Day two report: After two days and 6 races the 26-boat Irish Fireball Nationals are set up for a very interesting last day. At the top of the scoreboard, tied on 11pts are Simon McGrotty & Ruairi Grimes and Barry McCartin & Conor Kinsella. In joint third on 23pts are Mike Murphy & Alex Voye and Noel Butler & Stephen Oram. In fifth place, and first lady is Diana Kissane crewed by Finbarr Bradley with 33pts and a point astern of them are Conor Clancy & Francis Rowan.

Friday saw a day of inconsistent breeze which led to much frustration for both the the Race Management Team and the competitors. Despite an XC Weather forecast of 9knots on the web, there was nothing like that when the fleet left Dun Laoghaire harbour for an 11:55 first warning signal. Indeed many boats had to paddle their way out to the outer reaches of the harbour before any worthwhile breeze could be had. This trend was to be repeated on the race course! A windward leeward opened the proceedings for the day and was won by McCartin/Kinsella, with Murphy/Voye, McGrotty/Grimes, Smyth/O’Reilly and Butler/Oram in the top 5 places. It says much for the snakes and ladders aspect of the race that on rounding the first weather mark, Smyth/O’Reilly were probably closer to 5^th from the back.

Race 2 saw a second windward/leeward course set in what initially looked like steadier breeze. However, the wind went light again and the finishing order saw Diana Kissane & Finbarr Bradley win followed by McGrotty/Grimes, McCartin/Kinsella, Boyle/Flahive and Murphy/Voye.

Race 3 was an Olympic course and was started in what looked like the best breeze of the day. Light again but it had a healthier look about it. A tight bunch of 4 boats contested the front end of the race with Clancy/Rowan building a very significant lead which ultimately was to play havoc with the rest of the fleet. Niall McGrotty & Neil Cramer were among those to throw a 6 at the right time as they finished 2^nd, McCartin/Kinsella took third to show remarkable consistency, while McGrotty/Grimes were 4^th, with Murphy/Voye 5^th. The remainder of the fleet were “timed out” such was a) the length of Clancy/Rowan’s lead and the fickleness of the wind which saw beats become runs and vice-versa. One competitor was heard to remark that in 37 years of competitive sailing he couldn’t ever remember being timed out of a race.

There was much discontent and many long faces in the DMYC clubhouse yesterday evening and two protests were lodged with the Race Committee challenging the fairness of the racing.   We had sailed in contrasting conditions starting in sunshine but enduring torrential rain, thunder and lightning, fickle winds and varying fortunes before the day was out.

Saturday morning was in stark contrast to the day before. Overnight a W/NW had established itself and the Sea Area Forecast for the Irish Sea was for Force 4/5 winds. The Committee Boat for the Dublin Bay Cruiser Challenge had recorded gust of 32 knots on the water so the decision was taken to postpone racing for an hour.

When the fleet did go to sea many people had decided that discretion was the better part of valour and only 18 boats made their way to the start line. Having applied for relaxation of Rule 42 for this event, the wind conditions warranted the flying of the flag to signal that pumping was permitted.

Another two windward/leewards were sailed in exhilarating conditions before the Race Committee decided that the wind had abated enough to set an Olympic course. It was a good call on both counts.  Post the racing the Race Management Team were able to advise that the wind had got up to about 26 knots for short bursts but that in general the wind strength was in the high teens touching the twenties until the final triangle of the last race when the flag to stop pumping was flown (< 12 knots).

 

By that stage race wins had been shared between McGrotty/Grimes (2) and McCartin/Kinsella. Murphy/Voye also had a very good day scoring two 2nds, while Butler/Oram also had a better day with a 2^nd and two 4^th. Creighton/Bradley should have had an even better day but a crash tack on the finish of the last race saw them drop 3 places when a capsize evolved and a broken kicker fitting at the base of the mast saw them drop back in the middle race after a storming charge off the start line.

The two protests lodged with respect to the fairness of the races have been heard and were dismissed (hence this report), but a third protest has been lodged concerning an incident between two boats on the water.

Tomorrow will be interesting and XC Weather is currently (18:53 Saturday 27^th) predicting an average wind strength of 9knots WNW with gust of between 12 and 14 knots from 10:00  to 16:00 for Dun Laoghaire.

