Irish Sailing is hosting a free racing results webinar this coming Saturday 25 April from 10am.

Hosted by Ian Bowring and Dara Totterdell via the video conferencing platform Zoom, the three-hour webinar is designed to help you:

• become fully confident in setting up a results office;
• gather all the information you need to produce good results;
• learn how to use Sailwave results software; and
• stand proud in front of a full clean set of results within a short time of the race finish.

To register for this free seminar, email [email protected]

#FerryNews - Fuel costs increased and a weaker sterling led earnings at Irish Ferries owner Irish Continental Group (ICG) to fall 3 per cent, results for the year ended December 31st 2017 show.

As The Irish Times reports, despite revenue growth of 3 per cent to €335.1 million on the back of volume growth across the group’s operations, earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation fell to €81 million.

Company chairman John B McGuckian flagged the year as a successful one before noting group fuel costs increased by 25.2 per cent to €40.3 million.

Early in the financial year Irish Continental sold its MV Kaitaki which yielded a profit after tax of €24.9 million. Early this year the company sold its Jonathan Swift vessel.

Additionally, the company entered into an agreement this year for a new ferry, which will cost €165.2 million, that will be delivered to the group in 2020 and will be used on the company’s Dublin to Holyhead services.

Although the company’s EBITDA performance won’t thrill shareholders, it was ahead of analyst expectations while profit before tax increased by 45 per cent to €87.8 million. Additionally, the company has moved from a €37.9 million net debt position in 2016 to a net cash position of €39.6 million last year.

Irish continental operates in two divisions; the ferries division which offers passenger and roll-on roll-off freight services, and the container and terminal division.

Despite Brexit associated headwinds, the overall car market to and from the Republic of Ireland grew by around 1.7 per cent in 2017 to 807,400 cars.

Irish Ferries’ car carryings “performed strongly”, up 2.4 per cent to 424,000 cars. The company carried 1.65 million passengers in the period, up 1.7 per cent, thus outperforming growth in the wider market where numbers edged up 1 per cent to 3.13 million passengers.

For more click here.

#Rio2016 - World Sailing continues to struggle with presenting the results of the Olympic Regatta.

The normally very efficient system that brings the World Cup results seems to have failed at a crucial moment.

The issue seems to be an inability to calculate the overall totals and sort them into leader order.

Interestingly, the workaround that World Sailing has put in place is to direct browsers to the official Rio results site.

Here, too, there are issues as this site does not show how discards figure in the overall total.

However, Afloat.ie has discerned that the World Sailing system seems to be operational again and can be accessed HERE.

Users are advised to save that link, as clicking on the other hyperlinks on this page may take you to the official Rio 2016 results site.

Protest decisions are also available through the same link. However, World Sailing fails to indicate which fleet the protest applies to, so there is a bit of guesswork involved in working out which event is affected by the protest.

#DBSC - BENETEAU 31.7 Echo: 1 Legally Blonde (C Drohan/P Egan) ; 2 Thirty Something (Kavanagh\Gaffney\Jones) ; 3 Levante (M Leahy/J Power)

BENETEAU 31.7: 1 Levante (M Leahy/J Power); 2 Legally Blonde (C Drohan/P Egan); 3 Kernach (Eoin O'Driscoll)

CRUISERS 0 Echo: 1 Lively Lady (Derek Martin)

CRUISERS 0: 1 Lively Lady (Derek Martin)

CRUISERS 1 Echo: 1. Raptor (D Hewitt et al); 2 Jigamaree (R Harris); 3 Jalapeno (P Barrington et al)

CRUISERS 1: 1 Raptor (D Hewitt et al); 2 Jalapeno (P Barrington et al); 3 Jigamaree (R Harris)

CRUISERS 2 Echo: 1 Red Rhum (J Nicholson/C Nicholson); 2 Jawesome 111 (M Dyke/B Darcy); 3 Bendemeer (L Casey/D Power)

CRUISERS 2: 1 Red Rhum (J Nicholson/C Nicholson); 2 Jawesome 111 (M Dyke/B Darcy); 3 Graduate (D O'Keeffe)

CRUISERS 3 Echo: 1 Hard on Port (Flor O'Driscoll); 2 Quest (J Skerritt); 3 Cri-Cri (P Colton)

