#waterwags – On 3rd June conditions were ideal for a Water Wag race within the full width of Dun Laoghaire Harbour, with a six–knot easterly breeze and warm Summer conditions. Unfortunately between the five minute gun and the start, the wind disappeared completely for the twenty three Wags racing for the 100th. Anniversary Trophy (division 1A) , and the historic pictures (division 1B and 2).

Some competitors realized that a new wind might come from the north-east and found space of the start line to tack onto port tack, and found a 'Get-out-of-jail-card'. They were Cathy MacAleavey's 'Mollie', Tim Pearson's 'Little Tern', William Prentice's 'Tortoise', Frank Guy's 'Gavotte', and Orla Fitzgerald's 'Eva'. This group found a light breeze which quickly took them away from the bulk of the fleet which was still floundering on the start line. The lead group rounded the first windward mark, and flew their spinnakers on the return to the leeward gate. On the downwind leg a new stronger breeze came in from the east which compacted the fleet; in particular Richard Mossop's 'Polly' was a beneficiary. By the time the fleet had reached the leeward gate for the third time the wind pressure went soft again, allowing 'Tortoise' to put pressure on 'Mollie.' However, the leader managed to defend her position. At the finish the positions were:

1st. Mollie, No. 41, Cathy MacAleavey & Con Murphy (winner division IA)
2nd. Tortoise, No. 42, William & Linda Prentice.
3rd. Little Tern, No. 36, Tim & Marcus Pearson.
4th. Gavotte, No.25, Frank Guy & Owen McNally.
5th. Pansy, No. 3, Vincent Delany & Noelle Breen.
6th. Sara, No.30, Paul & Ann Smith (winner division 1B)
7th. Good Hope, No.18, Hal Sisk & Sue Westrup.
8th. Swift, No.38, Guy Kilroy.
9th. Alfa, No. 12, Michael Donohoe.
10th. Vela, No.4, Brian Bond & Philip Mayne.
11th. Polly, No.31, Richard Mossop, (winner division 2.)
12th. Barbara, No. 8, Ian & Judith Malcolm.
13th. Penelope, No.16, Fergus Cullen & Alice Walsh.
14th. Maureen, No.23, Killian Skay & Liz Croxon.
15th. Scallywag, No.44, Dan O'Connor & David Williams.
16th. Freddie, No.43, David Corcoran & Bairbre Stewart.
17th. Ethna, No. 1, Bill Nolan.
18th. Chloe, No. 34, Kate O'Leary
19th. Sprite, No. 10, Adrian Masterson.
20th. Swallow, No.40, David & Anne Clarke.
21st. Marcia, No. 37, Ben McCormick
22nd. Eros, No. 08, Gail Varian & Gavan.
Retired, Nandor, No. 26, Harry Croxon & Stuart McBean.

#On the training evening of Wednesday 22nd April, the weather was bright, the temperature was warm, and Class Captain, David MacFarlane organised an evening of coaching. The plan was to swap crews around so that the less experience helmsmen could benefit from having a more experienced crew on board his boat who could give him some strategic advice. Everything went to plan except for one thing- lack of wind. The event had to take place in a wind of less than three knots which was not ideal. On the water there were four Water Wags, David Williams in Scallywag, newcomers Tim and Marcus in their newly acquired Little Tern, Brian Mc. Bride in Nandor sporting a new set of North sails and Henry Rooke in Polly. Some short races took place, which served as a good training exercise.

A support team of Richard Mossop and Dan O'Connor in Yahtzee filmed the entire proceedings, so that the event can be analysed in the next shore based training session. It is remarkable to have ten Water Wags ready for the water one week before racing starts. This is thanks to the preparation and maintenance team who worked on the boats in Western Marine over the past few months under the guidance of David Williams. Next Wednesday the serious racing starts in Dun Laoghire Harbour.

#waterwags – With a fine breeze from the west of about seven knots off Dun Laoghaire, the Water Wag Race Committee decided to hold two races, each consisting of two laps of the harbour and a final beat, on a windward-leeward course. The races were part of a short series of three evenings for the Sri Lanka Tankard (Division 1A), The Sri Lanks Mug (Division 1B), and the Meldon Cup (Division 2.)

Twenty four Water Wags showed up at the start line. This number is equal to the largest Water Wag turn out of the 2014 season and exceeds the number in the Dublin Bay Sailing Club dinghy fleet on the previous Tuesday evening, which consisted of five Fireballs, five IDRA14s, four Lasers, three Dublin Bay Mermaids, two RS400s, one OK, and one other boat. A total of 21 dinghies.

In the first Water Wag race, with a tight starting line and a short first beat, the favoured course was close to the ferry terminal, and Moosmie led the fleet initially by taking this route.