Cormac Bradley.

 

An early start for the Dun Laoghaire Flying Fifteen fleet paid off yesterday when up to eight of the 20-foot keelboats ventured from their moorings at the National Yacht Club (NYC) across Dublin Bay and up the river Liffey for the Royal Alfred Yacht Club's (RAYC) annual Liffey Challenge in Dublin's city centre.

Although there was little wind for the confined event the class nevertheless made the headlines; splashed across the front page of this morning's Irish Times newspaper. An impressive five column wide photograph captioned 'Liffey reflections' by Irish Times snapper Brenda Fitzsimons is top of the page. One no doubt that will now hang on the wall of the Dun Laoghaire clubhouse!

 

July's Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta Boat of the week, Supernova, will be in action again this weekend in the Cruisers III East Coast championships. The annual fixture is being raced as part of tomorrow's DBSC Cruiser Challenge sponsored by MGM boats, Dún Laoghaire.

Entries for  the Challenge stand at 70 to date and remain open for the three day event run by Dublin Bay Sailing Club.

The DBSC Cruiser Challenge is open to Cruisers 0, 1, 2 and 3, Sigma 33s and 31.7s, who will also compete for their national championships during the event.

VDLR Champion Supernova is in action again on Dublin Bay tomorrow

Pat Shannon, vice-commodore of DBSC, says that as well as boats from the main Dún Laoghaire waterfront clubs, DBSC has invited boats from Howth, England and the Isle of Man to compete. "Last year we had 80 boats and we expect something similar. We're running it over the UK bank holiday so we might get those boats," says Pat. DBSC also welcomes Cruisers 3 to the event, who are taking part for the first time. (The Cruiser Challenge will also incorporate this year's Cruisers 3 East Coast Championships.)

This year the National Yacht Club is the host club for the event. Hal Bleakley is the race officer on committee boat, MacLir, and Henry Leonard is race officer on Spirit Of The Irish. NYC sailing manager Olivier Prouvier will coordinate activities on the water.

The organisers also plan plenty of fun after racing, with live music and barbecues in the NYC and a party for the 31.7 nationals in the National Yacht Club on Saturday night.

The main organisers are DBSC commodore Tony Fox, vice-commodore Pat Shannon, rear-commodore Chris Moore and honorary secretary Donal O'Sullivan, assisted by a team of around 28 volunteers. "We're always very grateful to the volunteers, they're the greatest resource we have," says Pat. "We have all the equipment, the greatest resource is the people who help out."

Pat adds that there are great prizes this year – half model yachts, made by Marine Model Makers of Wicklow. "They are very special, so it's worth entering," he says.

The entry fee for each boat is €105 with a reduced fee of €80 for entries received before 12th August.

Irish Offshore Sailing, a new yacht training centre based in Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin is now launching its autumn winter calendar, having had a very busy first season, despite the current economic climate.

The school is an RYA and ISA recognised yacht training centre and was set up by Corkman Rónán Ó Siochrú in January 2011. The school runs liveaboard sailing courses onboard a 2002 Jeanneau Sunfast 37 called "Desert Star".

Sailing school Principal, Ronan O Siochru attributes much of the schools success to date to holding onto a set of core values throughout each course: A commitment to professional, affordable sail training in a 'warm friendly Irish atmosphere'. "We have come into the market under no illusion as to the difficulties in the tourism and leisure sector in a recession, but we have priced our courses in a way that reflects realistically what people can afford to pay for a sailing course.

The most important key to our success, has been a driven campaign to bridge the gap between the large number of people who have never set foot on a sailing boat, and a liveaboard sailing course! We offer evening and afternoon 2 and a half hour sails at €30 per person on the days when the yacht is not working on a practical course. This has worked extremely well for us in getting clients to take that leap of faith in booking onto a weekend liveaboard sailing course, and in spreading the word that we are a new training centre and are here to stay!

I have always had a personal commitment, to help break down this notion that sailing is a sport for the elite, having spent two years living in France, I saw how the French promote sailing in their country in the same way the GAA promote hurling and football."

