Displaying items by tag: IODAI

13th October 2022

Success for Royal St. George Yacht Club Optimist Sailors in 2022 IODAI National Rankings

In the 69-boat Optimist dinghy Senior Fleet, Dun Laoghaire Harbour's Royal St. George Yacht Club had eight sailors in the top 15 of the 2022 IODAI National Rankings, namely Jules Start (1st boy and 1st overall), Caoilinn Geraghty- McDonnell (1st girl and 2nd overall), Conor Cronin (2nd boy and 3rd overall), Abigail Murphy (2nd girl and 5th overall) and Carolina Carra (4th girl and 7th overall), Marcus Shelley (7th boy and 12th overall), Hannah Scott (6th girl and 14th overall) and Zita Tempany (7th girl and 15th overall).

In the 58-boat Junior Fleet, a further seven George sailors finished up in the top 15 of the 2022 IODAI National Rankings, namely Lily Donagh (1st girl and 1st overall), Emily Donagh (2nd girl and 2nd overall), Maeve Donagh (3rd girl and 6th overall), Max O’Hare (5th boy and 8th overall), Juliette Ryan (5th girl and 10th overall), Finn Foley (6th boy and 11th overall) and Ella Rock (6th girl & 12th overall).

"These results are a testament to the hard work these and all of the other 20+ George sailors competing in Main Fleet at IODAI National Events have put in both on and off the water throughout the year", RStGYC Optimist Performance Program Organiser Gavan Murphy," told Afloat.

"Recognition must also go to Sarah Fogarty and Peter Fagan, who runs the Oppie performance coaching programme in the George", Murphy added.

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7th February 2022

Mid-Term Optimist Training Camp at Lough Derg Yacht Club Later This Month

Lough Derg Yacht Club, with the support of Dinghy Performance, will be running three days of mid-term coaching for Optimist sailors from Thursday 24 to Saturday 26 February 2022.

“We are sure this is going to be a great event and a cracking way to kick off the year,” the International Optimist Dinghy Association Ireland says.

Entries are limited and more than a third of all available spots have been claimed, so early booking is essential.

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23rd May 2021

IODAI Offers Updates for 2021 Optimist Calendar

With the uncertainty of event restrictions and requirements, the International Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland (IODAI) and Howth Yacht Club have jointly decided to limit numbers competing in the postponed Leinster Championships to 80 main-fleet boats.

Expressions of interest for the event on the weekend of 3-4 July are now open for main fleet sailors until next Friday 28 May, with regatta fleet entry opening at a later date. Entries will be on invitation from the expression of interest on a first come, first served basis.

Interest will also be sought from main fleet sailors for July’s Connaught Championships from 8pm next Friday, with regatta fleet entry to be confirmed.

When IODAI and HYC have more clarity on event restrictions and requirements, the number of competitors for both of these events may increase.

The latest news updates a shifting calendar for the 2021 Optimist season, which already saw the cancellation of the trials event originally scheduled for earlier this month at the Royal St George Yacht Club.

In its place, the Dun Laoghaire waterfront club has a green to host an Optimist event on the weekend of 4-5 September

The IODAI is also in the process of planning the ‘Spirit of Baltimore’ event which will take place over the October mid-term, hosted by Malahide Yacht Club, with details to follow.

The current 2021 Optimist calendar looks like this:

Leinster Championships - Howth Yacht Club, 3/4 July
Connaught Championships - Lough Ree YC, 17/18 July
Irish National Championship - Lough Derg YC, 19/20/21/22 August
Optimist Event - RStGYC, 4/5 September
Ulster Championships - East Antrim Boat Club, September (TBC)
Munster Championships - Late September/ Early October (TBC)
Spirit of Baltimore incorporating Crosbie Cup - Malahide YC, 27-31 October

Published in Optimist

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IODAI

5th February 2021

Different Look to Irish Optimist Calendar in 2021

Baltimore spring training is cancelled for this year, but the IODAI is looking at an alternative event

The Irish Optimist calendar will look a little different for 2021 due to continued disruption amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The first casualty of the present restrictions is the spring training week in Baltimore. However, the International Optimist Dinghy Associaton of Ireland (IODAI) says its committee is looking at hosting an alternative ‘Spirit of Baltimore’ event.

As for the season proper, it’s scheduled to begin on the long weekend of 1-3 May with trails at the Royal St George Yacht Club, followed by the Munster Championships at Kinsale Yacht Club on 15-16 May.

June sees the Leinster Championships at Howth Yacht Club on the 12th and 13th of the month, while the Connacht Championships will be contested at Lough Ree Yacht Club on 17-18 July.

The Irish Nationals will be hosted at Lough Derg Yacht Club on 19-22 August, and the season provisionally closes out with the Ulster Championships at East Antrim Boat Club on 11-12 September.

Due to the impact of COVID-19 restrictions, the IODAI says a number of alternative dates are being looked at in the event that trials are unable to run in May.

