The first Northern Ireland boats to enter the Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta in July are Stuart Cranston’s Ker 32 from Strangford Lough Yacht Club and John Minnis’s Final Call II, an Archambault A35 from Royal Ulster on Belfast Lough.

By the Dun Laoghaire date, both will have competed in the Scottish Series at the end of May and the new RC35 event hosted by Minnis’s club, Royal Ulster, at Bangor in June. In addition, Final Call II skippered by Gareth Flannigan will also have raced in Kip Regatta in mid-May.

Final Call II also aims to compete in the Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) National Championships at Howth in early September.

North Wales ISORA champion Mojito is one of the first entries into July's Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta. 

The Pwllheli J109 of Vicky Cox and Peter Dunlop is a regular visitor to the Irish east coast and was a big winner on the south coast of Ireland last year too. 

The Mojito crew are entered into what is expected to be a hot Cruisers One division at Ireland's biggest regatta, where a combined fleet of up to 500 boats will compete.

After a successful 2022 Irish campaign that included wins in the 260-mile K2Q race from Dun Laoghaire to Cork Harbour and a Cork Week coastal win in July, the top Welsh J109 returned home to dominate the IRC Welsh National Championships in August before being crowned ISORA champion in September.

As Afloat reported, VDLR 2023 has issued its notice of race and is open for entries.  A class captains' information evening for the regatta's 22 competing classes will be held on January 11th.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour's combined waterfront yachts clubs have announced the continued title sponsorship by Volvo Car Ireland of next July's Dun Laoghaire Regatta and published the Notice of Race (NOR) for Ireland's top sailing event in 2023.

Ireland's largest regatta will take place from Thursday, July 6th to Sunday, July 9th 2023  and, as the NOR reveals, the biennial regatta is planned to coincide with 'Coastival', a new week-long festival celebrating Dun Laoghaire's Maritime heritage, presented by Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council.

Volvo Car Ireland has been the title sponsor of Ireland's largest sailing event since 2007 and is again joined by Spirit Motor Group, the premier dealership for Volvo. 

The Notice of Race of the 2023 Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta is downloadable below as a pdf file

"It is truly wonderful to have Volvo Car Ireland back on board for 2023. The VDLR regatta is now in its 10th edition and Volvo's participation has been a key to its success", Don O'Dowd, VDLR Chairman, said.

The well-proven format will be used once more for the 2023 Dublin Bay event, with up to five race courses in operation.

Since it first set sail in 2005, Dun Laoghaire Regatta has grown biennially and showcases the very best of Irish sailing action on the water. A regatta of this size also brings a lot of shoreside summer colour and significant economic benefit to the town of Dun Laoghaire, O'Dowd said. 

Growing over the last 18 years, the regatta is now proudly one of Northern Europe's greatest shows on the water, eclipsed only by the UK's Cowes Regatta, one of the longest-running regular regattas in the world Photo: Afloat

Sailors have been quick to get on board with plenty of expressions of interest from 22 racing classes seeking to race again as part of the four-day sailing festival.

The NOR is downloadable below as a PDF document.

The last edition in 2019 comprised over 300 sailing races across 30 classes and 2,500 competitors ranging from Olympic and world-class professionals to weekend sailors drawn from Ireland and overseas.

Regatta registration will open on December 26th 2022, at www.dlregatta.org

Did we really manage it? Did we really cram all those major special and routine regular sailing events into the one season of 2022? And all that despite its three main months afloat experiencing decidedly mixed weather? And also despite the fact that many folk had simply got out of the way of packing lots of active racing and hectic après sailing into an already complicated way of life?

Yes, it was the Bounce-back Summer and no mistake, making up for the Pandemic’s lost time with major international events running back-to-back, and all that in the midst of a crowded programme on the local front, with some clubs finding that – thanks to their prime restriction-compliant place at the heart of the community – they were actually emerging into the new reality with more members than they’d had going into the plague years.

Thus we’re a bit like someone who resumes swimming after an absence, and begins by diving off an excessively high board which leaves them gasping as it is, yet they persist in swimming determinedly on with excessive speed and enthusiasm for fear that some new restrictions will suddenly bring it all to a sudden end.

BREATHLESS WITH ACHIEVEMENT

In other words, at the moment the sailing community is simply breathless with exhaustion and achievement. And it takes an extra effort to contemplate the season of 2023, at a time now - in November/December - when many of the more sociable clubs are still holding frequent functions to celebrate the remarkable amount of sailing – and successful sailing at that – which has been done at home and abroad during 2022.