Irish Offshore Sailing also offer sailing courses through Irish and French. This is a niche in the market and is certainly likely to take off over the coming year. Despite running a few very successful courses, it has had to sit on the back burner this summer, due to the business of the summer season and a lack of time to generate an effective marketing campaign. Irish Offshore Sailing are also looking forward to next season in getting an offshore racing campaign off the ground.

O' Siochru skippered a Sunfast 37 in the Round Ireland Yacht Race to a 23rd place overall with a crew of novice sailors.

When asked, how do you handle skippering a yacht offshore with the kite up in the dark with a bunch of beginner sailors he smiles......" its amazing what yacht crews can do when they just do some training, and iron out problems with each manoeuvre!" "We come across quite a lot of sailors in this country who become so eager to be boat owners that they miss out on that important learning process of being onboard yachts with experienced sailors to learn from. It was amazing even during the boom, how some people could fork out over €100,000 for a yacht and yet, be unwilling to part with €650 to learn how to use it!

The height of the summer season is starting to come to an end, but it looks like Irish Offshore Sailing has become established as a sailing school on the East Coast, with bookings filled into the end of October and over 1,000 hits per month on their website.

"I cannot believe it has worked out so well for us, I sailed Desert Star into Dun Laoghaire on the 22nd of April, maxed out on all credit, without a penny in the bank, but with a lovely yacht ready for work, a good website and a burning ambition to see it succeed...... and I think we have done okay! Most importantly, I've made a job for myself that I like.... I love sailing, I like working outdoors, I love teaching and (despite its headaches) I like working for myself!

Ross O'Leary marked his return to Dublin Bay Sailing Club (DBSC) racing last night with a light air win in the PY/Laser class. The Dun Laoghaire based yacht broker has missed part of the dinghy season due to an ankle injury. Second home was Gary O'Hare. Full results for both DBSC Dinghy and Cruiser fleets are below:

DUBLIN PORT Dublin Bay Sailing Club Results for 23 AUGUST 2011

BENETEAU 31.7 - 1. Magic (D.O'Sullivan/D.Espey)

BENETEAU 31.7 - 1. Magic (D.O'Sullivan/D.Espey)

CRUISERS 2 - 1. Red Rhum (J Nicholson), 2. Free Spirit (John O'Reilly)

CRUISERS 3 - 1. Asterix (Counihan/Meredith/Bushell), 2. Upd8 (Whelan/McCabe/Carey)

Ensign - 1. NYC 2 (Helen Cooney)

FIREBALL - 1. Goodness Gracious (Louise McKenna), 2. Blind Squirrel (Frank Miller), 3. No Name (B McGuire)

IDRA 14 FOOT - 1. Dart (Pierre Long), 2. Doody (J.Fitzgerald/J.Byrne), 3. Dunmoanin (Frank Hamilton)

MERMAID - 1. Tiller Girl (J.O'Rourke), 2. Jill (P.Smith/P.Mangan), 3. Kim (D Cassidy)

PY CLASS - 1. Ross O'Leary (Laser), 2. Gary O'Hare (Laser), 3. P Keane (Laser 1)

Ireland will have two entries in a fleet of 30 plus boats for the Star European Championships at the Royal St. George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire in two weeks time.

Olympic trial winners Royal Cork's Peter O'Leary crewed by Malahide's David Burrows, who finished fourth at the Pre-Olympic regatta in Weymouth a week ago, lead a home challenge in a fleet that contains the current Olympic champion, four past world champions and seven continental class champions.

British Olympic Gold Medallists Percy and Simpson are coming to Dublin Bay next month. Photo: Delta Lloyd Regatta /Sander van der Borch

Beijing Gold Medalists, Britain's Ian Percy and Andrew Simpson, are confirmed for the presitgious Olympic class event that starts at the Royal St. George YC on September 2nd.

Ireland's other entry is Olympic triallists Max Treacy and Anthony Shanks from the host club.

The entries for the 2011 Star European Championships are:

Skipper	Country	Sailing Number
Chatagny	CH	SUI 8075
Niklaus Michel	CH	SUI 7829
Alexander Schlonski	DE	GER 8426
Maxwell Treacy	IE	IRL 8381
Mateusz Kusznierewicz	PL	POL 8417
DENIS KHASHINA	UA	UKR 8205
Andrew Campbell	US	8423
Ante Razmilovic	UK	8191
Johannes Polgar	Germany	8414
Arthur Anosov	UKR	8240
Andrey Berezhnoy	Russia	8359
Barbara Beigel Vosbury		7986
Fernando Echavarri	Spain	8209
Flemming Soerensen	Danish	8225
George Szabo	US	8434
Guillaume Florent	France	8270
Lev Shnyr	Russia	8047
MARIN LOVROVIC	Croatia	8339
Pavlo Bondar	UKR	8119
Tom Londrigan, Jr.	US	8170
Vasyl Gureyev	UKR	8247
Xavier ROHART	France	8237
Mate Arapov	7287	Croatia
Richard Clarke	8361	Canada
Stuart Hebb	8427	Canada
Tom Lofstedt	8351	Sweden
Diego Negri	8266	Italy
Peter O'Leary	8418	Ireland
Tibor Tenke	8386	Hungary

What is it? It has the potential to be more than 50% bigger that Carlingford! It could be 2.5 times bigger than Dun Laoghaire! It could even be twice as big as Belfast Lough! And it will take up 50% more time than each of the three above! What is it? The Fireball National Championship, of course!

An initial review of the commitments and promises to contest the Fireball Nationals, hosted by Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club, over the weekend of 26 – 28 August, conducted last Tuesday night after DBSC racing suggests that a fleet in the mid-thirties is possible.

Of course this means that all those people who have had recent contact with Neil Colin about sailing the event will have to deliver on their promises to be there.

In a year when our sailing programme has had to accommodate a two-week Worlds in Sligo, the prospect of a 30+ fleet is very exciting.

Nine races are programmed for the 3 days and Neil Colin, who is wearing two hats – DMYC representative and Fireball Committee member – appears to have all the organisational boxes ticked. The keelboat fraternity also has an event over the same weekend in Dublin Bay – the Cruiser Challenge.

In the Gold fleet there will as always be a queue of teams looking for the podium places. The three regattas sailed thus far this season have each had different winners – Graeme Grant & Francis Rowan in Carlingford, Noel Butler & Stephen Oram in Dun Laoghaire and Simon McGrotty & Ruari Grimes in Ballyholme. However, there are other combinations who have also featured in the 1-2-3 with Barry McCartin/Conor Kinsella getting onto the podium in two of these regattas, Kenny Rumball & Seamus Moore coming good in Belfast Lough, Francis Rowan & Conor taking the Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta, Diana Kissane taking a podium place in Dun Laoghaire as well as Andy Boyle.

In Belfast Lough Messrs Bracken & O'Hara were starting to show a return to the sort of form that made them regular occupiers of podium places in the recent past. Louis Smyth has also been showing a good turn of form as well. Frank Miller/Grattan Donnelly took a race win in Belfast Lough and have shown on Tuesday nights in DBSC racing that when they get the "bit between their teeth" they can be just as competitive as anyone.

The Silver fleet racing has also been very good this year and with new combinations coming into the Class as a consequence of the Worlds, there should be good competition in Dun Laoghaire for these combinations. The two Bens – Malone and Scallan showed their mettle in Sligo with the former also taking the Silver fleet prize in Carlingford. Cearbhall Daly & Martina Michels took over that mantle at the Dun Laoghaire event, while Hannah Showell & Margaret Casey won in Ballyholme. Marie Barry has featured strongly in this year's Silver fleet and will be breaking in a new helm for the Nationals! Mary Chambers & Brenda McGuire have upped their game considerably since they embarked on the Silver Fleet training in Killaloe and Dun Laoghaire in 2010, even going so far as to upgrade their boat to make themselves even more competitive. We have also seen some new talent coming into this fleet since the Worlds – new owners of Kenny Rumball's 14962 - who have confirmed their intention to sail the Nationals.

The challenge to those we have been missing this year is to see how they match up to these new combinations. For a variety of reasons, personal and work-related a number of people have been conspicuous by their absence for the circuit this year and that is understandable. The idea behind a Dublin Bay Nationals this year was to improve the accessibility and cost of the Nationals in a year when most people were expected to spend time in Sligo.

The initial assessment of the entry last Tuesday night would appear to suggest that decision has been vindicated.

