#mermaid – As part of the celebrations for the 80th Anniversary of the DBSC Mermaid, the class undertook a voyage from Foynes in Limerick to Skerries in North Co Dublin where the National Championships will be held in early August. The intention was to visit all the locations where Mermaids sail and call in to other traditional cruising haunts along the way.
The boat selected for the trip, Thumbalina no 26, is owned by Patrick Boardman from Rush. The boat was built in 1952 and in the hands of the late Noel O' Hare proved virtually unbeatable in Dun Laoghaire during the late 50s and early 60s.
The trip was undertaken in legs of 20 to 40 miles usually accompanied by local RNLI inshore boats or cruising boats form nearby clubs along the way. 20 different crew sailed Thumbalina with the assistance of over 50 support personnel on accompanying boats.
There are reports of some very exciting sailing, particularly from Derek Joyce and his team who recorded speeds in excess of 12.5 Knots on their journey from Kilmore Quay to Wexford. Pat Mangan also recorded similar speeds over the ground with a huge tidal stream in their favour as they flew through Dursey Sound. Patrick Boardman recorded the longest daily run of over 54 miles from Smerwick Harbour to Derrynane. The most picturesque journey was enjoyed by Roger Bannon and Therese Mc Hugh who brought Thumbalina from Crookhaven to Baltimore travelling on the inside route through all the islands of that famous part of West Cork.
The distance sailed until arrival in the National Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire on Sunday 15th July is 480 miles with 32 miles remaining to be covered by visiting Clontarf and Rush before concluding in Skerries.
Clontarf will be hosting the Leinster Championships on 21st and 22nd July.
The voyage onwards will visit Rush to celebrate the launching of 3 new boats, Mayhem, Ariel and Maybe.
The final leg to Skerries will be sailed in company with as many as 20 boats in advance of Skerries Regatta on 28th and 29th July.
The arrival of Thumbalina in the National coincided with the ISAF Junior World Championships and this provided a wondrous contrast between the classic and rugged attributes of the Mermaid compared with the modern alternatives that these talented future young Olympians were sailing.
The National Mermaid Championships will be held in Skerries from 4th to the 10th August and over 45 entries are anticipated which compares with 60 entries in 1983 when the 50th Anniversary was also celebrated at this Mermaid sailing stronghold of over 60 years.
For the first time it is expected that 9 former winners of the coveted Mermaid Trophy will participate; Frankie Brown (3), Jim Dempsey(2) and Roger Bannon(6) all of whom sailed in the event in 1983 with Jim Carthy(4), Derek Joyce(5), Paddy Dillon(1), Niall Mc Grotty(2), Sam Shiels(1) and Johnny O' Rourke (1).
New blood featuring Ruari Grimes and Anthony Carthy in established quick boats together with the trio of new boats from Rush will also add new possibilities to the usual excitement of Mermaid Week in 2012.