So in contemplating the 2023 season at this stage, we’ll take a fairly broad-brush approach. What will be the pillar events, and what will be the main underlying themes?

 Secret waters. The usually private Shannon One Desigs went public for their Centenary in 2022

As ever with Irish sailing’s long history, there’ll be significant commemorations to be marked. 2022 saw the Centenary of the Shannon One Designs, celebrated by that normally rather private class with very public festivities on Lough Ree and Lough Derg during July, following which they were able to go back into their time-honoured closed-shop mode during August’s traditional lake regatta weeks.

SAOIRSE CIRCUMNAVGATION CENTENARY

In 2023, the big One Hundred to be marked is the Centenary of the start from Dun Laoghaire on the 20th June 1923 of Conor O’Brien of Limerick’s pioneering voyage around the world south of the great Capes in his new own-designed Baltimore-built 42ft ketch Saoirse.

Conor O’Brien’s new Saoirse takes her departure for the Great Southern Ocean from “Dunleary” on June 20th 1923

As Saoirse was to become the first sea-going vessel to fly the ensign of the newly-established Irish Free State, everyone – but everyone – quite rightly feels that they own part of this remarkable achievement. Yet as a consequence, those who have been quietly flying the O’Brien voyaging achievement banner for decades, trying to ensure that it is all properly placed in a national and global context, found that they were in danger of being swamped by new enthusiasts who wanted to make a complete circus out of the entire affair.

The re-created Saoirse newly-launched at Oldcourt in September 2022 - looking good, but with too much work still to be completed for a full programme in 2023. Photo: John Wolfe

However, reality has intervened. The West Cork summer resident who has a Saoirse re-build being created at Oldcourt has indicated that the boat won’t really be in a properly tried and tested seaworthy condition for any Dun Laoghaire celebration planned for June 2023. And in any case he tends to feel that it is more appropriate to keep her in West Cork in celebration of that area’s often-overlooked contribution to the magnificent O’Brien circumnavigation of a century ago, and his subsequent success with the 56t ketch Ilen.

REALISTIC CENTENARY CELEBRATION SAILING ILEN

But as the 1926-built O’Brien-designed 56ft Ilen has been sailing again as a multi-purpose vessel for some years now, thanks to a meticulous restoration programme by Gary MacMahon of Limerick and the Ilen Project working with Liam Hegarty’s boatyard in Oldcourt near Baltimore, a more realistic commemoration scenario has been devised by the Irish Cruising Club in co-ordination with the Ilen Project.

Saoirse’s “big sister”, the 56ft Ilen, has been recruited to take on a celebratory role for the Saoirse Centenary. Photo: Gary Mac Mahon

The ICC was not founded until 1929, but one of its first acts was to make Conor O’Brien its first Honorary Member. However, during his voyage it had been the 1880-founded London-based Royal Cruising Club which gave him enthusiastic support through the regular award of its premier trophy, the Challenge Cup.

This was done three years in a row in 1923, ’24 and ’25 as his voyage progressed to its successful conclusion in Dun Laoghaire exactly two years to the day after departure. And the RCC’s leading officer was also very encouraging in the promotion of O’Brien’s book of his voyage, Across Three Oceans, which in terms of its genre, became a best-seller.

All this was in a time of political turmoil in Ireland with Dublin/London conflict, when O’Brien, moreover, was entering the international sailing arena with a personal history of having been one of the 1914 gun-runners in favour of Irish Home Rule, along with Erskine Childers and Sir Thomas Myles. Thus it was courageous and generous to come out so openly in London in his support, and in recognition of this, the ICC will be joining the RCC with he Ilen as flagship in a Centenary cruise-in-company from Dun Laoghaire to Madeira and back, while the two clubs will be joining forces in publishing a re-introduced re-print of Across Three Oceans.

Cape Horn pioneer Conor O’Brien as portrayed by his wife, the artist Kitty Clausen, in 1930

DUBLIN BAY SAILING CLUB JOINED CELEBRATION

This neat solution to what was shaping up to be a possible clash of viewpoints as to how best the Centenary of the beginning of Conor O’Brien’s Saoirse voyage should be marked is further enhanced by realising that the major celebration should really be on the Centenary of his return, on June 20th 2025. It happened to be a Saturday back in 1925, yet Dublin Bay Sailing Club cancelled its legendary Saturday racing programme in order that its complete racing fleet could welcome Saoirse home.