The Royal Irish Yacht Club celebrates its 180th birthday tomorrow, the oldest club in Dun Laoghaire harbour gives a nod to its 1831 roots with celebrations starting with a 'Victorian' themed breakfast. Back then the club might have been able to accommodate all its original 280 members for breakfast but today that membership stands at 1550. The aim is for as many of the club's 150 yachts to dress overall for a sail-past after racing on Saturday afternoon. A group photograph of the membership is also planned as is other club Victorian and Edwardian festivities.  More on the Royal Irish website.

After the excitement of the Dun Laoghaire depature on Sunday the third leg of the 2011 Solitaire du Figaro should be finishing in Les Sables d'Olonne on Wednesday around noon. The 46 boat strong fleet has been progressing in light sea breeze along the Brittany coast. French skipper Jérémie Beyou is still leading, but everything could still happen on the last hundred miles to the finish.

Will it be café and croissant for the finish? Since over 50 hours, the 46 solo skippers have been playing the tough game of choosing the best route and decoding each and every little wind shift to keep speed up. That's a game race leader Jérémie Beyou on BPI is a master at. He has been at the front for the last two days, but will he manage to fence off his competitors' attacks up to the finish line? His pursuers, Erwan Tabarly (Nacarat), Fabien Delahaye (Port de Caen Ouistreham) and Thierry Chabagny (Gedimat) have been chasing him and hope to get nearer, as daylight fades away and the sea breeze will give way to a light north-westerly. According to the latest position report his advantage has been reduced to 0.5 miles.
Up until the Barges lighthouse, on a tiny rock just off Les Sables d'Olonne, there will be no other course mark and the skippers will be free to choose their route, which will nonetheless be full of traps and islands to be wary of Glénan, Groix, Belle Ile, Ile d'Yeu. The match is not over yet and the coming hours will be crucial.

Phil Sharp still in the top ten and first rookie
Jersey based Phil Sharp keeps on showing good speed and tactics, at 15:30 he was reported to have jumped up one more position and was in 6th , less than two miles from Beyou and still leading the rookie ranking, with second newcomer Morgan Lagravière in 11th one mile further back. Other UK solo sailors Sam Goodchild and Conrad Humpreys are still battling neck-to-neck in 25th and 26th respectively. Nigel King's overnight option did not pay off and he slipped down to 32nd whilst Portugal Francisco Lobato lies in 44th.

What is that?
As the Solitaire skippers were getting to Penmarch' a big blue "monster" approached them. It was no other than maxi trimaran Banque Populaire V, that just smashed the Fastnet Race record, on her delivery journey from Plymouth. The crew waved and saluted some of the sailors, among whom they saw fellow crew members Thierry Chabagny and Erwan Tabarly, before sprinting away at full speed.

Skippers' quotes
Jérémie Beyou (BPI): "It is harder to be in front downwind."
"it's a textbook situation: past Penmarc'h the weather is always good. It's nice to have some sun. There's a breeze so we're moving. The wind is not going to die out at least until tonight, later it will probably turn right and become north-west. We'll have to gybe. True, when you are leading you show the way to the others. It is harder to be in front downwind. Would be great to have a bit more leeway. But they are there, close behind, and I'll have to deal with that."

Thierry Chabagny (Gedimat): "It's not over yet"
"A big blue bird just flew past my little Gedimat. It was amazing to watch Banque Populaire so close and she was so fast, the crew waved at me (Thierry has been sailing on the maxi tri for the last two years and is going to be on board next winter for the Jules Vernes Trophy record attempt, ed. note). It was such a joy. They did the same to Erwan and Jérémie. We've hoisted the spinnaker but the air is very light. We're still moving so nothing to complain about, a nice afternoon is on the menu. I managed to sleep, had a good nap before passing the Four. I slept also after the Raz de Sein. Four 20 minute siestas, not bad at all, and I feel ok. We're waiting for the wind to go right, a small ridge is coming towards us, tonight or tomorrow it's going to become north-west and the way to manage this is what we're all thinking about."

