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Displaying items by tag: Vintage boats

The first opening of the Samuel Beckett Bridge to accommodate a flotilla of sailing craft dressed overall will be the highlight of water activity on the River Liffey in the coming weekend.

Organised by the Dublin Bay Old Gaffers Association and  the Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club, it will also feature skiff racing involving competing men, women and mixed rowing crews from Wicklow, Dun Laoghaire, Arklow, Greystones, Bray and two entries from Ringsend, assembled by  the East Coast Rowing Council.

The stretch of the river near the Poolbeg club will be a scene of constant craft  movement from the Beckett and East Link Bridges downriver to entrance to Dublin Bay. The skiff racing will be over a five- hour period from 2pm.

The best vantage point for the public to be up close to the rowing action will be East Link Road from the yacht club to the East Link Bridge.

The DBOGA expect gaffers from Wales, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man to join local craft in a parade upstream and downriver to the entrance to Dubllin Bay in a parade of over 20 craft dressed overall.

Included in the visiting craft will be WILMA, A 60-foot Baltic Trader from Port Pnryn on the Menaii Straits, the Scots Zulu Breccon Lass of the Poolbeg club, the Galway Hooker, Naomh Chronain, built by hooker enthusiasts in Clondalkin, the gaff sloop Marguerite built in Malahide 114 years ago and the engineless Happy Quest  from Milford Haven.

The DBOGA's special guest for the weekend will be the noted shipwright, John Kearon, who leads the small team currently completing the conservation of ASGARD and headed for future display in the National Museum at Collins Barracks.

John Kearon has honoured the association with a special ASGARD trophy made up of original  ASGARD timber and portions of new wood that has gone into her hull. This will be the major prize for all future DBOGSA events and will be competed for over a five-hour race in the bay on Saturday  scheduled to start at 2pm.

That same evening victuals for the hungry racing crews will consist of a hog roast on the club premises followed by prizegiving and the first presentation of the new ASGARD Trophy.
Published in Dublin Bay Old Gaffers

About Match Racing

A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head.

In yacht racing, it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams consisting of 2, 3 or 4 boats compete together in a team race, with their results being combined.

A match race consists of two identical boats racing against each other. With effective boat handling and clever use of wind and currents, a trailing boat can escape the grasp of the leader and pass. The leader uses blocking techniques to hold the other boat back. This one-on-one duel is a game of strategy and tactics.

About the World Match Racing Tour

Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The WMRT is awarded ‘Special Event’ status by the sport’s world governing body – World Sailing – and the winner of the WMRT each year is crowned World Sailing Match Racing World Champion. Previous champions include Sir Ben Ainslie (GBR), Taylor Canfield (USA), Peter Gilmour (AUS), Magnus Holmberg (SWE), Peter Holmberg (ISV), Adam Minoprio (NZL), Torvar Mirsky (AUS), Bertrand Pace (FRA), Jesper Radich (DEN), Phil Robertson (NZL) and Ian Williams (GBR). Since 2000, the World Match Racing Tour and its events have awarded over USD23million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors