Tributes have been paid to former Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club (DMYC) sailor Ivor Davies who has died in Rosslare, Co Wexford.

Davies was a familiar face and voice in Dublin Bay when sailing, principally with the late Arthur Reynolds.

Born in Battersea in 1932, Davies had moved to Southall as a young child, and left school early. He spent time as a radar technician in the Royal Air Force (RAF), and met his wife, Mary Mahon from Co Wexford, while they were both working at Ultra Electronics in Greenford, Middlesex.

Ivor went on to work for 3M as a photocopier salesman. When 3M later offered Ivor a promotion to a post in Ireland, he felt it was too good an opportunity to turn down.

He and Mary, who was also a semi-professional singer, lived in Ireland for over 50 years, and Davies took up sailing while they were in Kilmacanogue, Co Wicklow.

He undertook a number of cruising trips with Reynolds – including several legs of a round Ireland circumnavigation for an Irish Times feature series, commissioned by the late Caroline Walsh, on Reynolds’s yacht, Gulliver, in 1995.

Ivor Davies (on right) with Fintan Reynolds, sailing in Dublin Bay

Davies was remembered particularly for his energy, agility, eternal optimism and quick wit.

Brian Byrne, who sailed with him on both Blue Fin and Gulliver, said that he had “such fond memories of him…from wondering if he was really holding that line while I dangled aloft soldering radar connectors, to the terrifyingly stern bark he could emit if a young lad like me was about to do something foolish!”

“I remember a kind, witty, caring and friendly man who has travelled with me in my memories in the many years since, and will continue to do so,”Byrne said, wishing him “fair winds”.

Also wishing him “fair winds” was DMYC Fireball dinghy sailor Frank Miller, who was Irish Times photographer on the 1995 circumnavigation for the newspaper.

“ We passed on Gulliver, like ships in the night...you were Arthur's trusted seaman and any friend of Arthur's was and is a friend of mine,”Miller wrote on Rip.ie

DMYC member Conor Fennell said that he “enjoyed Ivor's wonderful company with Arthur on a night voyage in Blue Fin to the Isle of Man, returning in a strong following wind”.

“It was my first "foreign" sail, and I was nervous, but Ivor's entertaining company soon put me at ease,”Fennell said.

The Davies couple moved to Co Wexford, latterly to Rosslare Harbour. In October 2019, they chose to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary in their local hotel, then being used as emergency accommodation for asylum seekers, in solidarity with migrants coming to Ireland.

The couple said they also wanted to mark their diamond anniversary in the Hotel Rosslare as a gesture of support for the hotel which they say is a vital part of their local community.

Davies told Irish Times journalist Sorcha Pollak that he had become frustrated by the “begrudgery” towards both asylum seekers and the hotel owners who choose to accommodate them while they await on a decision on their application for international protection.

Davies recalled that while growing up in Britain in the 1930s and 40s, he had been taught to distrust foreigners and recalled the cardboard notices outside buildings which stated that “no Irish, no blacks, no dogs” were allowed inside. Later, he watched xenophobia develop towards the Indian and Pakistani families who arrived in the country.

He explained that his attitude changed after time in the military, and moving to Ireland to live.

“I don't care who you are and where you're from. I accept now that we all deserve to have a life. I have a different viewpoint all together now on migrants. I'm a migrant, I came here from Wales and England,” he told The Irish Times.

Ivor Davies, who was buried beside his wife Mary in Our Lady’s Island, Co Wexford, is survived by his brother, Trevor, nephews and nieces and extended family.

The Viking Marine DMYC St Patrick’s Day Frostbites saw the lowest turnout of boats in Series 2 thus far, twenty-nine, due probably to a combination of factors – the day that was in it when family activity might be a priority, the day after the big match syndrome, when a 6 Nations Rugby title was achieved, or maybe just the weather forecast for the day which showed the early part of the afternoon to be manageable, but getting heavier later on.

Race Officer Ian Cutliffe set out with the intention of having two races but cautioned his RIB teams that his decision would be finalised on reviewing conditions in the man part of the harbour. A triangular course was declared as being the first course of the day.

In the race area, the base wind strength was more than manageable, but the gusts that came blasting through the entrance to the marine, even at an early stage of the afternoon, were quite vicious. The weather mark was set in this approximate location, but there was a delay in getting the gybe mark into the mark as the Irish Lights Vessel Granuaile indicated her intention to leave her berth on the Carlisle Pier. The gybe mark was then put in the water off the dolphins for the HySpeed Ferry. The leeward mark and the committee boat were situated just inside the end of the East Pier. Given the forecast, a fifth RIB was on the water, and it and the other RIBs would spend time attending to capsized boats and boats with systems issues – a dropped main and a broken mast.