CRUISERS 3: 1 Quest (J Skerritt); 2 Hard on Port (Flor O'Driscoll); 3 Cri-Cri (P Colton)

FIREBALL Race 1: 1 Licence to Thrill (Louis Smyth); 2 Blind Squirrel (Frank Miller)

FIREBALL Race 2: 1 Licence to Thrill (Louis Smyth); 2 Blind Squirrel (Frank Miller)

FLYING FIFTEEN Race 1: 1 Flyer (Niall Coleman); 2 The Last Resort (John O'Sullivan); 3 Kooigjug (K Dumpleton)

FLYING FIFTEEN Race 2: 1. Kooigjug (K Dumpleton); 2 Gulfstream (A Cooper); 3 Snow White (Frank Burgess)

GLEN: 1 Pterodactyl (R & D McCaffrey); 2 Glenluce (D & R O'Connor); 3 Glendun (B Denham et al)

IDRA 14 FOOT Race 1: 1 Dunmoanin (Frank Hamilton); 2 Squalls (Stephen Harrison); 3 Dart (Pierre Long)

IDRA 14 FOOT Race 2: 1 Dunmoanin (Frank Hamilton); 2 Squalls (Stephen Harrison); 3 Dart (Pierre Long)

MERMAID Race 1: 1 Jill (P Smith/P Mangan); 2 Aideen (B Martin/D Brennan)

MERMAID Race 2: 1 Jill (P Smith/P Mangan); 2 Aideen (B Martin/D Brennan); 3 Tijuana (David Stedmond)

RUFFIAN 23: 1 Ruff Nuff (D & C Mitchell); 2 Ripples (Frank Bradley); 3 Bandit (Kirwan/Cullen/Brown)

SIGMA 33: 1 Gwili Two (D Clarke/P Maguire); 2 Springer (I Bowring); 3 Popje (Ted McCourt)

SQUIB Race 1: 1 Perfection (Jill Fleming); 2 Little Demon (Sheila Power); 3 Anemos (Pete & Ann Evans)

SQUIB Race 2: 1 Perfection (Jill Fleming); 2 Anemos (Pete & Ann Evans); 3 Tears in Heaven (M Halpenny/G Ferguson)

WHITE SAIL CRUISERS Echo: 1 Xerxes (Dan O'Neill); 2 Sweet Martini (Bruce Carswell); 3 Persistence (C Broadhead et al)

WHITE SAIL CRUISERS: 1 Persistence (C Broadhead et al); 2 Xerxes (Dan O'Neill); 3 Act Two (Michael O'Leary et al)

# ROWING CORK REGATTA: Timing problems gave the organizers difficulties on Friday, the first day of the Cork City Regatta at the National Rowing Centre, but races ran to schedule today and there were some very competitive times in good conditions. There was general agreement that the  complexity of the timing system at the Grand League regattas will have to be looked at as the series progresses.

Cork eFlow Grand League Regatta, Selected Results

Men

Eight – Division One – A Final: 1 Grainne Mhaol/NUIG (sen) 5:46.5, 2 NUIG (inter) 5:51.4, 3 St Michael’s 5:54.8; 5 St Joseph’s Col (jun 18A) 5:58.4. B Final: Trinity (inter) 6:12.8.

Division Two – A Final: 1 UCC (nov) 6:05.2, 2 Trinity (nov) 6:06.4, 3 UCD (nov) 6:06.9; 4 Col Iognaid (jun 16) 6:21.8. B Final: Neptune (jun 18B) 6:53.6.  

Four – Division One – A Final: 1 Grainne Mhaol (sen) 6:03.6, 2 Grainne Mhaol/NUIG (sen) 6:08.9, 3 St Michael’s (sen) 6:09.7; 4 Presentation, Cork/St Joseph’s (sen – trialling) 6:25.3.

Four, coxed – Division One - A Final: 1 Trinity (sen) 6:21.2, 2 NUIG (inter) 6:21.8, 3 Skibbereen (sen) 6:32.2; 4 St Joseph’s (jun 18A) 6:40.0. Division Two – A Final: 1 Univ of Limerick (nov) 6:43.1, 2 UCD (nov) 6:44.8, 3 Athlunkard (jun 18B) 6:55.2. B Final: 1 Col Iognaid (jun 16) 6:55.1. C Final: Trinity (nov) 7:05.1.

