#greystonesharbourregatta – Greystones Sailing Club Cruiser Regatta was held yesterday in sparkling conditions off the Wicklow coastline giving a large visiting fleet from Dublin Bay a new nearby race course area so very convenient to the capitals waters.
James Kirwan's Beneteau 36.7 Boomerang from Dun Laoghaire was the class one winner in a 22–boat fleet. Austin Whelan's Quarter Tonner Solidarity was the winner of a 25–boat class 2. David Shanahan's Warrior was the White Sails division winner. Scroll down the page to download full overall results below.
The second Annual Cruiser Regatta attracted a register of 80 boats from up and down the East Coast. Boats came from from eight clubs including Wicklow, Arklow, Bray, Poolbeg, Clontarf, Dun Laoghaire, Howth and Malahide making it something of a unique, multi club event. At least five held feeder races on Saturday from their clubs to Greystones, giving the new 200–berth Greystones marina a buzz with visiting sailing boats all weekend. Significantly, the overall numbers were up on last year's inaugural event, acording to GSC.
The event – hailed by Greystones SC as the third third biggest cruiser event in Ireland this season – benefitted from some high level race management too with London 2012 Olympic Race Officer Jack Roy in charge on the water.
Olympic race officer Jack Roy was on hand to manage the racing off Greystones yesterday
The second event fully lived up to the expectations created by last year inaugural regatta. The entry fee of €50 had included vouchers for the club bar and vouchers for pints in the Beach House as well as a free overnight berth so great merrymaking rolled well into the early hours in both establishments!
Sunday morning saw hot breakfasts in the Greystones SC clubhouse courtesy of Spendlove's Coffe Shop, followed by a short trip to the starting area in flat seas, bright sunshine and light southerly winds for the 80 competing boats. Race Officers Jack Roy and Tim Costello fired off the first gun of a three class, two race event, on a windward leeward course at 11.00 after a 15 minute postponement.
Three fleets, all sailing the same course against a strong north flowing tide which caught many unawares at the windward mark. Much excited activity and high decibel vocalising took place between the windward and wing marks.
Follow a race averaging an hour and a quarter the second race got going with a strengthening southerly wind.
Beneteau yachts (above and below) competing off Greystones. Photos: David O'Brien
The tide again caught sailors on the hop by turning and flowing south against the still southerly and now increasing wind. Rounding marks became even more frantic than the first race as the wind touched 25 knots in wind against tide sea conditions.
Boats started finishing from about 2.00 o'clock and after berthing, all competitors, marina berthholders and invited guests were treated to the BJ Greystones Harbour Marina hot lunch, salad, and wine reception. Food was provided again by Spendlove's and wine by La Touche Wines.
The BJ Marina Deck also played host for the prizegiving and speeches followed by a reluctant but steady exodus of yachts to their home ports with the buzz of an all inclusive event still ringing in their ears.
The regatta organising committee of Mark Usher, Daragh Cafferky, Joe Taylor and Graeme Noonan look forward to welcoming even more boats to the GSC "Taste of Greystones" Cruiser Regatta next year !" Check back for dates for 2015 on Afloat.ie
Results below for download