That in itself was such a totally unprecedented gesture by the 1884-founded DBSC that its Centenary deserves celebration in its own right. So maybe harmony can be maintained by everyone anticipating some special celebration on June 20th 2025, when a sense of completeness might be possible with the more relaxed presence of the re-created Saoirse.

THIRTY YEARS OF THE DUN LAOGHAIRE-DINGLE RACE

Meanwhile, 2023 is already very Dun Laoghaire-focused with the 30th Anniversary staging of the biennial Dun Laoghaire to Dingle Race from the National Yacht Club on Wednesday, June 7th, and the all-clubs four day Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta from July 6th to 9th. The Regatta Director this year is Paddy Boyd, whose extensive sailing experience and interaction with Dun Laoghaire and Dublin Bay are so intertwined as to be part of his DNA.

Paddy Boyd is bringing an unrivalled wealth of Dublin Bay sailing and administration experience to the challenge of the VDLR 2023. Photo: Robert Bateman

Nevertheless, it will take all the expertise and enthusiasm of Paddy and his team to get the VDLR machine up and running at full blast again. It’s a formidable setup when it gears fully into smooth action, which made it a doubly-cruel blow when it all had to be pandemic-dismantled early in 2021. Back then, Don O’Dowd (who will continue as Chairman for 2023) was heading the large group of volunteers who finally learned that their already much-worked-at and intensely-sociable VDLR 2021 simply wasn’t going to happen.

SOVEREIGNS AT KINSALE WILL MAKE COMEBACK

In their racing to Dingle, the D2D competitors - with the Murphy family’s Grand Soleil 40 Nieulargo of the Royal Cork YC the defending champion, having been welcomed back to Crosshaven after her victory in 2021 with a full gun salute by Admiral Colin Morehead – will be battling past Kinsale, which hosts its own battles with Sovereign’s Regatta on June 21st to 24th.

Every major regatta in Ireland – whether it be Bangor Town on Belfast Lough, Wave at Howth, the VDLR in Dun Laoghaire, Volvo Cork Week in Cork Harbour, the Sovereigns in Kinsale, or Calves Week at Schull – manages to have its own unique character, partly because those seven premier sailing centres somehow all manage to be completely different in character from the other six.

Kinsale. Every major regatta centre in Ireland is unique, and the special charms of Kinsale are obvious Photo: Wikimedia

Yet the Sovereigns at Kinsale - sponsored in 2023 by Simply Blue - will have at least one significant carry-over from 2022’s Volvo Cork Week. The 1720 Euros were the highlight of Crosshaven last July with a crack fleet of 42 boats, many of them with superb restoration and re-spray jobs which belied their class’s 1994 origins. The Crosshaven-Howth team of the English and McDonald talents combined on Atara to come out tops, which means that at Kinsale they’ll be the target boat, while the other target is to push the fleet of these eternally attractive boats through the 50 mark.

After thirty years, the Cork 1720 Sportsboat is as attractive as ever. They’ll be hoping for a fleet of 50-plus at Kinsale next June for their Euros as part in the Sovereigns Regatta

THE INTERNATONAL SCENE

We’ll be taking a much more comprehensive look at the international prospects for 2023 in a future SailSat, but anyone who thinks that the Irish representation afloat for the 2024 Olympics in Paris (with the sailing at Marseille) will be selected by the end of 2023 might be surprised when some of it goes right down to the wire in April 2024, which has happened in times past.

Be that as it may, on the offshore scene 2023 gets going early with the Caribbean 600 in February – there’s almost invariably Irish involvement, and we’ve collected more than our fair share of its silverware since it was inaugurated in 2009.

The dream of thousands – racing in the RORC Fastnet Race. 2023’s edition - the 50th – will start earlier than usual, on July 22nd. Photo: Kurt Arrigo

But inevitably the focus will mainly be on the Fastnet Race 2023, which unusually for this 50th Edition, will be starting in July, on Saturday 22nd July from Cowes, but taking in the new extended course to finish at Cherbourg. Presumably this timing is partly to allow the heavy brigade to take in Cowes Week itself in August, but meanwhile, looking ahead to the Fastnet Centenary in 2025, we still don’t really know if the old course to finish at Plymouth will be acknowledged and used. But either way, Ireland certainly has skin in the game as the first racing of the new course in 2021 saw Irish Offshore Sailing’s vintage Sun Fast 37 Desert Star from Dun Laoghaire - skippered by Ronan O Siochru - put in an appropriately stellar performance to take a close second in Class IV and an impressive 14th overall in a huge fleet.