Sculling

Quadruple – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (sen) 6:07.7, 2 Shandon (jun 18A) 6:12.0, 3 UCC (sen) 6:12.7. B Final: Neptune (jun 18A) 6:22.6.

Double – Division Two – A Final: 1 Lee (jun 18B) 6:54.4, 2 Cork (jun 18B) 7:01.3, 3 Skibbereen (nov) 7:03.7; 5 Shandon (jun 16) 7:40.6. B Final: Trinity (nov) 7:20.6, 2 Clonmel (jun 16) 7:27.1. C Final: Col Chiarain (jun 16) 7:35.3. D Final: Blackrock Col (jun 18B) 7:53.4.

Single – Division Two – A Final: 1 Cork (Higgins) 7:29.8, 2 Sligo (Patterson) 7:37.3, 3 University of Limerick (Kobayashi) 7:40.8. B Final: Cork (Higgins) 7:47.8. C Final: Lee (Turner) 7:56.0. D Final: Skibbereen (McCarthy) 8:05.1

Women

Eight – Division One – A Final: 1 Trinity (sen) 6:39.1, 2 UCD (under-23) 6:40.7, 3 Shannon (jun 18) 7:05.7; 4 Queen’s (inter) 7:06.3. Division Two – A Final: 1 Trinity (nov) 7:05.8, 2 Commercial (nov) 7:08.3, 3 Athlunkard (nov) 7:19.3; 4 Shannon (jun 16) 7:31.6. B Final: NUIG (nov) 7:24.3.

Four – Division One – A Final: 1 NUIG/St Michael’s (u23) 6:45.3, 2 St Michael’s (u23) 7:00.4, 3 UCD (sen) 7:02.0. B Final: Skibbereen (jun 18A) 7:13.8.

Four, coxed – Division One – A Final: 1 UCD (inter) 7:22.3, 2 NUIG (inter) 7:24.0, 3 UCD (inter) 7:29.5. B Final: Trinity (inter) 7:38.0. Division Two – B Final: 1 Shannon (nov) 7:38.3, 2 Galway (nov) 7:38.5, 3 NUIG (nov) 7:46.9. B Final: Shandon (jun 16) 7:55.4.

Sculling, Quadruple – Division One – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (sen) 6:59.0, 2 Cork (jun 18A) 7:04.8, 3 St Michael’s (jun 18A) 7:07.1. B Final: Col Iognaid (jun 18A) 7:33.3. Division Two, coxed – A Final: 1 Skibbereen (nov) 7:34.6, 2 Killorglin (jun 16) 7:38.7, 3 Neptune (jun 16) 7:43.8; 4 Commercial (jun 18B) 7:54.1. B Final: Carrick-0n-Shannon 8:20.8.  

Double – Division One – A Final: 1 S Jennings/C Lambe (timing only) 7:02.1, 2 Three Castles (sen) 7:12.6, 3 Skibbereen (sen) 7:27.3; 4 UCC (inter) 7:44.1. B Final: 1 St Michael’s (u23) 7:40.9, 2 Castleconnell (jun 18A) 7:56.1; 4 Col Iognaid (jun 18A) 8:50.9.

Division Two – A Final: 1 Carlow (jun 18B) 7:46.3, 2 Skibbereen (jun 16) 7:59.6, 3 Lee (jun 18B) 8:04.6; 4 Skibbereen (nov) 8:05.2. B Final: St Michael’s (jun 18B) 8:21.8. C Final: Cork (nov) 8:33.9.

# ROWING: The final race of the Irish Schools Championships at the National Rowing Centre had a thrilling finish. Four crews crossed the line with just a small margin separating them in the men’s junior 15 coxed quadruple sculls. Intermediate School, Killorglin, got the verdict from Colaiste Iognaid, St Colman’s College and Presentation College, Cork.

