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Displaying items by tag: Dromquinna

Young south coast boater Adam Brennan is rapidly building a strong reputation for himself within the Irish and UK boating communities.

At just 17, he is still at boarding school in Ireland but has already secured himself a Super Yacht Cadetship with the UK Sailing Association when he leaves school. Alongside his academic career, Adam also manages 12 boats for customers around Kerry during the holidays and advises them on their boating requirements, with Suzuki being the outboard of choice for both his own boats and his recommendations to customers.

In addition to all of this Adam is also the lead organiser of the 'Bull run for fun' which is a 74–nautical mile cruise in company from Kenmare Bay in Ireland to the iconic Bull Rock in the Atlantic. Adam founded this event when he was just 12 years of age and since then it has grown to be one of Ireland's top power–boating events.

Not content with forging a career in the marine industry and organising his own events, Adam is also restoring a Delta Dash 5.5m RIB, which he is re-powering with a Suzuki DF140A outboard motor, which has been generously donated by Suzuki GB. The DF140A benefits from Suzuki's Lean Burn Fuel Control system and will deliver all the power and performance that Adam's RIB needs plus class-leading fuel efficiency.

Whilst Adam is doing much of the restoration work to the RIB himself, he is calling upon the expertise of Suzuki Dealer, Marine Motors in Cork to rig the outboard.

Suzuki's donation of the outboard to Adam is just one of the ways in which it will be participating in the Bull Run for Fun this year, as part of the company's celebrations to mark the 50th Anniversary of its very first outboard motor, the D55, which was launched in 1965.

George Cheeseman, Sales & Marketing Manager for Suzuki GB's Marine Division, said, "When we heard about Adam's activities and superb credentials for someone so young, we were keen to support him. He is incredibly enthusiastic and as such he is a fantastic ambassador for our range of ultimate four stroke outboards."

Published in RIBs
Tagged under

#motorboatweekend – In spite of the squalls and rain showers crossing county Kerry for most of the Bank holiday weekend, Dromquinna Manor's annual Motor Boat Weekend drew a fleet of up to a dozen RIBs for what is the mostern westerly RIB rally in Europe. Tucked snugly on the hotel dock, (pictured above) crews enjoyed some Dromquinna hospitality at the nearby Boat House on Saturday afternoon.

Activities over the weekend were based around a number of adventure challenges (including a run out to the Bull Rock lighthouse) from an impressive display of high specification Irish RIBs.

The fleet included several top of the range Red Bay RIB's, one with an 8.4m inboard diesel and canvas cabin. Another four seater 7.4m Red Bay was fitted with a 300hp Suzuki outboard. There were also two impressive Tornados, a diesel inboard version from Excalibur from Cork plus two more eight metre Ribcraft vessels along with some smaller Zodiacs.

 

Published in RIBs
Tagged under

#motorboat – A fun filled weekend to enjoy boating in one of the most picturesque locations in Western Europe that's how Dromquinna Manor is billing its 2014 Motor Boat Weekend that takes place on the May Bank Holiday Weekend, May 2nd-5th. 

The free event offers a host of activities from renowned guest speakers to adventure challenges all in the company of fellow boaters.

Alan Priddy, the powerboat adventurer, who has set several boating world records will talk about his circumnavigation of the world by RIB.

Schedule below: 

Saturday May 3rd

11am
Lets Talk Engines
With Kevin from Marine Motors Cork.

12pm
Safety at sea
Use of flares and safety equipment.

1.30pm
Briefing

2pm
Treasure Hunt and Poker Run on Kenmare Bay

8pm
Boaters Evening at Shutters on the Pier Dromquinna

Presentation and talk with Alan Priddy
Alan is a British power boat sailor and adventurer who has set several boating world records. Alan circumnavigated the world in a rigid-hulled inflatable boat and is currently spearheading the first Great Britain Vs USA Powerboat World Record Circumnavigation.

9pm
Waterfront screening of Perfect Storm
Fork Supper and film €30
Proceeds to Derrynane Inshore Rescue

Sunday May 4th

10.30am Bull Run Briefing

11am
The Bull Run for Fun
The Annual Bull Run for Fun departs to the Bull Rock. The 74 nautical mile cruise to the famous landmark in the Atlantic is the highlight of the weekend and a real adventure for all. The majestic rock awaits in all its glory and leaves lasting memories of a day/weekend of true boating enjoyment.

7.30pm
Party & Prize giving at Shutters on the Pier

Published in Powerboat Racing

Boating facilities at the Dromquinna Manor resort in Kerry include pontoon berths offering the boating enthusiast a wonderful base to enjoy the south-west coast. The current facility comprises a long jetty in the Kenmare river.

Published in Irish Marinas

Irish Sailing Classes and Association – There’s no shortage of one-design classes from which to choose and each gives its enthusiasts great competition, fun and camaraderie, writes Graham Smith in this review of the classes. 

One-design racing is where it all starts. It is, after all, where all the top sailors earned their stripes, battling away for line honours without a thought for a handicapper’s calculator wiping away a hard-fought victory!

Indeed, you could count on less than one hand the number of top Irish sailors who didn’t cut their teeth in a one-design dinghy! Just think of Cudmore, Barrington, Watson, Wilkins, Hennessy and Dix to name a few and you realise that they honed their skills in everything from Enterprises to Lasers and a lot in between.

At present count, there are a little over 30 one-design classes in Ireland, split almost evenly between dinghies and keelboats, a statistic which might raise a few eyebrows. They range from the long-established Mermaids, IDRA14s and Dragons to the newer additions like Fevas, Topaz and RS Elite. They all fill a particular need and give their owners and crews considerable enjoyment.

Many have attracted their World or European Championships to Irish waters over the years and while 2009 is notable for a lack of such events here, the following year will see the Etchells Worlds at Howth and perhaps a few other international regattas too.

In addition to the review, we asked each class to complete a questionnaire giving details of their fleet numbers, whether they were on a growth pattern or holding their own, so we could highlight those ‘on the up’ and those remaining static in terms of numbers. The older traditional designs, as you might imagine, fall into the latter category, although that’s not a negative!

CLASS REVIEW  The State of the Classes – League Table (as at February 2009)

S = Static; U = Up/growing

275     Optimist   U

200+   Laser   S

189     Mermaid   S

160     Flying Fifteen   S

130     RS Feva   U

115     Shannon One Design    U

100+   Mirror   S

100+   Topper   U

99       Topaz   U

94       Laser SB3   U

87       GP14   U

85       Squib   S

70       Fireball   S

70       Ruffian   S

60       J24   S

60       Shipman   S

52       Dragon   S

50       RS400/200   S

50       420    U

43       Multihulls    U

42       Dragon    S

40       Water Wags    U

40       Wayfarer    S

34       IDRA14    U

33       Puppeteer    U

28       Etchells    S

27       E-Boat    U

26       Glen    S

25       Enterprise    S

18       Sigma 33    S

18       Howth 17    U

13       RS Elite    U