Following a busy and successful racing season of Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) events nationwide, the legendary Half-Tonner Farr-designed yacht, Swuzzlebubble, raced by David and James Dwyer under the burgee of the Royal Cork Yacht Club, was deemed the 'clear and comprehensive winner 'of the ICRA Boat of the Year Award.
ICRA say the Swuzzlebubble campaign claimed victory by 4.25 points from her nearest rivals, Rockabill VI and ValenTina in Class 0, “Snoopy” in Class 3, and Black Velvet in Class 1.
The winning yacht has a fascinating history and story, from near abandonment in Greece in 2012 to being the top yacht in Ireland in 2023.
ICRA Yacht of the Year 2023, the Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble, pictured winning Class Two of the ICRA Nationals at Howth Yacht Club in September 2023 Photo: Afloat
The season produced mainly changeable and unsettled weather for most of the events, which made this competition more challenging and added greatly to the competitiveness of the fleet.
The ICRA Committee says it is disappointed with the overall participation in the ICRA events during the season, mainly due to poor weather and a full sailing calendar of events nationwide. But they look forward to 2024, where we hope to see more cruisers compete in these highly competitive events, in hopefully better weather.
2024 ICRA season
As previously reported by Afloat, the 2024 National ICRA Championships will be hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC) between Friday, 30th of August, and Sunday, 1st of September. This will be followed by the “Key Yachting J Cup Ireland” championships, from Friday the 6th of September to Sunday the 8th of September. For the more determined and intrepid cruiser sailors they will further enjoy the IRC European Championships from the 12th to the 15th of September, all in the RIYC. "What a wonderful carnival and festival of cruiser racing, seldom seen in one club on our island nation, don’t miss it. Something for all of us cruiser sailors to look forward to in 2024," ICRA's John Leech told Afloat.
ICRA Commodore David Cullen is looking forward to a busy 2024
2024 ICRA Conference
Commodore David Cullen will present the annual ICRA Boat of the Year Award at the forthcoming ICRA Annual Conference, which will take place on Saturday, February 10th 2024, kindly hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club, Dun Laoghaire. Further details will follow.
ICRA say all cruiser sailors, crews and skippers are welcome to this event, which promises to be an interesting, engaging and motivating event, especially to new members who want to give that team spirit of sailing a go and enjoy the sociability that cruiser racing enjoys, they will all receive a warm welcome to ICRA from our committee and members.