 

Race	Grade	Event	Heat/Final
				1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th
1	M J16	M J16 4X+	Final	Colaiste Iognaid RC	Colaiste Iognaid RC B	Colaiste na Coiribe RC	Presentation College RC	Intermediate School Killorglin	St. Josephs College RC
2	W Open	W Open 2X	Final	Regina Mundi College	Carrick-on-Shannon Community School	Colaiste Iognaid RC
3	M Open	M Open 2-	Final	Presentation College RC	St. Vincent's Castleknock College
5	M Open	M Open 1X	Heat 1	De La Salle College (O'Mahony)	Gonzaga College	Drumshanbo Vocational School (Carty)	Royal School Armagh (Nelson)
6	M Open	M Open 1X	Heat 2	St. Josephs College RC B (Killeen)	Sligo Grammar School (Patterson)	St. Aloysius College (Hannon)
7	W J16	W J16 1X	Final	Mounthawk Secondary School (Ryan)	The Wallace High School (Walker)	Portadown College Boat Club (Flack)
9	M Open	M Open 4+	Final	Ard Scoil Ris	St. Josephs College RC
10	M J15	M J15 4X+	Heat 1	Colaiste Iognaid RC	Colaiste na Coiribe RC	Blackrock College RC B
11	M J15	M J15 4X+	Heat 2	Intermediate School Killorglin	St. Colman's College	Presentation College RC B	Presentation College RC
12	W J16	W J16 4X+	Final	Carrick-on-Shannon Community School	Colaiste Iognaid RC
13	M J16	M J16 2X	Final	Colaiste na Coiribe RC	Colaiste na Coiribe RC	St. Vincent's Castleknock College	St. Josephs College RC
14	W Open	W Open 4X-	Final	Carrick-on-Shannon Community School
15	M Open	M Open 1X	Final	St. Josephs College RC B (Killeen)	Sligo Grammar School (Patterson)	Gonzaga College	De La Salle College (O'Mahony)	St. Aloysius College (Hannon)	Drumshanbo Vocational School (Carty)
16	W Open	W Open 4-	Final	Colaiste Iognaid RC	Laurel Hill
17	W J15	W J15 4X+	Final	Loreto Fermoy	Our Lady Bower	Blackwater Community College	Colaiste na Coiribe RC	Laurel Hill
18	M J16	M J16 8+	Final	Colaiste Iognaid RC	St. Josephs College RC
19	M J16	M J16 1X	Heat 1	Carrick-on-Shannon Community School A (Mc Cabe)	Drumshanbo Vocational School (Hartigan)	Carrick-on-Shannon Community School B (Jordan)
20	M J16	M J16 1X	Heat 2	Marist College Athlone RC A (Munnelly)	Waterpark College (Goff)	Marist College Athlone RC B (Temple)	Royal School Armagh (Bassett)
21	W J16	W J16 2X	Final	Intermediate School Killorglin	Alexandra College	Laurel Hill	Intermediate school killorglian b	Colaiste Iognaid RC	St. Angela's College
22	M Open	M Open 4X-	Final	Colaiste Iognaid RC	Ard Scoil Ris	Blackrock College RC
23	W Open	W Open 1X	Final	Regina Mundi College	Carrick-on-Shannon Community School A (Kelly)	Royal School Armagh (Martin)
24	M Open	M Open 2X	Final	Presentation College RC	Drumshanbo Vocational School	Royal School Armagh
25	M J16	M J16 1X	Final	Waterpark College (Goff)	Marist College Athlone RC A (Munnelly)	Marist College Athlone RC B (Temple)
26	M Open	M Open 8+	Final	St. Josephs College RC	Presentation College RC
27	M J15	M J15 4X+	Final	Intermediate School Killorglin	Colaiste Iognaid RC	St. Colman's College	Presentation College RC B	Colaiste na Coiribe RC	Blackrock College RC B

#NYC – Howth visitor Darragh Sheridan sailing 'Dinghy Supplies' was a clear winner of the SB20 sportsboat division with two wins in Saturday's National Yacht Club Regatta. ALL CLASSES RESULTS DOWMLOADABLE BELOW.

Fifteen gusting to 25–knot south–westerlies ensured few complaints from any of the sailors with a full programme of races for 20 cruiser, keelboat and dinghy classes.

