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Irish Sailing Classes. Yacht, One Design & Dinghy Racing News, Class by Class
The SB3s big sister made a return to popularity at its birthplace on the Cork coast last month and now we have video to prove it!  Nearly 20 boats raced for national championship honours and Nicholas O'Leary turned the tables…
CH Marine 1720 Nationals 2009
Sailing was the big winner at the CH Marine 1720 Nationals, held in Baltimore from the 27th–29th August, with varying conditions from 25/30 knots in the first two days followed by a sunny 10/12 knots on the Saturday. It proved…
Irish Fireballs move up board
The Irish Fireball crews are moving up the leaderboard in La Rochelle, with a race win for Francis Rowan and his English helm Tom Gilard, and placings inside the top ten for the Rumball/Moran and Butler Moore pairings. Final sailing…
Howarth/Townend lead Fireball Worlds
The Fireball World Championships is four races in at La Rochelle, and UK team Chips Howarth and Vyv Townend are stamping their dominance, with three wins from four races so far. Once again, European bronze medallists Tom Gilard and Francis…
J80s Match Racing - what works
The last couple of match racing events in the SailFleet J80s have been sailed in some challenging conditions. It’s been noticeable how the teams have had to improve their boat handling dramatically to meet the challenge. Here are some notes…
European Fireball bronze for Rowan
Dun Laoghaire sailor Francis Rowan and his helm Tom Gillard took third place at the Fireball European championships in La Rochelle today, finishing with a lacklustre 28th and 25th, but doing enough to hold off the British sailing pairing of…
Rowan remains on podium
Dun Laoghaire sailor Francis Rowan, sailing with UK helm Tom Gillard, goes into the final day of the Fireball Europeans in second place today. A win in race five cemented their position in the top three, and just two races…
CH Marine 1720 National Championships at Baltimore SC
Following on from last years successful event, the Irish 1720 Association has again decided to return to Baltimore for the 2009 National Championships from August 27th to the 29th. The event this year will once again be sponsored by CH…
Rowan third at Fireball Euros
Dun Laoghaire sailor Francis Rowan, sailing with English helm and Ulster champion Tom Gillard, is currently lying third at the Fireball Europeans in La Rochelle. The NYC sailor has counted just one race outside the top ten in the 89-boat…
Fireball Euros underway
The Fireball Europeans got under way today with two races in La Rochelle, and seven Irish boats are sailing among the 88-boat fleet. Results have only been posted for one race so far, and with ten teams caught out on…
17 footers at Howth Yacht Club
17 FOOTER CHAMPS (O'ALL) at Howth Yacht Club 08/08/2009 17 footer  SCRATCH: 1, Hera J & M Duffy (8.00);  2, Aura I Malcolm (10.00);  3, Oona P Courtney (11.00);  4, Deilginis M Toomey (22.00);  5, Sheila D Bothwell (22.00);  17…
SATURDAY SERIES 2 (RACE) 18/07/2009 – Squib Scratch – 1 Fantome, R. McDonnell, 2 Puffin, Em Harte. Squib Handicap – 1 Puffin, 2 Fantome. TUE & SAT SERIES 2 (RACE) 18/07/2009 17 Footer Scratch – 1= Leila, R. Cooper, 1=…
Following some friendly 'goading' by David Mulligan on a winter's evening in the Summit Inn, David Doyle set about contacting a fellow fisherman whom he knew had the talent to construct a brand new Howth 17. The savings fund of…
TUESDAY & SATURDAY SERIES 1 30/05/2009 – 17 Footer Scratch – 1 Gladys, Cronin/Jones, 2 Aura, I. Malcolm, 3 Rita, Curly/Lynch. 17 Footer Handicap – 1 Pauline, O'Doherty/Ryan, 2 Gladys, 3 Eileen, Finnucane/O'Byrne. Tuesday Series 2   Puppeteer Scratch – 1…
Pterodactyl (R & D McCaffrey) was the winner of this afternoons sea breeze fuelled Dublin Bay race in tyher Glen class. Second was Glenariff (Adrian Lee) and third Glenluce (D & R O'Connor). Full results over the fold:
HOWTH YACHT CLUB Tuesday & Saturday Series 1 (26/05/2009) – 17 Footer Scratch: 1 Oona, P. Courtney, 2, Rita, Curly/Lynch, 3 Leila, R. Cooper. 17 Footer Handicap: 1 Oona, 2 Leila, 3 Rita. Tuesday Series 1 –  Puppeteer Scratch: 1…

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