The increase in wind strength is reflected in the attrition rate among the classes; in the PY fleet, there were 8 starters of whom five finished; in the ILCA 6s there were twelve starters of whom six finished, but the recognition for persistence goes to the ILCA 7s who had nine boats on the start line and all nine finished.

Some boats came out to the start and decided that there was too much breeze and returned ashore; others retired during the course of the race.

For the PY fleet, Fireballs took first and second on the water with Alastair Court and Gordon Syme (15167) scorching home in 21:48 with Pat McGoldrick and Paul ter Horst (14790) 1:24 astern. This latter combination have been sailing very well in Series 2, getting to the first weather mark first in some races and staying at the front end of the fleet in most races. Four seconds after they finished, Noel Butler crossed the finish line comfortably ahead of the other Aero to finish, Roy van Maanen. Fifth place on the water was taken by Pierre & Remy Long (father and son) in the IDRA 14.

On corrected time Butler won by 1:51 over Court & Syme, with van Maanen third, the second Fireball fourth and the IDRA fifth.

Only half the ILCA 6s finished with regular international competitor Sean Craig leading the fleet home with a finishing order behind him of Hugh Delap, Daniel O’Connor, Darren Griffin, Justin Geoghegan and Hugh Cahill. Craig must have had a good second half of the race because my last recall of his position on the water, he wasn’t in the top three.

The ILCA 7 fleet remained intact for the duration of the race with Conor Byrne notching up another first place ahead of Theo Lyttle, Chris Arrowsmith, Roy McKay and John O’Driscoll.

As the race progressed the gap between gusts decreased leading to an overall increase in the base wind strength. This prompted the Race Officer to send the fleet homewards – a decision that I don’t think anyone would have had a problem with.
With only a single Sunday left in Series 2, a quick assessment of the overall situation is warranted to see who will be watching their backs on the final day with the prospect of maybe two races.

In the thirty-entry PY fleet, in Series 2 and the Overall Series (1 & 2) combined, Noel Butler is untouchable in 1st Overall. However, there is only a 2pt gap between his fellow Aero sailors Roy van Maanen and Sarah Dwyer and a further 2pt gap to the Fireball of Alastair Court & Gordon Syme in Series 2. Team Long in the IDRA are fifth in Series 2. In the overall Series the same players are in the top five, but in a different order and with bigger gaps between the boats. van Maanen holds a 4pt advantage over Dwyer who has seven points on Team Long with Court & Syme only one point down on Team Long in fifth overall.

Roy Van Maanen in his RS Aero at the St Patrick’s Day Viking Marine DMYC Frostbite race Photo: Alyson Orr

In the ILCA 6s Darren Griffin leads Conor Clancy by four points in Series 2 but Clancy has the upper hand in the Overall Series by six points. Hugh Delap and Shirley Gilmore occupy third and fourth respectively in both Series 2 and Overall, with Delap ahead by 16pts in Series 2 and by 11pts Overall. Michael Norman occupies fifth place in both Series 2 and Overall. The entry for the Series from the ILCA 6s was thirty-three boats.

The ILCA 7s however, as befits a smaller and very competitive fleet, are keeping it even tighter than their smaller rigged contemporaries. In Series 2, Conor Byrne leads Gavan Murphy by 2pts, 37 versus 39, while John Marmelstein and Gary O’Hare are tied on 44pts apiece and Theo Lyttle is in fifth place on 57. However, in terms of the Overall Series, Lyttle jumps up to 1st Overall (50pts) with Gavan Murphy on 52, Gary O’Hare on 63, Conor Byrne on 64 and Chris Arrowsmith on 89. In this fleet, there is lots to play for still.

John Marmelstein in his ILCA 7 at the St Patrick’s Day Viking Marine DMYC Frostbite race Photo: Alyson Orr

In the Fireball fleet of ten boats, the combination of Court & Syme are comfortably first in the Overall Series with Neil Colin & Margaret Casey second overall ahead of Louise McKenna & Hermine O’Keeffe, though the latter combination could be overtaken next Sunday by Pat McGoldrick & Paul ter Horst who only have a three-point gap to close to jump a place overall.

In the Aero fleet of ten boats, the opportunity for final Sunday change lies with Roy van Maanen and Sarah Dwyer who are only separated by a solitary point in the Overall Series (Aeros only) as Noel Butler is over the horizon in points terms.