Stellar performance – the crew of Desert Star (Ronan O Siochru on right) have a nano-second of relaxation towards the end of the 2021 Fastnet Race, as it becpmes increasingly clear they are second in class and 14th overall in a fleet of hundreds

INSS & THE DUN LAOGHAIRE PHENOMENON

The fact that Desert Star’s success was just one of many achievements being logged by the continually-developing Dun Laoghaire sailing and training scene – both commercial and in the clubs – reflects the new interest that sailing attracted as the first small easings of the pandemic began to apply in the local context.

Ultimately, it’s all about the numbers game. The Rumball family of the multi-function and high-achieving Irish National Sailing School are originally from Malahide, while Ronan O Siochru of IOS took his first serious steps afloat in Kinsale. But in facing business realities, they all realised that the population package right beside good sailing water which Dun Laoghaire and South Dublin offers made it no contest in deciding to base their locations around The Old Granite Pond, and sailing history has proven them right.

“THE HOWTH PRODUCT”

That said, the slightly quirky appeal of Howth Harbour, which prides itself on NOT being part of Dublin Bay, proved to have its new and established adherents in considerable numbers as sailing emerged from the plague years. The modern HYC clubhouse/marina reaches the end of 2022 with 2,173 members when you include all categories, and they look forward to a 2023 season which is fascinatingly book-ended by the National Youth Championship from 13th to 16th April 2023, and the ICRA Nats from 1st to 3rd September.

For those who try to take in all the information they can from developing situations, it w be fascinating in getting an overview of sailing development to see how many juniors who take part in their own multi-class championships in April then reappear in some crewing or helming capacity in the ICRA Nationals at the beginning of September.

HOWTH SEVENTEENS’ 125th ANNIVERSARY TO BALTIMORE

Meanwhile Howth’s eternal 17ft OD Class - founded in 1898 - continues to attract all ages, and they celebrate their 125th Anniversary in 2023 with many events, a highlight being a week’s “one class” regatta visit to Baltimore in mid-June.

They’re no strangers to West Cork, as master-shipwright Rui Ferreira of Ballydehob has done significant work on some of the boats, and back in 2003 no less than 15 of them decamped en masse to the Glandore Classics Regatta, dropping out of the regular programme to take in circuits of the Fastnet Rock and other eccentricities.

The Howth 17 Leila (Roddy Cooper) at the Fastnet Rock during the Glandore Classics 2003. The 1898-built Leila was already six years old when the Fastnet Lighthouse began signalling in 1904. Photo: W M Nixon

In fact, when the Howth Seventeens are hunting as a pack, it’s really easier for everyone if they do their own thing, and even then you need to be tuned in to their system of in-class communication, which supposedly relies on a WhatsApp, but in practice seems to be utilizing some form of supernatural telepathy.

So my thoughts are with anyone with a bigger boat with an auxiliary who happens to be detailed off to be the Mother Ship to the Seventeens in June. For as we learned in in 2003, you’re called the Mother Ship because the Mother is always the last to know.

Thus the fleet found themselves on a foggy windy morning in Castlehaven when - just along the coast in Glandore - the rest of the Classics fleet were being confined in-harbour for their racing. But the Seventeens’ race plan for that day was a slightly offshore sprint from Castlehaven to Glandore, with the winner being the first boat to have a crewperson down a pint in Casey’s of Glandore, thereby throwing in a brief but intense bit of hill running to add to the sailing sport.

With the poor visibility and the brisk onshore wind, the Mother Ship was assured that they’d take the more sheltered route inside High Island. But once we’d cleared the entrance to Castlehaven, it was quite clear that the class was determined to face the more challenging seas running outside High Island.

Summertime in West Cork. The Casey’s Pint Race from Castlehaven to Glandore, July 2003, with Aura (1898, left), and Deilginis (1907, right), shaping up to use the breaking Copper Rock off High Island as the weather mark. Photo: W M Nixon

Moreover, they seemed to have agreed among themselves that it was safe enough to chance going over or inside the submerged Row Rock, and therefore the half-tide Copper Rock southwest of High Island became the weather mark.