Sam Goodchild (Artemis): "So far it's been good."
"So far it's been very good, I broke nothing which is the first time through the race. I had a bad bit off Land's End so I was near the back and then had a better bit off Ushant, and then I think I'm back in the middle but I'm not sure. Now is beautiful sailing with sun and a bit of wind. Hopefully the wind stays but we will have to wait and see. Maybe tonight it's a bit more difficult. At the moment I'm happy and just trying to enjoy the sailing, I'm next to Jeanne Gregoire and Gildas Morvan so it's not too bad. I'm not 100% sure what's going to happen first with the wind, we expect it to turn light but that may happen when it gets dark and the sun is gone, I'm not too sure. We're waiting. We still have 117 miles to the finish, so it will probably be tomorrow afternoon."

Romain Attanasio (Savéol): "Some sun at last!"
"Some sun at last! I've to decide whether to wear shorts or not, we're no longer used to. I've used a cap for the first time! Heading to Sables under spinnaker but the wind is light. Some are a bit further inshore, we're more offshore and I'm just behind Thierry Chabagny and the leading trio. Those behind you think you've managed to get some lead and then bang, they come again... it's a bit stressful. I think that something is going to happen soon, so I'll need to be ready to take the shift. I'm not sure how that's going to happen."

Conrad Humpreys (DMS): "Very difficult at the moment."
"It's very difficult at the moment, very light breeze. We are five boats very close to each other, with Banque Populaire, Artemis, Vandee, myself and Think Blue. We try and make the most of the small amounts of wind to get to the finish but I think we're all very tired so it's quite difficult. I think we'll see the wind veer and come around a little bit more to the West and then the North-West and maybe we'll jibe back in towards the shore. But at the moment we've got 120 miles so it's going to be a very slow finish, may be take twenty-four hours at least to the finish."

When a property doesn't have as many redeeming features as the developer would like, extra effort is put into talking it up by way of the promotional brochure. It could be said that the gloss of the brochure takes the place of the gloss of the property. It is to be earnestly hoped that this isn't the case with the Dun Laoghaire Harbour Company's Consultation Masterplan. While a fine example of the graphic designer's craft, once the observer has penetrated the overly complex web presentation, the content is closer to the curate's egg – a mixture of good and, well, not so good.

The introduction to the plan does a fine job of setting the context, although the author loses some of the high ground by suggesting that Dun Laoghaire is "one of the most beautiful man-made harbours in the world".

The masterplan does recover from this and the other floral verbosity of the opening statements to identify the crucial roles played by marine leisure interests and the town of Dun Laoghaire in the sustainable development of the harbour. The plan regularly refers to the need for careful design to promote greater interaction between town and harbour, an area of failure of past administrations on both sides of the railway tracks.

In the detail, it is interesting to note that the plan shies away somewhat from the flawed concept, mooted in previous versions, that Dun Laoghaire can become a cruise liner port. This is clearly a non-runner in the short to medium term as there is very little to commend Dun Laoghaire over its larger, deeper and more commercially inclined foster parent to the north.

Another area that seems to be set up for failure is the idea that the Harbour Company, in their own words "custodians of this valuable national asset", could contemplate the private ownership of areas of the harbour through property development.

The plan hints at improved access for the watersports constituency, but a serious flaw is the lack of a stronger stance on establishing a safe, wide, non-tidally restricted slipway with easy access to open water, something that does not exist in greater Dublin area outside of the yacht clubs. Such a facility, with the appropriate management, could be self funding.

And in the pie-in-the-sky category is the suggestion of placing a public baths on the inside of the East Pier, a proposal that requires the reclamation of valuable sheltered water.

The plan refers extensively to the diaspora project, but outside of the masterplan itself, this idea has not caught the imagination. It does refer to a maritime element in the project, but does not see this as mainstream. This is a pity, because moving the National Maritime Museum 100 metres from its current location could provide Dun Laoghaire with the iconic attraction it needs to start making it a destination in its own right, changing from its traditional role as a bi-directional gateway. A museum project on the Carlisle Pier, with the potential for floating exhibits alongside, could bring in excess of 1/4 million visitors each year.

The plan refers to similar developments in Leith, near Edinburgh, where former royal yacht Britannia is moored, but curiously neglects to mention Falmouth, where a town of some 22,000 people attracts a similar number to its recently constructed maritime museum. And neither Leith nor Falmouth enjoy the considerable transport network, both marine and land based, that makes Dun Laoghaire so easy to get to.

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