Displaying items by tag: Haf tonner

4th September 2021

King One Closes on Checkmate XVIII in Battle of the Half Tonners in ICRA Division Two

At the helm of David Kelly's King One, Jonny Swan has ruined the perfect scoresheet of Nigel Biggs and his Checkmate XVIII team after an intense second day of competition at the ICRA National Championships on Dublin Bay.

Checkmate continues to lead overall after five races sailed, but King One is now just three points off the top of the leaderboard with the final two races of the Championships left to sail tomorrow (Sunday).

Biggs added another win to his two opening day victories on Friday and looked invincible at lunchtime, but this afternoon, in races four and five, as the breeze went right to 145 degrees and strengthened, the King One crew took advantage and earned their first race win in the last race of the day.

With it all still to play for, a third Howth Half Tonner Mata (Darren Wright) is on 10 points in third place in the 17-boat IRC Two fleet, where HYC entries occupy the top seven places overall.

Howth Yacht Club's leading Half-Ton Trio

The Checkmate XVIII crew going like a train in the heavier conditions of day two: Dave Cullen, Nigel Biggs, Daragh Sheridan, Suzie Murphy, Andy Sargent, Mark Kenny and Niki Potterton

Jonny Swan steering and Ryan Glynn on mainsheet in the Half Tonner King One

Darren Wright's Half Tonner Mata, whose crew includes Athens Olympic sailor Killian Collins of Royal Cork

Results are here. Racing concludes on Sunday.

Published in ICRA

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About Conor O'Brien, Irish Circumnavigator

In 1923-25, Conor O'Brien became the first amateur skipper to circle the world south of the Great Capes. O'Brien's boat Saoirse was reputedly the first small boat (42-foot, 13 metres long) to sail around the world since Joshua Slocum completed his voyage in the 'Spray' during 1895 to 1898. It is a journey that O' Brien documented in his book Across Three Oceans. O'Brien's voyage began and ended at the Port of Foynes, County Limerick, Ireland, where he lived.

Saoirse, under O'Brien's command and with three crew, was the first yacht to circumnavigate the world by way of the three great capes: Cape Horn, Cape of Good Hope and Cape Leeuwin; and was the first boat flying the Irish tri-colour to enter many of the world's ports and harbours. He ran down his easting in the Roaring Forties and Furious Fifties between the years 1923 to 1925.

Up until O'Brien's circumnavigation, this route was the preserve of square-rigged grain ships taking part in the grain race from Australia to England via Cape Horn (also known as the clipper route).

At a Glance - Conor O'Brien's Circumnavigation

In June 1923, Limerick man Conor O’Brien set off on his yacht, the Saoirse — named after the then newly created Irish Free State — on the two-year voyage from Dun Laoghaire Harbour that was to make him the first Irish amateur to sail around the world.

June 1923 - Saoirse’s arrival in Madeira after her maiden passage out from Dublin Bay

2nd December 1924 - Saoirse crossed the longitude of Cape Horn

June 20th 1925 - O’Brien’s return to Dun Laoghaire Harbour