When you see a bunch of Howth 17s racing flat out past the Copper Rock as the seas break over it within a metre or two of the boats, you know you’re dealing with a bunch of total free-thinkers. So good luck to whoever is the Mother Ship in June next year, twenty years down the track from that first Casey’s Pint Race.

The RS Elite Association has announced the RS Elite Open Tour will include Ireland's biggest regatta at Dun Laoghaire in July.

Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta has proved popular with RS Elite, particularly since the UK National Championship was held there in 2019. The regatta organisers have confirmed that they will provide a separate start for RS Elites if there are six or more entries.

The Elite tour combines all events open to RS Elite Association members in 2023, ranging from championship to training events, in a single framework. This will reinforce the RS Elite’s status as a national fleet in the UK and encourage sailors to support events in clubs other than their own.

An RS elite startline at Cowes Photo: Paul Wyeth

RS Elite Association Chairman Jo Hewitson has commented: “The committee have worked hard and creatively to provide an exciting programme of events to enable as many of us as possible to benefit from training, super competitive racing in some of the best locations possible. I look forward to seeing you on the water and in the bar.”

Open Training Events at the Royal Burnham Yacht Club, Strangford Lough Yacht club and Hayling Island Sailing Club

The RS Elite association will provide open weekend training events at these venues, and, in the case of Hayling Island, open sprint racing on the second day where visitors will join the club’s RS Elite sprint racing. All RS Elite Association members are welcome, whether or not they are members of the host club. The dates are:

• Royal Burnham Yacht Club, Burnham-on-Crouch – 15-16 April 2023
• Strangford Lough Yacht Club, Strangford Lough, Northern Ireland – 22-23 April 2023
• Hayling Island Sailing Club, Hayling Island – open training – 20 May 2023
• Hayling Island Sailing Club, Hayling Island – open sprint racing – 21 May 2023

Southern Area Championship at Hayling Island Sailing Club – 27-29 May 2023

Held as part of Hayling Island Sailing Club’s Whitsun Regatta on the weekend following the training and sprint event at HISC. Visitors doing that event will be able to leave their boats at the club to take in the Southern Area Championship as well. In this incarnation the Southern Area Championship has become an increasingly popular event with top class race management and a vibrant social scene.

Irish National Championship at Royal Ulster Yacht Club – 24-25 June 2023

This two day event is being held on Belfast Lough on the weekend before the UK National championship at nearby Strangford Lough. Visitors from the UK Mainland will be able to do both events by moving their boats to Strangford Lough Yacht Club between events. It is suggested visitors stay in the Strangford Lough area. A bus will be provided on the Saturday and Sunday to enable sailors to enjoy the Royal Ulster hospitality to the full!

UK National Championship at Strangford Lough Yacht Club – 28 June – 1 July 2023

The UK National Championship returns to Ireland in 2023 with a full programme of races and socials at the popular Strangford Lough Yacht Club., with plenty for the non-sailor too. The two events in Ireland in 2023 have been timed to allow visiting boats from the UK Mainland to easily take part in both. Accommodation is being arranged in Irish members’ second homes or in homes they are temporarily vacating, so it is important that visitors register their interest early.

Dun Laoghaire Regatta 6-9 July 2023

Dun Laoghaire Regatta has proved popular with RS Elite, particularly since the UK National Championship was held there in 2019. The regatta organisers have confirmed that they will provide a separate start for RS Elites if there are six or more entries.

Chichester Harbour Race Week – 16-18 August 2023

RS Elites participate in the last three days of Chichester Harbour Race Week (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday). Racing for this popular event is on a separate racecourse from the Race Week dinghy events with two races per day over windward-leeward courses, normally in Bracklesham Bay or Hayling Bay.

Eastern Area Championship at Royal Burnham Yacht Club – 26-28 August 2023

With courses on the River Crouch, the Eastern Area Championship is held over the three days of the August Bank Holiday as part of Burnham Week.

Tønsberg Seilforening Norway – 31 August – 2 September

Tønsberg Seilforening in Norway will host an international match racing event in Norway. Situated close to the entrance to Oslo Fjord, the club is host to a fleet of RS Elites and club boats will be made available for the match racing event. Accommodation for visitors will be available in members’ houses, so it is important that those wishing to go should inform the RS Elite class secretary through https://rselite.org/contact. International visitors will have to organise their transport to Norway, but everything else will be taken care of by the host club.

September Regatta at Royal Southern Yacht Club – 16-17 September 2023

RS Elites will be given a separate start in this prestigious multi-class regatta, provided we can muster a minimum of 6 boats to take part.