There were no Frostbite Mugs awarded on St Patrick’s Day as all those who were eligible had either won their Mug or spurned their chance (twice) to win a Mug earlier in the series.

The prize-giving with take place after racing next Sunday and competitors are warmly encouraged to be in attendance. It is an opportunity to recognise your peers who have been successful and adds to the end of regatta ambience. Additionally, a locally based start-up company making wetsuits have offered a wet suit to the Frostbites organisation. Tickets can be acquired by making a purchase in the DMYC bar (soup & bread, tea/coffee, beer, etc), but that requires attendance at the prize-giving.

See you there!

Sunday’s Viking Marine DMYC Dinghy Frostbites in Dun Laoghaire Harbour were a test for organisers and competitors alike. The forecast suggested a North Easterly breeze, produced on the day, though it was from an ENE direction. Wind strength had been predicted in the high teens, gusting into the low twenties, and that, too, manifested itself. However, there was a wider range of wind speeds recorded, from a low of 14 knots to a base wind of 18/19 knots with gusts comfortably into the twenties. Indeed, Frostbites Co-ordinator Neil Colin recorded a gust of 31 knots on a handheld device at the end of the western breakwater.

Possibly because of the weather, numbers were low on the day with the PY fleet mustering ten boats for Race 1, the ILCA 7s had a bumper turn-out of eleven boats and the ILCA 6s had fourteen giving a fleet turnout of 35 boats. This would compare with 40+ boat in recent weeks and fleets of 60+ boats in the 2022/23 season.

"Frostbites Co-ordinator Neil Colin recorded a gust of 31 knots"

Brendan Duffy of the DMYC Ruffian fleet was the Race Officer with this correspondent laying the weather mark which was located just inside the end of the East Pier. In this location there were some “cats’ paws” racing across the water – a combination of the wind direction and the wind coming through the harbour mouth. The top reach of the Olympic course set for both races would see the fleet sail east to west across the harbour mouth and this made for a very fast passage to the gybe mark set in the approximate location of the INSS’ green platform. The leeward mark was off the marina wall and it would see some additional action during the afternoon.

For the first race, the majority view as to sail up the left hand-side of the beat on starboard tack before putting in a tack to come into the mark on port. All three fleets pursued this approach and it resulted in a tight pack of PY boats and subsequently ILCA 7s approaching the mark. In the PY fleet Pat McGoldrick and Paul ter Horst (14790) led the charge from Alastair Court & Gordon Syme (15156) with Michael Keegan and helm (14676) also well placed. My recall is that Noel Butler in the Aero was also well up the fleet on the water.

Sanity seemed to be the order of the day for the two reaches with no spinnakers flying on either leg which may have helped the handicap stakes for the slightly slower boats (on the water). By the second windward mark Court & Syme had taken the lead though the other two aforementioned Fireball combinations were still in touch. The Fireball was first home but on corrected time concede the win to Butler’s Aero. The top five on corrected time were evenly spread with two Aeros, two Fireballs and the RS200 of Jamie and Katie Tingle with the sequence being Butler, Court, Roy van Maanen, McGoldrick and Tingle.

The ILCA 7s were evenly more tightly bunched as they approached the weather mark with Conor Byrne being the “rabbit” to everyone else’s hounds. However, getting around the mark got more complicated as the second (or third placed) boat capsized bringing at least one other boat with him. Byrne won the race with the pecking order behind him being; Theo Lyttle, Chris Arrowsmith, Gavan Murphy and John Marmelstein.

The ILCA 6s had some air and water between them at the first weather mark, but again, given the conditions, it was competitive at the front. I don’t have the details for this race as I was now engaged in rescue duties (Aero with a broken main halyard, capsized Fireball) and indeed my observation obligation was ultimately usurped by rescue undertakings. In R1 for the ILCA 6s the finishing order was Owen Laverty, Hugh Delap, Conor Clancy, Darren Griffin and Hugh Cahill.

The first race was of less that 20 minutes duration and there was quite a few dropouts for the second race – PY (4 boats), ILCA 7s (1) and ILCA 6s (6).

Another three lap Olympic course was set and I have no observations of the race at all, other than to say that the wind had risen from the first race and some experienced competitors were finding the challenge a bit too robust. However, those who did manage to get their way around the course were delighted that racing had continued.

Race 2 – Finishers (1 – 5).