Sheridan topped a 13-boat fleet with Royal St. George boats taking second and third. Barry O'Neill's Sin Bin was second and David Barry and John O'Driscoll shared third, both on 11 points.

In the Dragon class there was a similar result when Royal St. George boats shared the top prizes. David Williams sailing Phantom beat Edinburgh Cup winner Martin Byrne for regatta honours. In a seven boat fleet there was a three way ties for tie for third place between Denis Bergin, Michael Doorly and Michael Halpenny all on eight points.

NYC regatta results available to download as word docs below.

#DBSC – Stunning conditions on Dublin Bay produced wins for Jonathan Skerrit's Quest over bay champion Supernova (Ken Lawless) in today's Cruisers III class racing. Easterly winds and big waves combined to give great racing in the second Saturday of the Dublin Bay Sailing Club (DBSC) season even though there were some gaps in the line up with 18–boats heading outside the bay to contest the first ISORA offshore race of the season to Wicklow.

John Hall's Something Else came home first in Cruisers 1 ahead of Colin Byrne's X-34 Xtravangance. In Cruisers 2 the Corby 25 Smile from the National Yacht Club (O'Connell/Healy/O'Sullivan) beat Bendemeer (L Casey & D Power).

In the one design classes Michael McCambridge's Hy fibre was the winner of the first Flying Fifteen race but club mate Keith Poole in Gruffalo was the winner of the second race. Derek Mitchell's Ruff Nuff  beat Ann Kirwan saiing Ruff N Ready. Third was Diane ll (Andrew Claffey). Full results for Dublin Bay Sailing Club Results for 28 APRIL 2012 below:

Dublin Bay Sailing Club Results for 28 APRIL 2012

BENETEAU 31.7 Echo- 1. Extreme Reality (P.McSwiney/E.O'Rafferty), 2. Magic (D.O'Sullivan/D.Espey), 3. Prospect (Chris Johnston)

BENETEAU 31.7 - 1. Prospect (Chris Johnston), 2. Magic (D.O'Sullivan/D.Espey), 3. Extreme Reality (P.McSwiney/E.O'Rafferty)

CRUISERS 0 - 1. Wow (George Sisk), 2. Loose Change (P Redden & M Mitton)

CRUISERS 1 Echo - 1. Something Else (J.Hall et al), 2. Jump The Gun (M.Monaghan/J.Kelly), 3. Gringo (Tony Fox)

CRUISERS 1 - 1. Something Else (J.Hall et al), 2. Xtravagance (Colin Byrne)

CRUISERS 2 Echo - 1. Smile (O'Connell/Healy/O'Sullivan), 2. Bendemeer (L Casey & D Power), 3. Kamikaze (P.Nash/B.McIntyre)

CRUISERS 2 - 1. Smile (O'Connell/Healy/O'Sullivan), 2. Bendemeer (L Casey & D Power)

CRUISERS 3 Echo - 1. Cri-Cri (P Colton), 2. Pamafe (Michael Costello), 3. Supernova (Shannon, Lawless, McCormack)

CRUISERS 3 - 1. Quest (Jonathan Skerritt), 2. Supernova (Shannon, Lawless, McCormack), 3. Asterix (Counihan/Meredith/Bushell)

Combined Class 3 - 1. Quest (Jonathan Skerritt), 2. Supernova (Shannon, Lawless, McCormack), 3. Asterix (Counihan/Meredith/Bushell)

Combined Class 3 Echo - 1. Syzrgy (R Fogarty), 2. Cri-Cri (P Colton), 3. Pamafe (Michael Costello)

FLYING FIFTEEN Race 2- 1. Hi Fibre (Michael McCambridge), 2. Snow White (Frank Burgess), 3. The Gruffalo (Keith Poole)

FLYING FIFTEEN Race 1- 1. The Gruffalo (Keith Poole), 2. Frequent Flyer (D Mulvin), 3. Deranged (C.Doorly)

RUFFIAN 23 - 1. Ruff Nuff (D & C Mitchell), 2. Ruff N Ready (Ann Kirwan et al), 3. Diane ll (Andrew Claffey)

SHIPMAN - 1. Jo Slim (J.Clarke et al), 2. Whiterock (Henry Robinson), 3. Therapi (Alan McCarthy et al)