Race 1 Results:
Div. 1A. Mollie Cathy MacAleavey & Con Murphy. (husband and wife.)
Div. 1B. Marie Louise, John Magner.
Div. 2. Kate & Guy O'Leary. (mother and son.)

In race 2, using the experience of the previous race, the leading Water Wags believing that the ferry terminal side of the harbour was favoured followed each other like sheep, however, on the final lap Swift taking a risk and took the option of the harbour mouth side jumped 3 places to take the gun.,

Race 2 Results:
Div. 1A. Swift, Guy & Jackie Kilroy. (husband and wife.)
Div. 1B. Marie Louise, John Magner.
Div. 2. Kate & Guy O'Leary.

#waterwags – The enthusiasm of the Water Wags for the first race of the season was unrivalled in 128th season of Water Wag racing, with 17 boats turning up for the first race on Wednesday 30th. April racing for prizes allocated to the 3 divisions as follows - Division 1A The George Arthur Newsom Memorial Trophy, Division 1B the Hilpotsteiner Tankard and Division 2 The Phyllis Cup. The 12-14 knot wind blew from the South East.

Initially, Guy and Jackie Kilroy in Swift led the fleet but a navigational error resulted in William and Linda Prentice in Tortoise pulling through, followed by Ian and Judith Malcolm in Barbara. Behind this group Freddie, Gavotte, Vela, and Pansy maintained the pressure.

At the finish after 5 laps of the Dun Laoghaire Harbour course, Tortoise won from Swift and Barbara. In Division IB Seymour Cresswell and Philip Mahony in Coquette led from the persistant Dan O'Connor and David Williams in Scallywag. In a surprise result Division 2 was led by Adrian Masterson and his son in Sprite, from Richard Mossop and Henry Rooke in Polly who flew their new Norwegian Blue spinnaker for the first time, and Brian Mc.Bride and Stuart Mc Bean in Nandor took 3rd. place. Next Wednesday will be the second of three races in this early season series.

#INLAND WATERWAYS - The Lakelands & Inland Waterways Ireland Sailing Raid is a unique event combining sailing, adventure, exploration and racing in the setting of some of the most stunning countryside in Western Europe.

On 14-21 September a fleet of about 40 'open' boats – including the 5.5-metre Shannon One Design, the 4.5-metre Water Wags and various traditional styles and new builds all under 7.5 metres long – will sail 190km from Lough Erne in Northern Ireland, through the River Shannon and across the great lakes of Lough Ree and Lough Derg to Killaloe.

Although it will be a competitive race, there will be some time left to enjoy the scenery and the Irish hospitality of the three participating yacht clubs along the way. Some will come for the racing, some for the scenery, some for the spirit of comraderie – but everyone is sure to enjoy the craic.

To maintain the maritime nature of the event, the Lakelands & Inland Waterways Ireland Sailing Raid will be based as much as possible on the water.

Accommodation will be provided in motor cruisers for those who want it, while some will be able to camp near the river bank and others will make their own arrangements. Each stopover will therefore bring together participants in a 'floating village', with several receptions and festivities in the evenings.

The event is being organised in close collaboration with Waterways Ireland, with logistical support will be provided by the three main yacht clubs on the route: Lough Erne Yacht Club, Lough Ree Yacht Club and Lough Derg Yacht Club.

Members of the local clubs are being invited to take part at a preferential rate, while raid competitors from all over Europe will provide an international element to the event. 

For more information and application details, visit the Sailing Raid website at www.sailing-raids.com.

#PORTS & SHIPPING REVIEW: Over the last fortnight Jehan Ashmore reported the shipping scene which saw President Higgins officially reopen the National Maritime Museum of Ireland in Dun Laoghaire.

The President was again on duty on the far side of Dublin Bay the next day to welcome the London Olympics 2012 Torch Relay on its first visit to the state in Howth Harbour, where the headquarters of the Olympic Council of Ireland are based.

The mid-west port of Galway was where the small German cruiseship Bremen made a port of call while at anchorage in Galway Bay.

Returning to the east coast in Dun Laoghaire Harbour, where the Water Wag's the oldest one design racing class in the world celebrate their 125 anniversary regatta week which culminates today.

Outside the harbour in Dublin Bay, the sight of a rig re-appearing was not for oil but for further preliminary work as part of the €220m Dublin Bay Project, where a new sewage pipeline outfall is to be built from Ringsend.

On the other side of the Irish Sea, the cruiseship Ocean Countess departed Liverpool City Cruise Terminal bound for Cobh. Her departure coincided on the 30th anniversary of the end of the Falklands Conflict, where in 1982, the cruiseship was used as a troopship to assist logistical operations after the 10-week long war ceased in June of that year.

Spoiled for Choice

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. A profile of each active class in Ireland is supplied below; just click on the title link (in bold) or the Class Association link to go directly to the information.

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