 1960s, and it has taken almost four decades for the waterfront clubs to come together to produce a spectacle on and off the water to rival Cowes."The fact that we are getting such numbers means it is inevitable that it is compared with Cowes," said Craig. However, there the comparison ends."We're doing our own thing here. Dun Laoghaire is unique, and we are making an extraordinary effort to welcome visitors from abroad," he added. The busiest shipping lane in the country – across the bay to Dublin port – closes temporarily to facilitate the regatta and the placing of six separate courses each day.

A fleet total of this size represents something of an unknown quantity on the bay as it is more than double the size of any other regatta ever held there.

Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta FAQs

What is Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Dun Laoghaire Regatta is Ireland's biggest sailing event. It is held every second Summer at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on Dublin Bay.

When is Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Dun Laoghaire Regatta is held every two years, typically in the first weekend of July.

Where is Dun Laoghaire Regatta held?

As its name suggests, the event is based at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. Racing is held on Dublin Bay over as many as six different courses with a coastal route that extends out into the Irish Sea. Ashore, the festivities are held across the town but mostly in the four organising yacht clubs.

How big is Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Dun Laoghaire Regatta is the largest sailing regatta in Ireland and on the Irish Sea and the second largest in the British Isles. It has a fleet of 500 competing boats and up to 3,000 sailors. Scotland's biggest regatta on the Clyde is less than half the size of the Dun Laoghaire event. After the Dublin city marathon, the regatta is one of the most significant single participant sporting events in the country in terms of Irish sporting events.

How old is Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

The modern Dublin Bay Regatta began in 2005, but it owes its roots to earlier combined Dublin Bay Regattas of the 1960s.

How many boats compete at Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Up to 500 boats regularly compete.

How many yacht clubs are represented at Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Up to 70 different yacht clubs are represented.

Where do the yachts come from to compete at Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

The Channel Islands, Isle of Man, England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Ireland countrywide, and Dublin clubs.

How many boats are visiting boats at Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Nearly half the sailors, over 1,000, travel to participate from outside of Dun Laoghaire and from overseas to race and socialise in Dun Laoghaire.

What type of yachts race in Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

21 different classes are competing at Dun Laoghaire Regatta. As well as four IRC Divisions from 50-footers down to 20-foot day boats and White Sails, there are also extensive one-design keelboat and dinghy fleets to include all the fleets that regularly race on the Bay such as Beneteau 31.7s, Ruffian 23s, Sigma 33s as well as Flying Fifteens, Laser SB20s plus some visiting fleets such as the RS Elites from Belfast Lough to name by one.

What famous sailors race in Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Some sailing household names are regular competitors at the biennial Dun Laoghaire event including Dun Laoghaire Olympic silver medalist, Annalise Murphy. International sailing stars are competing too such as Mike McIntyre, a British Olympic Gold medalist and a raft of World and European class champions.

How much does it cost to enter Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

There are different entry fees for different size boats. A 40-foot yacht will pay up to €550, but a 14-foot dinghy such as Laser will pay €95. Full entry fee details are contained in the Regatta Notice of Race document.

Where can spectators view Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

Spectators can see the boats racing on six courses from any vantage point on the southern shore of Dublin Bay. As well as from the Harbour walls itself, it is also possible to see the boats from Sandycove, Dalkey and Killiney, especially when the boats compete over inshore coastal courses or have in-harbour finishes.

How does Dun Laoghaire regatta compare to international regattas?

Very favourably. It is often compared to Cowes, Britain's biggest regatta on the Isle of Wight that has 1,000 entries. However, sailors based in the north of England have to travel three times the distance to get to Cowes as they do to Dun Laoghaire.

Why is Dun Laoghaire Regatta so unique?

Dun Laoghaire Regatta is unique because of its compact site offering four different yacht clubs within the harbour and the race tracks' proximity, just a five-minute sail from shore. International sailors also speak of its international travel connections and being so close to Dublin city. The regatta also prides itself on balancing excellent competition with good fun ashore.

Who organises Dun Laoghaire Regatta?

The Organising Authority (OA) of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta is Dublin Bay Regattas Ltd, a not-for-profit company, beneficially owned by Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club (DMYC), National Yacht Club (NYC), Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC) and Royal St George Yacht Club (RSGYC).

What does Dun Laoghaire Regatta contribute to the local economy?

The Irish Marine Federation launched a case study on the 2009 Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta's socio-economic significance. Over four days, the study (carried out by Irish Sea Marine Leisure Knowledge Network) found the event was worth nearly €3million to the local economy over the four days of the event. Typically the Royal Marine Hotel and Haddington Hotel and other local providers are fully booked for the event.