Ireland's biggest sailing regatta has appointed a new Event Director for its next edition.

Highly regarded international sailor and administrator Paddy Boyd has taken over the running of the 2023 Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta.

The Dublin Bay sailor is tasked with delivering a bright, stable long-term future for Irish sailing's most prestigious event organised biennially by Dun Laoghaire's four yacht waterfront clubs.

The dates of the 2023 regatta are July 6-9.

The former CEO of Irish Sailing and Canada Sailing officially took on the role in early June but had been working in recent months over a transition period to maintain the momentum built up by the popular, long-serving regatta secretary Ciara Dowling. 

Dowling continues to be involved with the regatta and will remain in the background to support Boyd in the immediate future.

Growing over the last 16 years, the regatta is now proudly one of Northern Europe's greatest shows on the water, eclipsed only by the UK's Cowes Regatta, one of the longest-running regular regattas in the world.

"I am delighted to announce Paddy's appointment as it marks the next chapter for the regatta, now in its ninth edition. We're aiming to increase the scope of the event, and someone of Paddy's calibre allows us to do this as we prepare for the  2023 regatta, the first in four years due to COVID," Regatta Chairman Don O'Dowd said.

Boyd was chief executive of the Irish Sailing Association for 16 years until he resigned in late 2004. He presided over the sport's growth and the ISA's professionalisation.

For seven years (2009 to 2016), the Dun Laoghaire man served as chief executive of Sail Canada. He is the Irish Sailing nominee on World Sailing's Offshore and Oceanic Committee.

The last Dun Laoghaire Regatta in 2019 comprised over 300 sailing races across 30 classes and 2,500 competitors Photo: Afloat

Since it first set sail in 2005, Dun Laoghaire Regatta has grown biennially and showcases the best sailing action on the water. A regatta of this size also brings a lot of shoreside summer colour and significant economic benefit to the town of Dun Laoghaire.

"We are working in greater cooperation with Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council with possibly a new format emerging with greater involvement for the town, which will also create new opportunities for sponsors",  O'Dowd told Afloat.

The last edition in 2019 comprised over 300 sailing races across 30 classes and 2,500 competitors ranging from Olympic and world-class professionals to weekend sailors drawn from Ireland and overseas.

Boyd is already well acquainted with the regatta format as a long-term competitor. He sees the event as instrumental in showcasing the sport locally, nationally and internationally.

Looking ahead with the event, Boyd sees himself very much as a steady hand on the helm seeking to strengthen the foundations of the event, foster good communications and collaboration to achieve solid future strategies and attract new visitors to Dun Laoghaire. He shares a passion for world-class yacht racing, fair, fun competition on the water and great times ashore.

The Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta has grown to become the largest sailing regatta in Ireland, and I am proud to be part of that team," Boyd said. 

 "My immediate aim is to organise another top-class regatta next July and build on the solid foundations already there. I'm passionate about Dun Laoghaire Harbour and sailing, so this is a great opportunity for me to play a role in the regatta's development", he concluded.

The Organising Authority of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta is Dublin Bay Regattas Ltd, a not-for-profit company, beneficially owned by Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club (DMYC), National Yacht Club (NYC), Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC) and Royal St George Yacht Club (RStGYC).

July’s Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta 2021 has been cancelled due to the ongoing "uncertainties" over the Covid-19 pandemic.

The scrubbing of Ireland's biggest regatta, scheduled for the first two weekends of July, comes after careful consideration of the latest government announcement and discussion with event stakeholders at Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

The biennial event, which had attracted a bigger than expected fleet of 385 boats to date, will not now be sailed in 2021 but returns on schedule in July 2023.

"Despite the very positive news about the easing of government restrictions, we are still facing many uncertainties this summer, especially for an event the scale of VDLR, event chairman, Don O'Dowd said.

Dun Laoghaire's Don O'Dowd - too many uncertainties to proceed with VDLR 2021 Regatta

The government's new measures gave a green light for sailing last Friday but unfortunately, the scale of the Dun Laoghaire event means extra issues for organisers, especially ashore.

"Everyone believes it is important that the event should run safely and without compromise in the way we remember past regattas and with a full programme on and off the water. This year, sadly, that's not possible", he said.

"We want to thank everyone for their support and understanding. While it is disappointing, it is the safest thing to do in the community."