SIGMA 33 - 1. White Mischief (Timothy Goodbody), 2. Rupert (R & P Lovegrove), 3. Gwili Two (D.Clarke/P.Maguire)

SQUIB Race 1- 1. Femme Fatale (V Delaney), 2. Nimble (Brian O'Hare)

SQUIB Race 2- 1. Nimble (Brian O'Hare), 2. Femme Fatale (V Delaney)

WHITE SAIL CRUISERS Echo - 1. Calypso (Howard Knott), 2. Spirit (Colin O'Brien et al), 3. The Great Escape (P & D Rigney)

WHITE SAIL CRUISERS - 1. Calypso (Howard Knott), 2. Persistence (C. Broadhead et al), 3. Act Two (Michael O'Leary et al)

#INLAND WATERWAYS - Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) has announced the results of studies on the genetic makeup of brown trout stocks in the Suir and Boyne river catchments.

These studies form part of a wider scheme looking at Ireland's larger riverine catchments - assisted by the Office of Public Works, geneticists from UCD and trout anglers across Ireland - and involve a chemical analysis of scale samples from fish known as 'micro-satellite DNA analysis'.

The results from the Suir and Boyne are described by IFI as "quite amazing" and "of significant value" to managing the fisheries in these areas.

In both catchments, the first step saw trout stock samples of young fish examined genetically, and they were shown to be discrete - in other words, fish from any given tributary were found to be genetically different to those from others.

The next step involved samples of adult fish from the main river, contributed by anglers, which were then related to the different tributary genetic types.

Summary results from the Suir and Boyne show that there are respectively seven and five distinct families of trout in the catchment area; that most fish born in tributaries migrate to the main stem till adulthood before returning to their tributaries to spawn; that numbers migrating from individual tributaries are variable, but fish don't cross into adjacent catchment areas; and that there movement of young trout along the river system is "extraordinary", with fish often migrating from near the source to the mouth.

More details on findings for the Suir catchment and Boyne catchment are available on the IFI website.

Some of last weeks ICRA Nationals were unseated in Kinsale yesterday when visiting boats beat Cork crews took fine wins at a blustery 2011 Sovereign's Cup.

Anthony O'Leary lifted the Sovereign's Cup trophy for the third time. He first won it in a 1720 sportsboat in 1996 on Ford Racing.

David Scott's EOS won the Portcullis trophy for the most consistent performance on ECHO handicap.

UK visitor Xpletive (Mike Crompton) was the winner of the inaugural Michelle Dunne Prix D'elegance trophy. The presentation of the award was made by Michelle's sister, Carrie Dunne. (See photos below)

The overall results show that Kinsale Yacht Club's staging of the Sovereign's Cup was one of the most demanding editions of the cup to date. One hundred cruisers participated in the four day regatta that experienced a wide range of conditions and ended yesterday in mist and fog,  reducing visibilty down to 500 metres. Scroll down for selected results and prizegiving photography from Bob Bateman.

As widely predicted Anthony O'Leary's Antix prevailed in Class Zero with a winning marging of nine points over club-mate Jump Juice (Conor Phelan).  Third place completed the Royal Cork wrap up of the 10-strong big boat class with Kieran Twomey's Corby 38 Glove's Off on 23 points.

In Class One David Scott's EOS maintained an early lead in his X 362 Sport to beat a trio of J109 designs.

11 points separated the local winner from Royal Cork's Jelly Baby (Ian Nagle). Former Royal Irish Commodore Peter Redden was third on Jetstream.

After a many successful years racing on the Shannon Estuary and West Coast, including winning WIORA in 2005, David Scott moved EOS to Kinsale to get more competition. With a composite Limerick/Kinsale crew, they have competed over the last five years in all major sailing events on the South Coast.

In class two, the vintage Dublin based Sigma 33 White Mischief, skippered by Tim Goodbody, completed a two week sailing odyssey firstly by retaining the national title on Belfast Lough on June 18. Her crew then embarked on a 48 hour trip south to win their class in the Sovereign's Cup, a remarkable achievement, given the recently crowned ICRA Class II champion, Allure (Brian Goggin, Kinsale) managed only fourth in class. Second overall was Yanks and Francs and third, Ian Byrne's Sunburn from Howth.