PY – Noel Butler (Aero), Roy van Maanen (Aero), Alastair Court & Gordon Syme, Jamie & Katie Tingle and Pierre & Remy Long (IDRA).
ILCA 7s – Conor Byrne, Niall Cowman, Gavan Murphy, Theo Lyttle and Roy McKay.
ILCA 6s – Hugh Delap, Conor Clancy, Darren Griffin, Hugh Cahill, Michael Norman.

In overall terms, for Series 2, the 1-5 in each class are as follows;

PY – Butler(7), Court & Syme (27), van Maanen (32), Sarah Dwyer (Aero) (32) and Pierre & Remy Long (IDRA) (34).
ILCA 7s – Byrne (8), Lyttle (14), Gary O’Hare (21), Murphy (29) and Marmelstein (30).
ILCA 6s – Griffin (13), Clancy (17), Delap (21), Shirley Gilmore (43) and Norman (43).

Races 13 & 14 of the Viking Marine-sponsored Frostbites in Dun Laoghaire Harbour saw a change of Race Officer, with DMYC Commodore Ian Cutliffe taking over the reins of race management from Cormac Bradley, who had the day off.

A fleet of 43 boats enjoyed two Olympic courses of three and four laps respectively, and with the wind in the West, post-race comment was that there were big shifts on the water and at the start of the second
race a major shift.

As this correspondent was off the water, I can only report the results and make comment on the finishing order of the PY fleet where the quest for a combined win on the water and a win on elapsed time is a recurrent theme between the Fireballs and Aeros.

Seventeen boats contested Race 1 which had a “run-time” of nearly twenty-eight minutes. First over the line was the Fireball combination of Alastair Court & Gordon Syme (15156) leading home a quartet of
Fireballs in the form of Louise McKenna & Hermine O’Keeffe (15016), Owen Sinnott & Grattan Donnelly (14865), Neil Colin & Margaret Casey (14998) and Paul ter Horst & crew (14790) all of whom finished ahead of the first Aero. Noel Butler, in turn led the Aeros home with a near two-minute margin on the next Aero, Damien Dion, with Roy van Maanen, Stephen Oram and Paul Phelan the next in line. The IDRA 14 of the Long family finished 4:32 down on Court & Syme. On corrected time however, the podium places were shared, in order, by Butler, Long and Court.

Aero & ILCA 7s - Noel Butler (Aero 3289), David Coleman (ILCA 6, 186327) and Hugh Delap (ILCA 6, 216711) approach the leeward mark of the DMYC Viking Marine-Sponsored Frostbite Photo: Alyson Orr 

The same number of boats started the second race and again a quintet of five Fireballs occupied the first five finishing places on the water, spanning 4:39. The last of these beat Butler on the line by a second.

Yet again, however, Butler did enough to take the win on elapsed time over Court & Syme, with Sarah Dwyer (Aero), the Longs, and Paul Phelan (Aero) taking the remaining top five places.

In overall terms three Aeros are top of the log – Butler (6pts), Dwyer (26pts), Oram (28pts) with the Longs (33pts) and Court & Syme (40pts) closing out the top five.

Ladies first! - Sarah Dwyer (Aero 3433) leads a series of boats around the leeward mark of the DMYC Viking Marine-Sponsored Frostbite - ILCA 7 181204, Conor Byrne, IDRA 161 (Long family) and Fireball 14676, (white and blue spinnaker), Michael Keegan and crew. Photo: Alyson Orr

The ILCA 7s had another high percentage turnout for both their races – 10 boats from a possible 13! Conor Byrne took the day’s honours with two wins, while Theo Lyttle and Brian O’Hare shared the balance of the podium places, Lyttle scoring 3,2 and O’Hare 2,3. In Race 1 fourth and fifth went to Niall Cowman and Chris Arrowsmith while in Race 2, Arrowsmith jumped to fourth with John Marmelstein
taking fifth.

Lyttle leads the overall standings on twelve points, three ahead of O’Hare who has a five-point cushion on O’Byrne. Gavan Murphy and John Marmelstein, with scores in the thirties, close out the top five.

Darren Griffin took the day’s honours in the ILCA 6s with two bullets. Hugh Delap would have been second overall on the day with a 2,4 with Justin Geoghegan pipping Judy O’Beirne for the last podium place for the day with a 5,3, compared to Judy’s 4,5. Shirley Gilmore and Conor Clancy also had top-five finishes but only in one race each, a third in Race 1 and a second in Race 2, respectively.

In overall terms, Griffin leads the fleet on ten points, followed by Clancy (16pts), Delap (23pts), Gilmore (31pts) and Michael Norman (43pts).

