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Displaying items by tag: Fló Beo

A trio of self-described ‘ordinary’ women will be attempting the extraordinary later this summer when they set out to swim the length of the River Shannon for charity.

Fló Beo, which means ‘the living flow’, developed from an idea that 20-year-old Heather Maxwell discussed over tea with her mother Eileen. Soon enough they recruited Toni McGlynn, a fellow member of Lough Key Triathlon Club, to their cause.

The team comes with a solid background in open water swims including Swim Lough Rynn, the Metal Man Series, Glencar Lough Swim and Lough Mask.

But the Shannon poses a different challenge all together, and only two others have swum its full 245km length — American Dan Hall in 2018 and Patrick McDonnell last year.

If Heather, Eileen and Toni complete their challenge, they would be the first ever women to swim the length of the Shannon.

“The prospect of swimming the distance is a great challenge for us, but one we are totally relishing,” say the trio, who will be swimming from Dowra in Cavan to Arthur’s Quay in Limerick in the month of August to raise funds for mental health awareness charity A Lust for Life as well as the Irish Cancer Society.

However, the team can’t achieve their goals without support, and they are currently appealing for someone who could lend them or sponsor the hire of two support boats to accompany them on their journey for rest stops and overnight accommodation — better yet if the owners are willing to join their adventure as skippers.

For more details and to follow their journey, see the Fló Beo Facebook page as well as the trio’s GoFundMe page and additional sponsorship levels.

Published in Sea Swim
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The Half Ton Class was created by the Offshore Racing Council for boats within the racing band not exceeding 22'-0". The ORC decided that the rule should "....permit the development of seaworthy offshore racing yachts...The Council will endeavour to protect the majority of the existing IOR fleet from rapid obsolescence caused by ....developments which produce increased performance without corresponding changes in ratings..."

When first introduced the IOR rule was perfectly adequate for rating boats in existence at that time. However yacht designers naturally examined the rule to seize upon any advantage they could find, the most noticeable of which has been a reduction in displacement and a return to fractional rigs.

After 1993, when the IOR Mk.III rule reached it termination due to lack of people building new boats, the rule was replaced by the CHS (Channel) Handicap system which in turn developed into the IRC system now used.

The IRC handicap system operates by a secret formula which tries to develop boats which are 'Cruising type' of relatively heavy boats with good internal accommodation. It tends to penalise boats with excessive stability or excessive sail area.

Competitions

The most significant events for the Half Ton Class has been the annual Half Ton Cup which was sailed under the IOR rules until 1993. More recently this has been replaced with the Half Ton Classics Cup. The venue of the event moved from continent to continent with over-representation on French or British ports. In later years the event is held biennially. Initially, it was proposed to hold events in Ireland, Britain and France by rotation. However, it was the Belgians who took the ball and ran with it. The Class is now managed from Belgium. 

At A Glance – Half Ton Classics Cup Winners

  • 2017 – Kinsale – Swuzzlebubble – Phil Plumtree – Farr 1977
  • 2016 – Falmouth – Swuzzlebubble – Greg Peck – Farr 1977
  • 2015 – Nieuwport – Checkmate XV – David Cullen – Humphreys 1985
  • 2014 – St Quay Portrieux – Swuzzlebubble – Peter Morton – Farr 1977
  • 2013 – Boulogne – Checkmate XV – Nigel Biggs – Humphreys 1985
  • 2011 – Cowes – Chimp – Michael Kershaw – Berret 1978
  • 2009 – Nieuwpoort – Général Tapioca – Philippe Pilate – Berret 1978
  • 2007 – Dun Laoghaire – Henri-Lloyd Harmony – Nigel Biggs – Humphreys 1980~
  • 2005 – Dinard – Gingko – Patrick Lobrichon – Mauric 1968
  • 2003 – Nieuwpoort – Général Tapioca – Philippe Pilate – Berret 1978

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