Saturday’s (April 9th) Lift-in of yachts and boats at Dun Laoghaire Harbour in perfect calm and sunny conditions marked the opening of the 2022 summer sailing season on Dublin Bay. 

In the harbour, the National Yacht Club and neighbouring Royal St. George YC lifted in approximately 30 sailing cruisers apiece using mobile cranes in the day-long operation. 

The boats had wintered ashore on hardstanding at the club premises.

After the weekend lift-in, the summer sailing season will commence on Dublin Bay with a 35-mile ISORA coastal race and the Dublin Bay Sailing Club summer season, starting on April 23rd.

The annual lift in of boats at the Royal St. George Yacht Club

At Ireland's biggest boating centre, the fine Spring weather and good sailing breezes have seen several yachts based at the town marina already back on the Dublin Bay race track.

Putting its fleet of Elliott 6m keelboats to good use, the National Yacht Club held an introduction to match racing clinic for members in Dun Laoghaire Harbour last weekend.

The Day Match Racing Clinics under Coach Will Byrne was open to all members over 16 years of age interested in discovering the boats and the modern format of Match Racing competitions.

Sailors registered either as individual or pre-constituted teams of three (or four women or smaller individuals).

Further clinics are planned with an NYC match racing series to follow, according to Byrne.

National Yacht Club Commodore Conor O'Regan led the junior summer sailing achievement celebrations at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on Friday night.

The junior and youth sailors produced results at home and abroad in a variety of classes including Optimist, Laser and 29er skiff.

NYC Summer Course 2021 Achievement Awards were also presented.

Photo Gallery by Michael Chester 

In one of the highlights of the club year, the National Yacht Club awarded thirteen annual awards for outstanding sailing achievements on Saturday night.

The awards, as well as the Commodore’s Cup, were presented at the NYC annual Sailing Awards Dinner at Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

National Yacht Club Commodore Conor O’Regan and the array of NYC silverware Photo: Michael Chester

The Boyne Regatta Cup – for best performance in offshore racing of the year

Gavin Doyle - 1st in IRC 2 handed, 1st in IRC 4 and 3rd overall in the RORC Castle Rock Race 2021 and 3rd Overall, 3rd in IRC 4 and 3rd in the IRC 2 handed division in the RORC Channel Race 2021, JOG NJO Sails Weymouth 2021 – IRC 4 – 2nd, RORC/SORC Solent Shakedown 2021 1st, sailing his Corby 25 Duff Lite with Co-Skipper Alex Piatti Photo: Michael Chester

The O’Leary Cup – for best performance of the year in one designs

John Lavery & Alan Green (pictured left) - Winners of the Flying Fifteen Championship of Ireland for a second consecutive year are presented with the O'Leary Cup by Conor O'Regan Photo: Michael Chester

The Edward Yacht Club Trophy – for best performance of the year in dinghies, Mermaids or Flying Fifteens

David Cahill  - 1st overall on Tuesday nights and 2nd overall on Saturdays in the huge Laser Radial Class (44 competitors) in DBSC. Winner of the Dr. Alf Delany Cup for most successful dinghy for the season Photo: Michael Chester

John Byrne Memorial Trophy – for the greatest contribution to sailing in the NYC during the year

Alan Balfe - For his dedication and commitment in organising events in his role as Sailing Secretary last year and for the last two years in very difficult Covid times Photo: Michael Chester

The Winkelmann Trophy – for Cadet of the year

Nathan van Steenberge - For his campaign in the 29er class, finishing 11th overall in 29er Europeans in Lake Garda in October in a 200 boat fleet Photo: Michael Chester

The Greystones 1892 Regatta Cup – for the team who represented the Club with distinction

(Above and below) The large team of volunteers on shore and on the water for the Laser 4.7 Youth Worlds. The trophy was collected by Con Murphy. Young and old, the volunteers worked with great dedication and commitment on the water (on the committtee boat, on mark laying and rescue RIBS) and ashore (Race Office and Results, Covid Officer, and launching and recovering 120 Lasers quickly and efficiently each morning and afternoon throughout the week-long event).  Many of the volunteers worked on all or most days of the event. Photos: Michael Chester

The Paul Murphy Cup – for the sailing management volunteer of the year

Gearoid O’Riain & Liam O’Riain - For their long standing commitment in providing their skills and RIB for mark laying at most of the events hosted by the National Yacht Club Photo: Michael Chester

The Township Cup – for best Cruise of the year

Simon Wall - For his 2-handed, 8 days cruise from Sweden to Dun Laoghaire in October 2021 in very rough seas conditions 

The Muglins Cup – for the most interesting family cruise

Barry MacNeaney - For sailing a Bavaria 40 from Preveza Greece around the South Ionian Gulf with nine onboard including his five grandchildren aged 10y to 16y – for them, a huge adventure learning boat handling skills of helming, holding a course, basic navigation, anchoring in secluded bays for swimming,  and sleeping on deck.

