Monkstown Bay Sailing Club’s Tuesday night racing league continued with another spectacular evening’s racing in Cork Harbour last night.
The weekly league is a great event to get away from it all after the bustle of work, and last night was no different. The bay gleamed in the final rays of a sinking sun. The breeze was North Westerly, and an ebb tide was running. There was even a hint of strong wind, but in true Monkstown fashion, it came and went in the blink of an eye.
A light wind start at 7 pm in the shelter of the Sandquay, mixed things up for the competitors. Glassy conditions held the faster dinghies back. The PY race is an all-in race with a lovely variety of unusual dinghies that are not a common sight in Ireland.
MBSC Tuesday Night Photo Gallery by Chris Bateman
The tide had a dominating effect on the course and as a result, kept the racers tacking up the Blackpoint shoreline. This led to a few people running aground, shaking up the lead. Michael O’Brien and Ritchie Harrington in their 505 were having a great race, only to be stopped by the mud banks off the dockyard.
This allowed the Lasers and Aero’s to slip through, and there was no stopping them at that point. By this stage, the breeze had picked up.
In the end, Brendan Dwyer in his Laser, won what was a hard-fought race. Rob Howe came in second in his RS Aero, with Davy O’Connell taking third in his Laser after recovering very well from a capsize at the start line.
The evening’s race was great preparation for Monkstown’s At Home event, to be run this Saturday.
Great racing is promised, and a barbecue before prize giving will be the icing on the cake. Entry is free, and you can register online on MBSC’s website.
First gun will be at 2 pm.