It's a testament to the regatta's successful formula that all our sponsors and supporters are already discussing the next edition. "We hope to see everyone again from July 6 to 9 2023, for a massive party!", O'Dowd added.

The regatta, now one of the biggest in Europe, is organised jointly by the four Dun Laoghaire waterfront yacht clubs (the Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club (DMYC), the National Yacht Club (NYC), the Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC) and the Royal St George Yacht Club (RStGYC).

2021 entry fees will be fully refunded to competitors this month.

The regatta had, in anticipation of dealing with social distance measures, hatched a plan a year ago that included separating the event over two separate weekends in order to reduce numbers and also moved to stagger sailors coming ashore. 

The event was to host 11 separate national championships and feature a debut offshore doublehanded class.

Entries for Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta (VDLR) are beyond expectations for July's event giving organisers the opportunity to close the entry system at the end of April to review the 320 boats received so far.

Ireland's biggest regatta on Dublin Bay is planning to facilitate social distancing with its cautious approach to fleet sizes and by implementing a new regatta format that splits the fleets over two weekends.

"We've now 221 boats entered for the One Design weekend and 94 entries for the Cruiser weekend, so it may be the case that we will need to restrict entries, with priority being given to classes holding a championship or those with an excess of 10 entries", VDLR chairman Don O'Dowd told Afloat.

VDLR Chairman Don O'Dowd was ahead of the curve in leading his Committee into organising a re-structured two-part regatta to cope with pandemic conditions  

As Afloat previously reported, the 2021 event comprise a One Design Championship (2nd – 4th July 2021) tailored explicitly for sailors in the one-design keelboat and dinghy classes. This is to be followed by an Open Cruiser Championship (8th – 11th July 2021) catering for the full range of Cruiser Handicap classes, including an offshore class.

Finalising entries early will allow Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta's Principal Race Officer Con Murphy to plan what fleets are going on what Dublin Bay courses

It is estimated that 700 sailors will compete each weekend.

O'Dowd is confident that they will reach the overall target set back in January, and with 11 championships currently running as part of the event, it's not hard to see how that will happen with 70 days still to go before the first gun.

There is a buoyant SB20 entry for Ireland's biggest regatta on Dublin Bay this July Photo: Afloat

The plan now – subject to a Government Covid announcement to be issued in early May – is that entry to VDLR 2021 will be 'temporarily closed' on April 30 to allow the committee to 'take stock' of entries received across all classes.

Because it's unclear what the COVID-19 situation will be by mid-summer, organisers are anxious to get plans laid out early and work out early who's actually coming to the regatta. 

Ironically, it's not the numbers afloat that could be problematic but arrangements ashore as it is likely there will be no movement between yacht clubs due to ongoing restrictions.

By mid-June, the hope is that under Government guidelines, inter-county travel will return, and by that stage, too, hotels will have reopened. Outdoor restaurant dining recommenced to allow some regatta social activity.

"The Covid restrictions to be revised by the Government will clarify shoreside capacity permitted across the four venues for both parts of VDLR21, but in the meantime, we are continuing to make our plans' O'Dowd said.

Final call for all VDLR classes

"There has been a strong uptake in entries in some of the 22 predicted classes, but it has been patchy in some of the others", O'Dowd admitted.

He would particularly like to see entries from some regular classes that have been slow off the mark to enter this year. "If classes could enter by April 30, it would help us a lot. We want to finalise what classes will be based in what club, as there will likely be restrictions ashore".

Currently, only nine Flying fifteens are entered into Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta but the local fleet has over 20 that is typically one of the biggest one-design keelboats of the entire regatta Photo: Afloat

In particular, VDLR is now seeking firm indications from classes such as the Shipmans and other popular Dublin Bay one designs such as the Flying Fifteens and J80s.

In the dinghy divisions, the RS, Mermaids, and the vintage IDRA 14s, celebrating their 75th anniversary, are also requested to make their entries by April 30.

Shipman sailing on Dublin Bay. VDLR is keen to see a bigger entry from this local keelboat class Photo: Afloat

Reduced mixing of boats and crews at VDLR

Finalising entries will also allow Principal Race Officer Con Murphy to plan what fleets are going on what Dublin Bay courses. 'If we get an early commitment, we can facilitate class starts; otherwise, we may have to combine classes on the one line line', Murphy told Afloat.

