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#j24 – Day two of the Irish J24 National Championships made for a gruelling affair for the competitors as winds gusted above 25 for most of the racing day writes Andrew Carey.

With it brought a change to the leaderboard with Flor O'Driscoll's Hard On Port taking line honours in the first two races of day two.

Unfortunately for the leader after day one, JP McCaldin's Jamais Encore, retirement from race one due to a damaged rudder meant that running repairs were called for as the fleet raced on in race two, but tantamount to the resolve of the Lough Erne boat, JP and his crew returned to take line honours in the final two races of the day.

With heavy winds and squalls rolling in off the north western shores, the 12 crews took their punishment as the country's best J24 boats battled and vowed for the lead which changed throughout the tight racing.

With 6 races sailed, Hard On Port has the lead by three points over Stefan Hyde's Hamilton Bear and Jamais Encore and further eight points back.

With two races to sail on the last day, close racing will again be to the fore as the top boats battle it out for the national J24 title.

Results after 6 raced
Hard on Port Flor O'Driscoll RsGYC
Hamilton Bear Stefan Hyde RCYC
Jamais Encore JP McCaldin LEYC
Kilcullen Gordon Stirling HYC
Crazy Horse Tim Corcoran SYC

Published in J24

#j24 – Day one of the J24 Irish Nationals at Lough Erne Yacht Club got off to a blustery start in the Northern club yesterday as winds gusting up to 25–knots challenged the fleet of a dozen boats for honours over the first round of the three day event.

After two races, local boat Jamais Encore helmed by JP McCaldin has the jump on the fleet with a win in the first race followed by a 4th in race two as conditions settled.

Tight racing was the order of the day as the lead boats chopped and changed throughout the race legs. Race two honours went to Tim Corcoran at the helm of Crazy Horse from Sligo Yacht Club.

Overall, the top five boats in the class are separated from each other by just one point - Jamais Encore (JP McCaldin LEYC), Hamilton Bear (Stefan Hyde RCYC), Jellignite (Finbar Ryan LRYC), Crazy Horse (Tim Corcoran SYC) and Django (Martin MacNamara RWYCI / LRYC.

Published in J24

Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) in Ireland Information

The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is a charity to save lives at sea in the waters of UK and Ireland. Funded principally by legacies and donations, the RNLI operates a fleet of lifeboats, crewed by volunteers, based at a range of coastal and inland waters stations. Working closely with UK and Ireland Coastguards, RNLI crews are available to launch at short notice to assist people and vessels in difficulties.

RNLI was founded in 1824 and is based in Poole, Dorset. The organisation raised €210m in funds in 2019, spending €200m on lifesaving activities and water safety education. RNLI also provides a beach lifeguard service in the UK and has recently developed an International drowning prevention strategy, partnering with other organisations and governments to make drowning prevention a global priority.

Irish Lifeboat Stations

There are 46 lifeboat stations on the island of Ireland, with an operational base in Swords, Co Dublin. Irish RNLI crews are tasked through a paging system instigated by the Irish Coast Guard which can task a range of rescue resources depending on the nature of the emergency.

Famous Irish Lifeboat Rescues

Irish Lifeboats have participated in many rescues, perhaps the most famous of which was the rescue of the crew of the Daunt Rock lightship off Cork Harbour by the Ballycotton lifeboat in 1936. Spending almost 50 hours at sea, the lifeboat stood by the drifting lightship until the proximity to the Daunt Rock forced the coxswain to get alongside and successfully rescue the lightship's crew.

32 Irish lifeboat crew have been lost in rescue missions, including the 15 crew of the Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) lifeboat which capsized while attempting to rescue the crew of the SS Palme on Christmas Eve 1895.

FAQs

While the number of callouts to lifeboat stations varies from year to year, Howth Lifeboat station has aggregated more 'shouts' in recent years than other stations, averaging just over 60 a year.

Stations with an offshore lifeboat have a full-time mechanic, while some have a full-time coxswain. However, most lifeboat crews are volunteers.

There are 46 lifeboat stations on the island of Ireland

32 Irish lifeboat crew have been lost in rescue missions, including the 15 crew of the Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) lifeboat which capsized while attempting to rescue the crew of the SS Palme on Christmas Eve 1895

In 2019, 8,941 lifeboat launches saved 342 lives across the RNLI fleet.

The Irish fleet is a mixture of inshore and all-weather (offshore) craft. The offshore lifeboats, which range from 17m to 12m in length are either moored afloat, launched down a slipway or are towed into the sea on a trailer and launched. The inshore boats are either rigid or non-rigid inflatables.

The Irish Coast Guard in the Republic of Ireland or the UK Coastguard in Northern Ireland task lifeboats when an emergency call is received, through any of the recognised systems. These include 999/112 phone calls, Mayday/PanPan calls on VHF, a signal from an emergency position indicating radio beacon (EPIRB) or distress signals.

The Irish Coast Guard is the government agency responsible for the response to, and co-ordination of, maritime accidents which require search and rescue operations. To carry out their task the Coast Guard calls on their own resources – Coast Guard units manned by volunteers and contracted helicopters, as well as "declared resources" - RNLI lifeboats and crews. While lifeboats conduct the operation, the coordination is provided by the Coast Guard.

A lifeboat coxswain (pronounced cox'n) is the skipper or master of the lifeboat.

RNLI Lifeboat crews are required to follow a particular development plan that covers a pre-agreed range of skills necessary to complete particular tasks. These skills and tasks form part of the competence-based training that is delivered both locally and at the RNLI's Lifeboat College in Poole, Dorset

 

While the RNLI is dependent on donations and legacies for funding, they also need volunteer crew and fund-raisers.

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