Martin Crotty Trophy Award – for a younger Member who shows sailing endeavour

Conor Totterdell - Co-skippered ‘Desert Star’ of Irish Offshore Sailing to second place in IRC4 category in the Fastnet Race, finishing 14th overall and top placed Irish Entry with a mostly inexperienced crew. The prize was accepted by Alan Daly and presented by Suzie Barry with Conor O’Regan Commodore of the NYC Photo: Michael Chester

The Wild Geese Trophy – for The overseas member who achieves the best performance in racing or distinguishes himself/ herself in sailing

Tom Dolan - For his amazing sailing achievements in the Figaro Class, ‘the toughest one-design racing class’ offshore and single-handed, and for sharing his experience with our younger members on his recent visit to the NYC. The prize was accepted by Gerry Jones Photo: Michael Chester

The Sue McDonnell Trophy – for the female club member who has contributed most to the advancement of women in sailing

Caitriona O’Brien - For her dedication in her role organising and enabling the NYC Women on the Water racing on the Club J80s. The award was presented by Fiona Mc Donnell with Conor O’Regan Commodore of the NYC Photo: Michael Chester

The Totterdell Trophy – for the member who has contributed most to promoting and developing the Laser class in the club

Aisling Murphy - For organising all the adult Laser sailing activities in the Club Photo: Michael Chester

The Commodore’s Cup

Finn Lynch - For his Silver Medal at the ILCA World Championships in Spain 

NYC Sailing Awards – Commodore’s Commendations 2021

Commendations were presented by Commodore of the NYC, Conor O’Regan. Photo: Michael Chester

Wednesday morning saw some early 2022 season double-handed two boat tuning for a pair of Jeanneau Sunfast 3600 keelboats on Dublin Bay.

ISORA campaigners Searcher (Pete Smyth) and John O'Gorman's Hot Cookie enjoyed 10-15 knots north-westerlies for a fast reach from Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

Searcher and Hot Cookie, both from the National Yacht Club, cut quite a dash crossing a deserted bay at speed under pink and red spinnakers.

The pair returned to the harbour after a two-hour session with Searcher sporting a ripped kite in conditions that had strengthened to over 20 knots in gusts.

ISORA celebrates its Golden Jubilee with a return to traditional Irish Offshore Racing in 2022 with the first fixture on May 28th with a 60-mile race from Dun Laoghaire to Holyhead. All this, of course, is preceded by DBSC's Spring Chicken Series that begins on February 6th. 

The National Yacht Club will be hosting a Match Racing Invitational in its fleet of Elliott 6m one-design keelboats on the 4th and 5th of December at Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

The purpose of this event is to match Ireland's best match racers against each other in anticipation of a National Championships in early 2022.

Invite forms for consideration are available here. Organisers say an impartial panel will review all applications, and ten invites will be issued.

A Notice of Race can be found below for full details of the event.

Further details are available from Mark Hassett ([email protected]) or Will Byrne ([email protected]).

This weekend sees the conclusion of the five-week-long Flying Fifteen Frostbite Series at Dun Laoghaire Harbour.

Sixteen boats are entered, with an average of 11 competing each weekend.

PRO Keith Poole and his race team have provided great courses and racing in various conditions.

Ken Dumpleton and Joe Hickey in 'Rodriguez' lead the way after their impressive three race wins last Saturday, but Tom Galvin and Chris Doorly in 'Thingamabob' are just two points behind and with three races due on Saturday, they are still in with a chance.

Peter Murphy and Ciara Mulvey are in third place, followed by Tom Murphy and Karel Le Roux and Joe Coughlan and Andrew Marshall.

The NYC Frostbite Series for Flying Fifteens and Mermaids, which has been run for forty years, resumed this season after a break of two years.

Over sixty yachts and cruisers will be hauled out of the water at Dun Laoghaire Harbour tomorrow as the 2021 summer season ends at Ireland's biggest boating centre. 

The National Yacht Club and neighbouring Royal St. George YC will lift out approximately 30 cruisers apiece using a mobile crane. 

The boats will overwinter on the hardstanding at the waterfront clubhouses, where space is at a premium.

It's not the end of all sailing by any means, however. A winter Turkey Shoot Series run by DBSC that attracts up to 70 boats, mainly from the town marina, is scheduled to start on Nov 7th, and the DMYC Dinghy Frostbite Series will run in harbour racing until March.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour sailor Justin Burke was racing in the IRC B division of last weekend's postponed Spi Ouest Regatta and received a warm welcome in Brittany. 

Burke of the National Yacht Club, a champion SB20 and Flying Fifteen sailor, recently acquired a JPK 10.30 and used Spi Ouest as a shakedown on the new boat, including its short-handed options.

"I'm very taken by Brittany. Beautiful scenery, lovely food and a great attitude to sailing. The weather helps a lot, but above all the people. We have met a lot of like-minded locals".

Burke says the emphasis is very much on sailing rather than the bar afterwards and was somewhat surprised to come across quite a lot of older boats, including an old Shamrock. All the vintage boats were well kitted out with new sails and all "slickly sailed", he says.

Burke's plan is to return to France, (where there are reasonably priced flights to Nantes from Ireland) and race Spi Ouest regatta again in the Spring of 2022. He'll decide then if he leaves his new boat 'Das Boot' in Brittany or brings her home to Dun Laoghaire.

He told Afloat, "there's great energy and a lot is going on in Brittany". He has been invited to join a local training session for short-handed sailing.

More on Spi Ouest regatta here

John Patrick (left) from Belfast Sailability was the winner of the  2.4mR National Championships held at the National Yacht Club at Dun Laoghaire Harbour at the weekend.

A small fleet of five competitors (from a total fleet of eight boats in the country) raced for both Open and Para titles. 

The National's Ed Totterdell was the Race Officer with four races sailed on Saturday and two on Sunday, all inside the harbour.

The open event was won by John Patrick from Belfast Sailability with Patrick Hassett in second and Oisin Putt in third place both from NYC.

The Para event was won by Patrick with Oisin second.

John Patrick (right) from Belfast Sailability was the winner of the Open Division of the  2.4mR Nationals held at Dun Laoghaire Harbour and receives his prize from National Yacht Club Commodore Conor O’Regan

Patrick Hassett (right) is congratulated by National Yacht Club Commodore Conor O’Regan for his overall win of the 2.4mR Nationals (Para division) at Dun Laoghaire Harbour