Irish Sailing President Jack Roy got proceedings underway at the RS Aero Open Day last Saturday morning. The event was hosted by the Irish National Sailing & Powerboat School in conjunction with the RS Sailing agent in Ireland, Irish National Marine Services and the new class association.
“We were delighted with our first RS Aero Open day hosted by the INSS and Kenny Rumball. Irish Sailing President Jack Roy was very impressed by the boat, Mark Gavin who kindly loaned his boat as a demo had to convince Jack that the boat was in fact six years old so good is the build quality that it looked as good as new.
Kenny Rumball reported that "it was brilliant to see people of all ages trying out the boat from Oppie sailors to lifetime Laser sailors looking for something more rewarding". "All came back in with one thing in common – a smile on their face!", he said. The 5 and 7 rigs proved to be a great hit with people and they loved the instant speed.
The most consistent feedback on the RS Aero was around three areas;
- fun with instant acceleration
- excellent build quality and systems
- stability in strong winds
Brendan Foley, Chairman of the RS Aero Ireland Association said: "We look forward to the class continuing to grow and to seeing lots of new sailors on the water enjoying this truly exceptional dinghy.”
The classes next big outing will be the RS Aero Irish Open, taking place on Saturday 2nd and Sunday 3rd of May, hosted by the Irish National Sailing Club from Dun Laoghaire.
A strong contingent of UK based boats is expected, and there are new boats in stock here in Ireland that will be ready in time for the event.
A short video of some of the action can be seen here. The Irish class already is 17 strong, and off the back of the Open Day, those numbers are expected to rise.