Owen Sinnott (L) and Grattan Donnelly (FB 14865) with their DMYC Viking Marine-Sponsored Frostbite Race Mug for Sunday, 18th February, presented by Neil Colin. Photo: Paul ter Horst

Frostbite Mugs were awarded for the previous Sunday – Hugh Cahill and Michael Norman (ILCA6s) - and if memory serves (because I don’t have Neil Colin’s notes to hand), Mugs for the day’s racing went to Damien Dion (Aero, R1), Owen Sinnott & Grattan Donnelly (FB, R2), Brian O’Hare (ILCA 7, R1), Niall Cowman (ILCA 7, R2), Judy O’Beirne (ILCA 6, R1) and Justin Geoghegan (ILCA 6, R2).

Series 2 of the Viking Marine sponsored Frostbites, hosted by Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club, was sailed under glorious conditions for January – 6-8 knots of a breeze that stayed pretty stable throughout the afternoon and air temperatures that peaked at 10° but dropped rapidly once the sun went behind low clouds in the south, to the extent that the committee boat recorded 6.5°at the end of the racing as the last boat finished.

All week, the forecast was for light winds from the East, but at the DMYC, the wind indicators on the boats on the hard were showing a wind direction from the West. Out in the main part of the harbour, this was confirmed with a wind direction that fluctuated modestly around the 280°mark all afternoon. And wind strength was also better than expected at almost double what was forecast.

The fleet size was modest at 40 boats total with the ILCA7s having the biggest percentage turnout of any fleet, 10 boats from 13 entries. However, the biggest fleet of boats was in the PY Class with sixteen entries with the ILCA 6s close behind with fourteen.

The plan was to sail two races but a slow exit from her berth at the Carlisle Pier by the Irish Navy vessel lost us nearly 25 minutes at the start of the afternoon and so the decision was taken on the water to have a longer single race – 4 laps of an Olympic course. The weather mark was close to the INSS’ green raft, the gybe mark between the entrance to the marina and the HySpeed ferry berth and the leeward mark just off the obelisk n the upper deck of the East Pier.

All three fleets got away at the first time of asking and while the wind dropped to a low of approx. 6.5 knots, there was enough breeze to keep everyone moving well.

The PY fleet was dominated at the front by a group of Fireballs, Neil Colin & Margaret Casey (14998), Louise McKenna & Hermine O’Keeffe (15016), Alastair Court & Gordon Syme (15167), and Cariosa Power & Marie Barry (14854), with Pat McGoldrick & Paul ter Horst (14790) and Owen Sinnott & Grattan Donnelly (14865) not far behind them. Not having their best day was Frank Miller & Neil Cramer (14990). Could this be the day when the RS Aero’s stranglehold on the podium places could be broken? Having a better day on the water were the GP14 pairing of Ciara Mulvey & Peter Murphy (11111). However, with the exception of Noel Butler (3289) the Aeros sailed in close company for the majority of the race, maybe just far enough behind the leaders to give the rest of the PY fleet a chance to occupy the podium, with Butler breaking away from his classmates as the race progressed.

Power, McKenna and Colin each held the PY lead on the water with Court recovering places as the race progressed. Colin & Casey yoyo-ed a little but when the crunch came, they played a new game. Rounding the last windward mark off the lead they gybed immediately to sail towards the harbour mouth on port tack before gybing back again to sneak around the last leeward mark in first place with Court and McKenna tight on their transom. Colin eked out a short distance from the chasing pair, enough to apply a covering tack when the boats tacked onto starboard to make their way to the finish. Colin & Casey won on the water by 13 seconds from McKenna & O’Keeffe with Court & Syme a second back from McKenna. Butler (Aero) came home 4:48 behind the first Fireball but took the win on handicap by a margin of 2:56 relative to Colin and to add insult to injury three other Aeros and the IDRA of Pierre & Paul Long finished ahead of Colin. He even lost the Frostbite Mug to Sarah Dwyer (4th) by 1:22.

The ten ILCA 7s got off the start line in a tight bunch and sailed the balance of the race in that style until quite late on. There was a tight finish for the class with boats approaching the line from opposite ends. John Marmelstein (219147) just took the win from Conor Byrne (181204) and Theo Lyttle (211129) third.

The winner in the ILCA 6s said that she had really enjoyed her day on the water – the combination of sunshine, easy winds and a race where she could concentrate on tactics rather than keeping the boat flat were the perfect recipe for a Sunday in January. Shirley Gilmore (216328) enjoyed the lead for the duration of the race but admitted to being hard pushed by the chasing pack of Daniel O’Connor (211260), Conor Clancy (213048) and Hugh Delap (211171). Fifth place was taken by Michael Norman (219126).
Post race a number of people expressed the view that it had been a most enjoyable afternoon on the water.

