There was success for the visiting Cork boat of Daniel Copithorne and Matt Mappleback at the 420 Nationals last weekend. The event, hosted in idyllic sailing conditions at Galway Bay Sailing Club, attracted a fleet of 26 boats from around the country and from as far afield as Wales.
It was a busy week for many of the sailors who took part in the 420 National Coaching prior to the main Regatta. Tom Mappleback was assisted by Aly O’Sullivan and Ava McCarthy, honing the sailors’ skills before the racing kicked off on Friday. There was sunshine, light winds and calm seas for both training days, allowing for plenty of time on the water.
420 National Champions Daniel Copithorne and Matt Mappleback in action on Galway Bay
Racing started on a sunny Friday afternoon in an 8-10 knot Easterly breeze, with Race Officer Margot Cronin, mentored by David Vinnell, choosing a traditional Olympic triangular course. Race 2 saw a general recall, resulting in the U flag being pressed into service for the rest of the Regatta. All three scheduled races were close affairs, yielding victories for Max and Mena Sweetman, Cora McNaughton and Sean Cronin and Isha Duggen and Tommy Hiras.
Unusually for Galway Bay, the breeze remained Easterly on Saturday, yielding a flat sea despite being a little stronger than the previous day. By this stage, the Cork boats had acclimatised to the environment. RCYC’s Daniel Copithorne and Matt Mappleback took three of the four races, while Isha Duggan and Tommy Hiras, also from RCYC, took the fourth after a transition to a trapezoidal course.
420 racing on Galway Bay
The wind had picked up another knot or two when the boats reached the race area on Sunday. Aoife Lyons took charge for the final four races, again ably mentored by David Vinnell, and set a trapezoidal course. The four races were again competitive, with all 26 boats pressing right to the end of the last race. First blood went to Daniel Copithorne and Matt Mappleback, but they didn’t have it all their own way. Cora McNaughton and Sean Cronin of Blessington and Malahide finished strongly, taking the last three races before the safety team, led by John Collins, escorted the fleet back to the Rinville.
Daniel Copithorne and Matt Mappleback finished as overall winners in Gold Fleet, followed by Cora McNaughton and Sean Cronin in second. Third were Isha Duggan and Tommy Hiras while the first overseas boat was Niamh Epstein and Molly Martin from Cardiff. In the Silver Fleet, Oleksandr Bezpalyi and Róisín Mitchel-Ward of Malahide and Galway came out on top, followed by Charlie Donald and James Harvey of Cumann Seoltóireachta an Spidéil. Third in Silver went to Kate Barry and Eilí McMahon of Galway Bay Sailing Club, with GBSC also picking up the Club of the Year award.
