Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Dublin Bay Boating News and Information

Displaying items by tag: varsity

UCD reigned at the Varsity Team Racing Championships at Kilrush Marina in County Clare, the last national event of the year in the college sailing calendar. The event was organised by Trinity sailing and DIT Sailing Club. 

Teams from around Ireland were on the Shannon Estuary from 24th-28th of February for the IUSA Inter-Varsity champions 2016.

The sheltered Kilrush Creek provided an ideal racing area for both competitors and spectators.

The event kicked off on Thursday with 27 teams from 11 different universities from Ireland and the UK competing in 4 different round robin flights. UCC1, Loughborough University, CIT and UCD1 came out on top of each flight after the first day. The teams were split into Gold, Silver and Bronze for a second round robin on Friday before entering the knockout stages on Saturday. The quarter finals saw some intense racing with Trinity winning over the undefeated reigning champions, UCC1. UCD1 raced UCD2 in the semi finals and Trinity came up against Loughborough University.

The best of 5 final came down to colours rivals, UCD and Trinity in light, challenging conditions. While Trinity won the first race, UCD came back with 3 consecutive wins, taking the varsities title. UCD2 were the third placed team.

Full Results:

Gold Fleet
1. UCD1
2. TCD1
3. UCD2
4. Loughborough University

Silver Fleet
1. UCD3
2. CIT
3. TCD6/DIT

Bronze Fleet
1. Queens University Belfast
2. UCD4

IUSA Awards 

•    Sailor of the year: Scott Flanigan, TCD

•    Crew of the year: Cliodhna Connolly, UCD

•    Fresher of the year: Mark Bolger, TCD

•    Club of the year: CIT

•    Event of the Year: IUSA intervarsities hosted by TCD & DIT 

Published in Team Racing
Tagged under

#teamrace – A very exciting and eventful finals series on Saturday, produced an all UCC final, with UCC1 facing off against UCC2. UCC1 won the first three races of the five race final which saw them being crowned Intervarsity Champions for 2014/2015. From the 26th to the 28th of February UCC Sailing Club hosted the IUSA Intervarsity Championships in the Fastnet Marine Outdoor Education Centre, Schull, Co. Cork. The event consisted of three days of highly competitive racing, despite the extremely heavy conditions. Days one and two saw 28 teams racing in three fleets (Gold, Silver and Bronze), which were selected according to team rankings based on the results of the regional events this season.

On day three, the top 16 teams were selected for the finals series, with the winners of each respective race going on to quarter finals, namely University College Cork 1, University College Cork 2, University College Dublin 1, University College Dublin 4, Trinity College Dublin 1, Scottish University Sailing Association, Loughborough University and Cork Institute of Technology 1.
Sadly, due to the increasingly adverse conditions, the race committee were forced to cancel the Silver and Bronze fleet finals and therefore their prizes were awarded based on the standings from the first two days of racing.

The semi-finals saw defending champions UCD1 narrowly lose out to UCC2 and UCC1 overcome SUSA. As a result, the host club found themselves in an all-UCC final, with UCC1 coming out on top, securing victory over their fellow club members by winning the first three of the best-of-five final.

The awards ceremony took place on Saturday night, with the National University of Ireland Galway being awarded Best Club of the Year for their tremendous efforts in promoting and enhancing their club over the past year, and for being incredibly compliant and helpful to any club who hosted events during the season. Event of the Year was awarded to UCD who hosted the Eastern Championships in Blessington earlier in the year. First Year Sailor of the Year was awarded to newly crowned Intervarsity champion, Fionn Lyden of UCC1. Sailor of the year went to the very deserving Philip Doran of UCD1.
On behalf of UCC Sailing Club I would like to thank everybody who partook in the organisation and running of this event, in particular the Irish University Sailing Association committee, the volunteers (including many UCCSC alumni), the race committee – lead by Denis Quinlan, the umpires, everyone in the Fastnet Marine Outdoor Education Centre, the community of Schull, and our fellow university clubs.

Gold Fleet prize winning teams:
UCC1: Cian O' Regan, Fionn Lyden, Aidan McLaverty, Eimear O' Leary, Dave Healy, Niamh Ní Chonghaile
UCC2: Ross Murray, Brendan Lyden, Conor Lyden, Liam Manning, Chloe Crosbie, Emma Geary
UCD1: Philip Doran, Conor Murphy, Rory Lynch, Tara Flood, Clíodhna Connolly, Ally Morehead

Published in Team Racing
Tagged under

Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

© Afloat 2020