While Series 2 was opened to new entries (who hadn’t sailed Series 1), the uptake has been such that there are still places available for this latter Series.

Viking Marine DMYC Dinghy Frostbites Series 2; Race 1

PY Fleet
Place, Elapsed Time, Corrected Time
1 Noel Butler (Aero) 53:42 48:36
2. Roy van Maanen (Aero) 55:10 49:55
3. Pierre & Paul Long (IDRA) 56:13 49:58
4. Sarah Dwyer (Aero) 55:14 49:59
5. Stephen Oram (Aero) 54:16 51:03
6. Neil Colin & Margaret Casey (FB) 48:54 51:22

ILCA 7s
1. John Marmelstein (219147)
2. Conor Byrne (181204)
3. Theo Lyttle (211129)

ILCA 6s
1. Shirley Gilmore (216328)
2. Daniel O’Connor (211260)
3. Conor Clancy (213048)
4. Hugh Delap (211171)
5. Michael Norman (219126)

Series 1 of the DMYC’s Viking Marine-sponsored Frostbites concluded on Sunday in variable wind conditions that saw as much as 16 knots on the course at times, and boats stalled due to a lack of wind at other times. However, the latter condition generally didn’t last very long, and two brisk races were sailed to give the fleet an eight-race series with a single discard. What had looked like a quiet end to the series from a forecast point of view early in the week changed dramatically by Friday/Saturday when the Principal Organiser and Race Officer, Neil Colin and Cormac Bradley, respectively, exchanged WhatsApp messages, wondering whether we would get racing in at all.

An early arrival at the Dun Laoghaire waterfront allowed Bradley to see the big boats comfortably sailing the closing stages of their “Turkey Shoot” regatta under full rig and the three Flying Fifteens, ashore after a coaching session advised that while they had varied conditions in terms of wind strength and direction outside, before being towed back to harbour due to a lack of wind, conditions inside were definitely sailable.

At the DMYC, the decision was taken to have two brisk races to get the fleet in early for the end-of-series prize-giving.

With an “average” wind direction of 190°, but with a burgee flicking left and right, the committee boat set up just inside the end of the west pier to give the fleet a beat across the shorter dimension of the outer harbour, with the weather mark in transit with the seasonal ice-rink set up inside the old ferry complex, a gybe mark in the middle of the harbour and a leeward mark close to the end of the west pier.

A line just short of 115m was laid with, in the RO’s view, an element of bias towards the pin to try and keep the fleet away from the committee boat………except the wind didn’t always co-operate! The first race was set as a 3-lap Olympic course, with three triangles et for the second.

Ten ILCA7s came out to play on the last day, their best turnout of the series and Theo Lyttle positioned himself at the front of the fleet for everyone else to have a swipe at. They were unsuccessful and he led the fleet home in Race 1 of the Day with Niall Cowman and Conor Byrne taking the other podium places. In Race 2 Lyttle was off the pace and when cajoled from the committee boat admitted that he was feeling the strain. Still, he managed a fifth place with the podium places going to Conor Byrne, Gavan Murphy and Chris Arrowsmith. Chris’ performance in this race would see him get a Frostbite Mug for the day.

Daniel O’Connor (211260) leads Darren Griffin (219867) and Brendan Hughes (207559) around the weather mark Photo: Ian Cutliffe

Eighteen ILCA6s were anxious to get going and as the countdown to the start progressed the RO knew that the majority of the fleet were behind him, meaning that the start was going to be congested. At 30 seconds the near end of the line was almost empty, at 15 seconds there were bows starting to appear and at the gun the pin disappeared from view. General Recall!

Gary O’Hare (201364) leads Niall Cowman (211857) and Theo Lyttle (211129) in the early stages of Race 1 Photo: Ian Cutliffe

Given the agenda for the day, the RO decided to go straight to black and three boats jumped the gun with a minute to go, earning letters on their scorecard rather than numbers – it seems that they were not “au fait” with the relationship between the dropping of the General Recall signal and the Warning signal. The remaining fifteen “6s” got away cleanly and the fleet kept reasonably tight company and found themselves mingling with the “7s” and the PY fleet. Their price for the General Recall – a two lap race rather than a three-lapper. Daniel O’Connor started the day perfectly with a race win, followed home by Conor Clancy, Ali Robinson, Brendan Hughes and Darren Griffin. Griffin then won the second race with O’Connor second followed by Owen Laverty, Brendan Hughes and Hugh Delap.

