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Displaying items by tag: James McCormack

On Saturday last with the weather favourable, members of Foynes Yacht Club raced in the annual Cappa fixture, which has been on the sailing calendar for a considerable time.

Unfortunately, the Glin Castle race was cancelled beyond Foynes Yacht Club control, but instead the Cappa race was held on Saturday instead of Sunday.

Two classes raced, Class 1 and 2. Class 1 were racing for the Cappa Cup, while Class 2 competed for the Sean Keating Trophy.

Eleven yachts 'took to the water', where Officer of the Day, Ray McGibney sent both fleets 'off' for an 11am start. A force 4 to 5 north-westerly wind made sailing quite tricky for the fleet. With the tide 'flushing' down the estuary and choppy seas made the race somewhat interesting, where the boats had to tack to reach the Clare coastal village of Cappa.

With a hard fought race and more or less neck and neck, in class 1 winners of the recent Carrigaholt cup, Battle, emerged victorious beating off John and Edward Conway in Golden Kopper, who came in second. Third was Andrew Bracken on Joyrider. 

In class 2 the Sean Keating Trophy was won by James McCormack on Alphara; second was Pat Finucane on Marengo and third Jazmin 2.

A crews race back up the estuary to Cooleen Point took place, where a Bar-B-Que was held in the clubhouse afterwards, where the culinary delights of the chef's kept the hungry sailors wanting more.

Next Sunday the September series of racing will commence for all classes, and it is envisaged that all boats will be racing in their respective classes. All crew and skippers are asked to be at the club at 1pm, where a briefing will take place before racing. First gun for all races will be 2.30pm.

Club racing continues every Wednesday evening with first gun at 7pm.


Published in Shannon Estuary

About the J24 keelboat

American Rod Johnstone designed the J/24, a one-design boat, in the mid-1970s.

Since 1977, it has been manufactured and at present, at least 5,500 hulls have been constructed throughout the globe.

The J/24 has significantly contributed to the popularity of competitive sailing, and numerous internationally recognised racing personalities have won international J/24 championships.

This class still thrives and remains a favourite among owners and crews of all levels.