Published in Optimist

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IODAI

13th July 2020

2020 Optimist Nationals Confirmed For Royal Cork - Notice Of Race Now Available

File image of Ireland’s Optimist fleet racing

The Royal Cork Yacht Club has confirmed that its hosting of this year’s Optimist Nationals will proceed as planned next month, and the Notice of Race is now available.

The AIB Optimist Irish National Championships 2020 run from 13-16 August as part of the Cork300 celebrations.

And with many top youth sailors unable to travel internationally, their competitive spirit is expected to make this year’s event one of the hottest ever.

Pre-registration is open until next Wednesday 22 July via the IODAI, and sailing instructions will follow shortly.

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RCYC
IODAI

17th April 2020

Optimist Sailors Hailed As ‘Most Adaptable In The World’ In Face Of Season’s Disruption

The International Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland (IODAI) promises its young members “will laugh, rig, race and have lots of fun both on and off the water” when sailing eventually resumes.

In a statement on its Facebook page last week, the IODAI said: “We hope that you, your parents, family and friends are well in these difficult times. We know how hard it is at the moment and how much life has changed so much for you in just a few weeks.

“We are so proud of all our Optimist sailors who are doing their best with adapting to this new and temporary way of life, with online school, exercising close to home, only catching up with friends on social media and of course how you have taken to online sailing regattas!

“It just shows what we have always known that Optimist sailors are the youngest sailors in the world but they are also the most amazing adaptable bunch of sailors in the world.

“We were very sorry to have to cancel trials, and our events in May and June. We know how hard you all train all year and look forward to being out on the water with your friends in particular in the summer months.

“We don’t know when we will be able to all get back out sailing. But we know that when we do it will be amazing. Families and friends from around the country and indeed the world will connect again ... we will laugh, rig, race and have lots of fun both on and off the water.

“We would also like to say a special word of thanks to all the people working hard in the front line services who are keeping us safe in these unprecedented times.”

The IODAI also expressed its hope that members “remain safe as we navigate these uncharted waters together”.

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IODAI

16th December 2019

Optimist Spring Training Dates Set For 2020 In Baltimore

16-21 February are the dates to save for Optimist Spring Training at Baltimore Sailing Club in West Cork.

This year the class has teamed up with freelance dinghy performance coach Thomas Chaix to work collaboratively on training sessions to kick off the season — riding high on the international success of Oppy helms like Rocco Wright.

And at the end of the week the assembled Optimist sailors have their pre-trials regatta.

On the social side, IODAI has organised a movie night at Casey’s Hotel and an end-of-week disco with the opportunity for parents to relax and meet up for a meal.

Registration for 2020 Spring Training is now available online. For more details contact Mandy at [email protected] see the IODAI website.

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2nd April 2019

Optimist Association Seeks New Committee Volunteers

The International Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland (IODAI) is setting two volunteers to fill key positions in its committee.

The roles of teams organiser and child safety officer do not require the volunteer to have any sailing experience or knowledge, only the “drive and enthusiasm to get the right things done”, according to the IODAI.

In addition, the IODAI is looking for a new assistant treasurer, as well as volunteers to take over from the current committee president and event manager as Tim Lucas and Colm Paul will be stepping down from their respective roles this September.

For details on the teams organiser or assistant treasurer roles, contact Conor Turvey at [email protected]. For the child safety officer role and presidency, email Tim Lucas at [email protected]. For the event manager role, email Colm Paul at [email protected].

Published in Optimist

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IODAI

14th March 2019

Waterford Harbour Sailing Club To Host 2019 Optimist Munsters This July

Optimists in action at the 2015 Crosbie Cup in Dunmore East

#Optimist - Waterford Harbour Sailing Club will host the IODAI Optimist Munster Championships 2019 in Dunmore East on the weekend of 20-21 July.

Regatta, Junior and Senior fleets will race in the event which is open to all boats of the International Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland.

The Notice of Race and Sailing Instructions, when made available from the IODAI, will be posted on the WHSC website.

Club co-ordinator for this event will be Rene Wubben and enquiries may be sent to [email protected] in the meantime.

The event comes a month before the Optimist National and Open Championships at Howth Yacht Club, as announced last October.

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11th February 2019

Countdown to Baltimore Optimist Spring Training Week

Optimist spring training in Baltimore last year

#Optimist - Baltimore Sailing Club have started preparations for the annual invasion of Irish Optimist sailors for the week from next Sunday 17 February.

The International Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland’s (IODAI) team of coaches are making plans for training both on and off the water.

Participating sailors are reminded to check and label all their equipment before packing for the week, especially if it has been put away all winter.

“We are looking forward to a great week of fun, action and friendships both on and off the water,” the IODAI said.

Meanwhile, registrations are now open for the 2019 Optimist Trials which will take place as part of the Irish Sailing Youth Nationals at the Royal Cork from 25-28 April.

Entry is by invitation only based on 2018 season results. Entries made before 10pm on Thursday 28 March will avail of the early bird rate of €120 (entry thereafter is €200) with the final date for entries no later than 10pm on Thursday 11 April.

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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.