Thomas Chaix (Aero 1066) leads the chasing group behind the Fireballs; Noel Butler (3289), Roy van Maanen (3822) and the IDRA of Pierre & Paul Long (161) are in close pursuit of Chaix Photo by Ian Cutliffe

The PY fleet saw a new greyhound on the water today with National Yacht Club Coach, Thomas Chaix in an Aero leading the fleet on the water until metres from the finish. On a day when one would have thought the spinnakered boats would have an advantage on the slightly longer reaches it was surprising to see the lead that Chaix had, particularly viewed against the other Aeros. Chaix sailed from the last leeward mark to the finish on starboard tack but on a line that saw him outside the pin end for the finish. His efforts to get back across on port to set up the crossing of the finish line were then thwarted by a stream of ILCAs to the extent that Frank Miller and Caroul in the Fireball were able to steal the win on the water. The perennial struggle for the Fireballs to save their time on the water against the Aeros continued today when both Miller and Alastair Court & Gordon Syme finished ahead of Noel Butler in the Aero 6, by 33 seconds and 1 second respectively, but were relegated to third and fourth on time behind Butler and Roy van Maanen. Fifth place was taken by father and son Pierre and Paul Long in the IDRA 14.

A reasonably quick turnaround for Race 2 was undone for the PY fleet when they prompted a General Recall, triggered by Fireballs and Aeros. When they did get underway the Aero of Chaix was again prominent at the head of the fleet until a gear failure forced him to retire via a tow home to the NYC. The Fireballs of Miller and Court led the charge around the course and at the finish only three seconds separated the two boats. Butler finished 34 second behind Miller (and 31 behind Court) but romped home by 2:49 leading an Aero 1-6 finishing order of van Maanen, Stephen Oram, Damien Dion, Jeff Fahy and Stuart Harris. The IDRA took seventh ahead of the two Fireballs.

On a weekend which started with some doubts as to whether we would get any racing at all, two races were completed to close out the Series and the organisers were rewarded by a good turnout at the prize-giving in the DMYC clubhouse.
Frostbite Mugs for the day went to Frank Miller and Caroul (PY), Stephen Oram (PY) and Chris Arrowsmith (ILCA7s) and Series 1 prizes in the form of Rick Tomlinson calendars were also awarded.

DMYC Series 1 Frostbites, sponsored by Viking Marine

PY Fleet
1. Noel Butler, Aero 6;11pts
2. Pierre, Paul & Remy Long, IDRA 14; 28pts
3. Roy van Maanen, Aero 6; 35pts
4. Sarah Dwyer, Aero 6; 35pts
5. Alastair Court & Gordon Syme, Fireball; 42pts

ILCA 7s
1. Theo Lyttle; 13pts
2. Gavan Murphy; 20pts
3. Gary O’Hare; 27pts

ILCA 6s
1. Conor Clancy; 19pts
2. Darren Griffin; 34pts
3. Shirley Gilmore; 45pts
4. Daniel O’Connor; 52pts
5. Brendan Hughes; 52pts

Fireballs
1. Alastair Court & Gordon Syme, FB 15167; 11pts
2. Neil Colin & Margaret Casey, FB14998; 22pts
3. Louise McKenna & Hermine O’Keeffe; 23pts

Aeros
1. Noel Butler; 7pts
2. Sarah Dwyer; 17pts
3. Roy van Maanen; 21pts
4. Stephen Oram; 23.5pts.

Series 2 of the Frostbites opens on Sunday 7th January 2024 and Principal Organiser, Neil Colin advises that there are spaces available for Series 2, further entries can be accommodated. There will be no special “Frostbite” events over the Christmas break.
From this correspondent, HAPPY CHRISTMAS!

Pete Smyth's Sunfast 3600 Searcher from the National Yacht Club was the overall handicap winner of Sunday's Leinster Boats-sponsored DMYC Kish Race on Dublin Bay. 

Smyth's crew led the 36-boat fleet from Dun Laoghaire Harbour's start to finish line in the last big event of the Bay’s summer sailing programme. 

Start vid below by Barry O'Neill

The race lived up to its billing regarding fleet size and the return of summer sailing conditions with a balmy 17-degree air temperature for the October 1st race and a pleasant westerly breeze of up to 15 knots and a relatively flat sea state to boot.

