17 high-performance racer-cruisers had eight races on a mixture of longer round the cans courses and shorter technical windward leeward racetracks during Cork Week 2022 for ICRA National Championships honours.

On Day two, the British J/112 Happy Daize was not even in the top three. However, four bullets and a second propelled the team to the top of the leaderboard. James Chalmers and his Knight Build team racing Happy Daize will be cutting some shapes on the dance floor tonight! Louise Makin and Chris Jones’ J/111 Journeymaker II from the Royal Southern YC finished in second. Nick Burns Royal Hong Kong team racing Mills 39 Zero II, scored their second race win on the final day to secure the final podium position.

The Happy Daize crew Photo Rick Tomlinson
“This is amazing to be honest,” commented James Chalmers, skipper of Happy Daize. “This event has always been on my calendar since I was a kid, so to come here has been just stunning. The team did so well, and our tactician had to be brave in the light airs and make tough decisions. The best thing about the boat is that it is good in all conditions and excellent in others, and this week we have been very lucky with the weather.”

The third edition of the Beaufort Cup attracted teams from Ireland, UK and the United States for the Service Sailing Regatta with the winning crew taking home the Beaufort Cup.

The schedule kicked off with a 120nm race around the Fastnet Rock, followed by three exhilarating days of inshore racing. The top three teams all received thousands of euros in prize money for their chosen charities. The winning team, Crosshaven RNLI, together with funds raised on the Ladies’ Day Lunch at Volvo Cork Week, made over 20,000 euros for RNLI Ireland.

The Nieulargo crew at the Beaufort Cup prizegiving Photo: Rick Tomlinson

The Crosshaven RNLI won the 2022 Beaufort Cup on Annemarie Fegan and Denis Murphy’s Grand Soleil 40 Nieulargo. Despite taking line honours in the Fastnet Race, Nieulargo corrected out to fourth after IRC tie correction. However, inshore four wins gave the team victory for the series. Second is the British Royal Navy team racing J/109 Jolly Jack Tar, skippered by David Warwick. In third for the series is the US Marines Team skippered by Peter Quinn on First 40.7 Escapado. Tom Roche’s Defence Force Ireland team on Salona 45 Meridian is fourth. A special mention to the British Army team that won the Fastnet Race in Trojan with a Royal Engineers team skippered by Rob Duke.

The Crosshaven RNLI won the 2022 Beaufort Cup on Annemarie Fegan and Denis Murphy’s Grand Soleil 40 Nieulargo Photo: Rick Tomlinson

“It is wonderful to have the teams from Ireland, America and Great Britain all racing together at the Beaufort Cup,” smiled Dennis Murphy. “We can actually see the RNLI Lifeboat from the Royal Cork Yacht Club and we are delighted to have won this, it is a fantastic event.”

Meridian with Minister for Defence Simon Coveney onboard Photo Rick Tomlinson

Irish Defence Minister, Simon Coveney was racing again this year with the Irish Defence Forces team on Meridian. “We started the Beaufort Cup eight years ago; the idea was to bring people in uniform together. Bringing teams together and building friendships through sailing and competition. It has been a great success and we want to keep building it internationally.”

16 teams had windward leeward and round the cans courses over the five days at Cork Week. John Maybury’s J/109 Joker 2 with a team from the Royal Irish YC, is the ICRA class champion.

Joker 2 scored four race wins and nine podium finishes in ten races. Second is Pat Kelly’s J/109 Storm with a team from Howth YC & Rush SC. Third is Barry Cunningham’s J/109 Chimaera with his Royal Irish team.

“We are absolutely delighted, we have had a ball all week,” commented Joker’s John Maybury. “I could not ask for more from my team, they have been brilliant, everyone did their bit. The weather was fantastic, the competition was tough, this has been an absolutely memorable regatta. Thank you so much to the organisers.”

A tightly bunched section of Cork Week's IRC Two division Photo: Mary Malone

21 teams enjoyed nine races on windward-leeward and round the cans courses at Cork Week.

Sam Laidlaw’s Quarter Tonner BLT from the Royal Yacht Squadron Cowes scored seven race wins out of ten to rocket to the class title.

Marcus Ryan’s youth team racing J/24 HeadCase is runner-up just five points ahead of Fiona Young’s Royal Cork Albin Express North Star.

Marcus Ryan’s Irish youth team racing J/24 HeadCase Photo: Bob Bateman

It’s not unreasonable to suggest that there will have been no other skipper in Cork Week sailing to final race victory in a boat designed and built by an ancestor back in 1902 at his family’s own home port, but that was the very clear distinction recorded by Simon O’Keeffe of Schull Harbour SC, racing the gaff cutter Lady Min created in Schull by Maurice O’Keeffe in 1902.

In fact, Lady Min was flying, taking line honours overall in Race 5 ahead of the shiny Dick Carter Tina designs from France – mere striplings of the late 1960s – and the Cork Harbour OD Elsie (Patrick Dorgan).

J J Olu’s 1966 Tina Bilou- Belle Photo: Bob Bateman

Overall, however, the kick-in of the discard enabled J J Olu’s 1966 Tina Bilou- Belle to win on 7pts while Elsie was second on 9, and third on 10 was Dafydd Hughes from Aberaeron with the S&S 34 Bendigedig with Lady Min fourth on 11 in an astonishingly varied lineup of boats.

