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Displaying items by tag: RS Sprint

#rssprint – After watching the forecast fluctuate from a force 7 to a force 2 during the week, the fleet of RS400's were treated to a nice force 3-4 breeze and sunshine on the morning of the RS sprints at the Royal St. George Yacht Club. While numbers were smaller than usual at RS400 open events, the fleet felt more than big enough due to the tight start lines and short courses. The standard of the fleet also remained very high. Every boat in the fleet has had their time at the top including the newest members to the RS400 fleet, Barry McCartan and Connor Kinsella. They are current Fireball national champions and their entrance to the fleet is a shining example of what cyber peer-pressure can achieve. Also making a welcome appearance for the first time in the class was Olympian, Dan O'Grady.

The first 3 races saw the Ryan brothers dominate in tricky conditions with the wind beginning to drop and shift. Race 4 saw Sean Cleary and crew Luke Murphy gain a lead after a tough start. However, the breeze died off completely just before they rounded the leeward mark and the fleet grinded to a halt with the strong tide leading to the race being abandoned.

A steady southerly breeze kicked in 20 minutes later and the fleet began racing again. Races 4 and 5 saw the Ryan brothers take 2 more bullets. As the breeze continued to build, Ross McDonald took over at the front scoring firsts in the final 3 races.

Racing, as usual for the 400's was extremely tight in each and every race. Results were inconsistent for everyone showing how close the competition was. The Ryan brothers finished first. Second was McDonald/O'Grady and third was Paul McMahon and Laura Houlihan who showed great form throughout the event.

Next up is the RS Northerns in Carlingford Lough on the 27/28th of June where large numbers in all fleets is expected!

Published in RS Sailing

Waszp sailing

The Waszp project was conceived in 2010 by Andrew McDougall, designer of the world-beating Mach 2 foiling Moth. 

The Waszp was created as a strict one-design foiler, where, as the class says “the true test when raced is between crews and not boats and equipment”.

The objective of the class rules is to ensure that this concept is maintained. Keeping possible modifications to a minimum ensures fair racing across the fleet, helps to reduce the overall cost to the sailor and reduces the amount of time in the workshop. 

The popularity of the WASZP has proven that the boat and the concept work. In October 2021, 1237 boats had been sold to over 45 countries. 

The top speed recorded on the foiling dinghy is 26.7 knots. 

60-95kgs+ is a weight range competitive across varied conditions with rigs knowns as ‘8.2’ and ‘6.9’.

The cost of a Moth dinghy in Europe is €14,400 inc VAT + shipping according to the manufacturers in October 2021.