A mix of cruisers and small one-design keelboats at the start of the DMYC Kish Race 2023 at Dun Laoghaire's East Pier lighthouse including the third overall 20-foot Flying Fifteen (red and black spinnaker) skippered by Keith Poole Photo: Afloat

Smyth finished in an elapsed time of three hours, 19 minutes and 15 seconds, but won only by a margin of 46 seconds on corrected time from Frank Whelan's Archambault A31, Crazy Diamond. 

In third place was one of the many one-design keelboats competing, as Keith Poole's 20-foot long, two-man Flying Fifteen, Mike Wazowski, finished in an elapsed time of 4:08:45 corrected to 3:43:53 on local handicap.

The Kish Race fleet cross Dun Laoghaire Harbour mouth Photo: Afloat

The results produced yet another overall ISORA racer as the event winner, as last year's Kish title went to a former Irish Sea Champion, Chris Power Smith's J122 Aurelia. 

The successful staging of the 2023 race, under Race Officer Cormac Bradley, was a tribute to the late Ben Mulligan, who was DMYC's Kish Race organiser until 2022.

The fleet passed south of a mark in the proximity of the South Burford on the outward and return legs to the Kish to comply with Dublin Port requirements 

There was a strong one-design keelboat presence in the all-in fleet with seven Ruffian 23s, four Shipman 28s, four Flying Fifteens, two 31.7s and an SB20 competing in the 36-boat fleet.

David Roche's Dufour 32 classic Hebe IV to leeward with John O'Callaghan's Shipman Ruadh on the outbound leg to the Kish Lighthouse Photo: Afloat

15 knots from the West gave the fleet a shy reach to the Kish lighthouse Photo: Afloat

G&S O'Shea's Superseal 26 Gung-Ho and Frank Bradley's Ruffian 23 Ripples race past the Norwegian Star cruise liner moored on Dublin Bay on the outward bound leg to the Kish lighthouse Photo: Afloat

Michael Walsh's Westerly Falcon, Leda competing in the 2023 DMYC Kish Race on Dublin Bay Photo: Afloat

John Clarke's Shipman Jo Slim competing in the 2023 DMYC Kish Race on Dublin Bay Photo: Afloat

Michael Ryan's Nicholson 31 Saki competing in the 2023 DMYC Kish Race on Dublin Bay Photo: Afloat

After the disappointment of not getting sailing last Sunday, and with Storm Agnes passing through on Wednesday afternoon, the Weather Gods are looking more favourable for DMYC's rescheduled Kish Race on Dublin Bay on Sunday, 1st October.

The starting time is at 11.00 at the West Pier, Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The entry remains open on www.dmyc.ie.

"DMYC, along with Sponsors Leinster Boats, look forward to a full house on the water, and back for the Après Sail in the clubhouse after", Neil Colin told Afloat.

"The fleet will be passing south of a mark in the proximity of the South Burford on the outward and return legs, to comply with Dublin Port requirements", he added.

Due to a strong wind forecast, Sunday's annual DMYC Kish Race on Dublin Bay has been postponed one week until 1st October.

The Leinster Boats sponsored race is typically the last major race on the Bay's summer racing calendar.

The DMYC were reluctant to postpone, with organiser Neil Colin telling Afloat: While the traditionally referenced Apps, including Wind Guru and WindyTY, offer mixed views and suggest a moderation in the forecast, the underlying theme of blustery Southerly winds from the Atlantic depression, together with Met Eireann indicating extreme gusts, represent an unacceptable safety risk to the competitors which DMYC are unable to accept".

"We look forward to a more favourable forecast next week" he added.

Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club (DMYC) on Dublin Bay has reported a steady flow of entries for this weekend's highly anticipated Kish Race.

In a recent announcement, the club has introduced a new perpetual prize for the first Under 25 Skipper in memory of Ben Mulligan, who passed away a few weeks after successfully running the 2022 edition of the race.

The race is sponsored by Dun Laoghaire yacht brokers, Leinster Boats.

The trophy is intended to honour Ben's contribution to encouraging youth and students to sail on the bay.

The late Ben Mulligan at the start of the 2022 DMYC Kish Race on Dublin Bay Photo: Afloat

According to the Notice of Race, the eligibility standard for the race is set as "boats capable of sailing in open water." Weather permitting, the race may include sports boats, SB20s, and other boats, as the experience of sailing around the Kish structure in "river-like tidal conditions", is not to be missed.

The weather forecast for the race currently indicates a moderate Southerly breeze, which should make for a fast race.

This sets the stage for a reach both ways, and skippers are eagerly anticipating the challenge. The Kish Race has always been a popular event that attracts sailors from all over Dublin Bay and beyond, and this year's edition promises to be as exciting as ever.