The Cork Harbour One Design Elsie (Patrick Dorgan) Photo: Bob Bateman

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Back at mid-week at Cork Week, we referred to Peter Dunlop with the J/109 Mojito from Pwllheli as the Steady Eddy of the Coastal IRC Class, and he upped his sold game a tiny bit for the final and closest race of the class’s week by bringing his immaculately-maintained ISORA offshore star in first on Corrected Time, which in due course gave him the scoreline for winning the overall title. 

Peter Dunlop's J/109 Mojito from Pwllheli Photo: Bob Bateman

Peter Dunlop and Vicky Cox of Pwllheli Sailing Club are co-skippers of the J109 Mojito Photo: Bob Bateman

As usual, Jamie McWilliam’s flying saucer, the Ker 40 Signal 8, took line honours, but this time the other biggies were looking at his distinctive dished stern (the boat’s, that is) from a much closer distance. 

Jamie McWilliam’s Ker 40 Signal 8 Photo: Bob Bateman

Their performance was such that Michael O’Donnell’s J/121 Darkwood (of more clubs than we could possible list) finished Race 5 second, with Robert Rendell’s Grand Soleil 44 Samatom third for Howth with clubmate Checkmate XX, the First 50 campaigned by Dave Cullen and Nigel Biggs, finally getting in the limelight in fourth.

Robert Rendell’s Grand Soleil 44 Samatom third for Howth Photo: Bob Bateman

Checkmate XX, the First 50 campaigned by Dave Cullen and Nigel Biggs to windward of Samatom Photo: Bob Bateman

Paul & Deirdre Tingle’s Alpaca the first RCYC boat in the Coastal Class at fifth on 20 pts Photo: Bob Bateman

Overall it was good for visiting boats, with Mojito 1st (10 pts), Signal 8 second (13 pts), Samatom third (16 pts), Darkwood fourth (18pts) and Paul & Deirdre Tingle’s Alpaca the first RCYC boat at fifth on 20 pts.

Anthony O'Leary's Antix crew scored a first and a second in the final two races, which gave the RCYC ace the inaugural title on his home waters. 

Six pocket-rocket Cape 31s designed by Wicklow’s Mark Mills, contested the first Cape 31 Irish nationals at Cork Week with teams from Cork, Dublin, Hamble, UK, and the Isle of Man in action.
 
The 2022 Cape 31 Irish National Champion is Royal Cork’s Anthony O’Leary’s racing Antix after scoring a 1-2 on the final day. Antix winning crew: Anthony O’Leary, Peter O’Leary, Ben Field, Rebecca Coles, Peter Greenhalgh, Mark Hassett, and Tommy Murphy. A thrilling battle for runner-up came from two teams from Howth YC. Dave McGuire’s Valkyrie won the last race to take second by a single point from Dan O'Grady’s Aja.

Anthony O'Leary's Antix crew Photo: Rick Tomlinson 

“In 1997 we won the first 1720 National Championships, so in 2022 to win the first Cape 31 Nationals has a special ring to it!” commented Anthony O’Leary. “There is a very high level of competition in the Cape 31s, and it was great fun as well. Every day we go out, we are learning so much. This has been a light airs week and we still have loads to crack in the medium and heavy airs. It is very exciting to be on this learning ladder, and we are having a ball, the boats are spectacular!”

Cape 31 Adrenaline leads at a wing mark Photo: Rick Tomlinson

Classic yacht Erin did not compete in its class at Royal Cork Yacht Club's Cork Week Regatta on Friday, July 15th.

The classic yacht, owned by RCYC member Terry Birles, is subject to a temporary High Court order, arising out of an action launched this week by French actor and film director Daniel Boon.

The Irish Independent newspaper has more on the story here

Two wins on Thursday for Cameron Good's Little Fella have given the team from Kinsale Yacht Club a five-point lead in the seven-boat Dragon Class at Cork Week.

After three days of light and complex racing, a sea breeze kicked in on Day Four to spice up the action on the penultimate day.

Peter Bowring's Phantom from the Royal St. George YC is second, just a point ahead of Daniel Murphy's Whisper from the Kinsale YC.

A number of protests are still to be heard so results are provisional.

Racing at Volvo Cork Week concludes on Friday on five race areas, in and outside Cork Harbour, organised by the Royal Cork Yacht Club.

Cork Week Class IRC Two leader, John Maybury’s J/109 Joker 2 from the Royal Irish YC, scored a seventh in the first race of the day but came fighting back with a win and a second place to all but secure the class title with one more day of racing to come.

Pat Kelly’s J/109 Storm from Rush/Howth YC had a mixed day but came back from two fifth place results to win the last race to stay in second place for the series.

A tightly bunched section of Cork Week's IRC Two division Photo: Mary Malone

Barry Cunningham’s J/109 Chimaera from the Royal Irish won the first race of the day and finished the day in third, just a point behind Storm.

Racing at Volvo Cork Week concludes tomorrow on five race areas, in and outside Cork Harbour, organised by the Royal Cork Yacht Club. 

A number of protests are still to be heard, so results are provisional