In anticipation of restrictions, racing times will be staggered between classes. Murphy said the VDLR fleet is preparing to take extra steps for two sets of racing times per day, one at 10.30 am and the other at 1.30 pm, to further reduce the mixing of boats and crews ashore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

11 Fireball dinghies are already entered for VDLR 2021 that will also double as the class Leinster Championships Photo: Afloat

Meeting COVID-19's sailing challenges in 2021

Dun Laoghaire is unique in being able to operate in the pandemic because of the extensive area within the harbour site and facilities provided by the waterfront clubs and organisations.

The regatta will utilise the full infrastructure of the Harbour venue to the best advantage and bring certainty to a calendar that has been hugely dictated by Covid-19 and the constraints imposed due to social distancing.

VDLR organisers are keen to see more Mermaid dinghies enter the July Regatta on Dublin Bay Photo: Afloat

Ireland's biggest sailing event

Growing over the last 16 years, the regatta is now one of Northern Europe's greatest shows on the water, eclipsed only by the UK's Cowes Week Regatta, one of the longest-running regular regattas in the world.

Since it first set sail in 2005, Dun Laoghaire Regatta has grown biennially and showcases the very best of Irish sailing action on the water. A regatta of this size also brings a lot of shoreside summer colour and significant economic benefit to the town of Dun Laoghaire.

The last edition in 2019 comprised over 300 sailing races across 30 classes and 2,500 competitors ranging from Olympic and world-class professionals to weekend sailors drawn from both Ireland and overseas.

In the unlikely event of a cancellation of the regatta due to Covid-19, a full refund of entry fees will apply, the organisers say.

No less than four national keelboat titles will be decided on Dublin Bay this July as more classes than ever opt to run their championships as part of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta.

In total 11 class championships are now being sailed as part of the Dun Laoghaire Harbour-based regatta that will be split across two separate weekends as a COVID-19 measure.

From the keelboat fleets, Beneteau 31.7 and 211s along with Ruffian and Shipman classes will all race for national honours while Dragons will race for their East Coast Championship and SB20 race their 'Westerns'.

The SB20 Western Championship is being staged as part of Dun Laoghaire Regatta 2021 Photo: Afloat

In the dinghy divisions, the GP14s,  Fireballs, RS400 and RS200 will all fight for separate Leinster titles.

Fireball Leinster honours are up for grabs at Dun Laoghaire Regatta 2021 Photo: Afloat

The Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta is a great festival of sailing across the waterfront and Dun Laoghaire town as four sailing clubs come together for the biennial event; Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club and National Yacht Club.

The Shipman class will sail for National Championship honours at Dun Laoghaire Regatta Photo: Afloat

11 Class Championships ready to race at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta 2021:

• Beneteau 31.7 National Championship
• Beneteau 211 National Championship
• Shipman National Championship
• Ruffian National Championship
• Dragon - East Coast Championship
• GP14 Leinster Championship
• Fireball Leinster Championship
• SB20 Western Championship
• RS400 Leinster Championship
• RS200 Leinster Championship
• Royal Dee Irish Sea Offshore Championship

The 2019 Volvo Dun Laoghaire event was hailed an enormous success both afloat and ashore for a combined fleet of 498 boats in over 34 classes, the biggest on the Irish Sea. Over 290 races on five different courses were staged over four days.

For 2021, in order to facilitate social distancing and be Covid-19 compliant, a new regatta format will comprise the One Design Championship specifically tailored for sailors in the one-design keelboat and dinghy classes. This to be followed by an Open Cruiser Championship (8th – 11th July 2021) catering for the full range of Cruiser Handicap classes.

Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta's 'Early Bird' entry will close on 31st March. All fully paid entries received by 31st March will be automatically entered into a draw for a Helly Hansen Performance Sailing bag or a VDLR voucher to the value of €100.

Ireland's biggest regatta held every second year on Dublin Bay has been split in two this year as a means of reducing numbers. The regatta is working extremely hard to ensure a Covid-19 compliant regatta shall be run over the two weekends in July.

The regatta will be active this month in promoting the new format to individual sailors and to Class Captains from the 25 classes taking part and they are anticipating a good uptake of entries.

The event – which typically sees a 500-boat fleet – has already seen 100 entered (76 one designs and 32 cruisers).

As Afloat previously reported, there has, in particular, been a great response from the GP14 dinghy class with 19 entries confirmed for an expected 25 for the class Leinster Championships being run as part of the Regatta.

The regatta will comply with all current Government Guidelines relevant and in the unlikely event this is not possible, all paid entrants will receive a full refund of their entry fee, the organisers say.