In class three, visiting Rob Gray's Aquila overhauled the impressive Tiger by three points. The Royal Cork champion lost out when Gray scored wins in the last two rounds.

Big seas for Exhale in Class One. Photo: Bob Bateman

Portcullis Trophy winner EOS from Limerick prepares for a hoist. Photo: Bob Bateman

The J109 Jelly baby retrieves her Spinnnaker. Photo: Bob Bateman

Barry Hurley's Dinah. Photo: Bob Bateman

Round Ireland winners; last week Belfast lough, this week Kinsale. Tim Goodbody celebrates with his crew.  Photo: Bob Bateman

The EOS Crew with the Portcullis Trophy

Xpletive (Mike Crompton) the winner of the inaugural Michelle Dunne Prix D'elegance trophy. The presentation was made by Carrie Dunne, sister of the late Michelle and was a very emotional moment for all present with the thunderous applause echoing this sentiment.

The Antix crew lift the Sovereign's Cup for the third time. Our Picture shows Sally O'Leary and Aoife English, crew member and daughter of well known sailor Joe English, proudly displaying the magnificent trophy surrounded by the Antix Team.
Photo: Bob Bateman

Southern Correspondent Claire Bateman adds:

Had to believe it's all over. On the last scheduled day of sailing the forecast was for a clearance to sunny spells and warm weather and while that happened in Cork and surrounds, it certainly did not happen in Kinsale where the fog and mist produced miserable conditions. Winds were 15 kts where the quarter tonners were sailing and out at the Sovereigns were 15 to 18kts or more. The day was not without its moments as crew member Frances Lynch from Jump the Gun went for an involuntary swim off the side and was plucked from the water by Martin Darrer's True Pennance racing in the immediate vicinity. The J109 Jedi had a handling error with the spinnaker and they ended up doing a bit of trawling while Crazy Horse had a broach that resulted in a torn spinnaker.

However, this was the day for results and every boat in the fleet was out to perform to their highest ability. Some were going out knowing they were not in with a chance to win but nonetheless might improve their placing, others were going in the knowledge this might be their lucky day if things were to go their way but for sure nobody knew for certain was was going to happen in the fiercly fought Quarter Ton class. In the end it was to be a most decisive two bullets on the day that secured the trophy for the popular visiting boat, Rob Gray's Aguila. However, the full results are documented and are worth having a good look at to see how close the competition was in the different classes and how all the various good fights were won and lost.

The prize giving was most eagerly awaited and the mist shrouded club and grey evening did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm of the patiently waiting competitors and helpers. After all, who was to going to be awarded the Michelle Dunne Prix d'Elegance, The Sovereign's Cup or Portcullis Stone (known as trophy). Incidentally, on studying this beautiful piece of work it is actually titled Portcullis Stone. Secretly, every skipper present was hoping to be the lucky recipient of one or other.

At last the moment arrived and when presentations of the class trophies had been completed by Ross O'Leary of MGM Boats, John Stallard representing Eli Lilly and Club Commodore Alice Kingston, it was time for the big one.

The Michelle Dunne Prix d'Elegance trophy was awarded to British visitor Mike Crompton in Xpletive and was presented by the Late Michelle's sister, Carrie, on behalf of the Dunne family. The Port Cullis Stone for the best perceived performance in ECHO was awarded to David Scott's EOS and the Sovereign's Cup for the best performance in IRC was awarded to Anthony O'Leary's Antix. These three awards are decided on by a Regatta Committee decision.

The bemused British visitors on Xpletive were not fully aufait with the significance of the Prix d'Elegance Trophy. Anthony O'Leary in his acceptance speech for the Sovereign's Cup paid a very fitting tribute to Michelle and when Xpletive crew members became fully aware of the story behind the Prix d'Elegance they were visibly moved and thrilled to have been selected.

Now it is time to move on. The visitors are getting ready to pack up and leave, Peter O'Leary has left since Friday to travel to Fuerteventura for fitness training in his Olympic programme in the Star Class, John Twomey in Shilleagh in on his way to Weymouth to seek his qualification in the Irish paralympic team also for Weymouth 2012 and George Kenefick of Tiger is on his way to Cowes.