Displaying items by tag: Lagan Scullers' Head

10th March 2019

Queen's Shine at Lagan Scullers' Head of the River

#Rowing: Queen’s had a good day at the Lagan Scullers’ Head of the River in Belfast on Saturday. Sam McKeown was the fastest single sculler in the first head, and was most closely matched by three other men from his college club. Queen’s also had the fastest quadruple and double on the day.

Lagan Scullers’ Head, Saturday (Draft Results; selected)

Head One: 1 Queen’s (S McKeown; men’s senior single) 12 mins 15.8, 2 Queen’s (M Taylor, sen single) 12:49.7, 3 Queen’s (R Corrigan) 13:03.9; 5 Enniskillen RBC jun 16 double (T Murphy) 13:12.6, 7 Enniskillen jun 15 coxed quad (D Howe) 13:16.1; 15 Methody (C Purdy; jun 18A single) 14:13.8; 30 Bann (K Shirlow; women’s intermediate single) 15:06.3, 31 Belfast BC jun 18A women’s double (S Gordon) 15:07.8. 60 Coleraine GS (G Lenaghan; women’s jun 15 single) 16:36.6.

Head Two: Queen’s men’s sen quad (M Taylor) 11:01.3; 3 Methody men’s jun 16 quad (T Fleming) 13:08.1; 8 Enniskillen jun 18 double (J Timoney) 14:29.2; 9 Bann (A Christie; inter single) 14:31.1; 16 Belfast BC women’s jun 16 coxed quad 15:05.7; 19 Queen’s (R Smylie; women’s sen single) 15:28.3; 25 Belfast BC (L McCoy; women’s jun 18A single) 16:16.5; 27 Belfast RC (K Foster; men’s club two single) 16:24.8. 34 Carrick on Shannon women’s jun 15 quad 17:07.1. 36 Belfast BC women’s novice double 17:16.0; 42 Enniskillen (L Paton; men’s jun 15 single) 17:35.5. 51 Queen’s (C Hagan; men’s nov single) 18:30.4

Head Three: 1 Queen’s men’s sen double (H Moore) 12:30.4, 2 Enniskillen RBC jun 18A quad (J Timoney) 13:07.8; 7 Belfast BC women’s jun 18A quad (P Mullan) 14:13.3; 10 Methody men’s jun 18B coxed quad (A Waly) 14:31.0; 15 Carrick on Shannon (T Ó Donaile; men’s jun 16 single) 15:41.0, 16 Coleraine GS men’s jun 15 double (O Leitch) 15:41.9, 19 Belfast BC women’s jun 16 double (K Dick) 15:59.8; 40 Lagan Scullers’ women’s jun 15 double (E Darby) 17:04.4.

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About Conor O'Brien, Irish Circumnavigator

In 1923-25, Conor O'Brien became the first amateur skipper to circle the world south of the Great Capes. O'Brien's boat Saoirse was reputedly the first small boat (42-foot, 13 metres long) to sail around the world since Joshua Slocum completed his voyage in the 'Spray' during 1895 to 1898. It is a journey that O' Brien documented in his book Across Three Oceans. O'Brien's voyage began and ended at the Port of Foynes, County Limerick, Ireland, where he lived.

Saoirse, under O'Brien's command and with three crew, was the first yacht to circumnavigate the world by way of the three great capes: Cape Horn, Cape of Good Hope and Cape Leeuwin; and was the first boat flying the Irish tri-colour to enter many of the world's ports and harbours. He ran down his easting in the Roaring Forties and Furious Fifties between the years 1923 to 1925.

Up until O'Brien's circumnavigation, this route was the preserve of square-rigged grain ships taking part in the grain race from Australia to England via Cape Horn (also known as the clipper route).

At a Glance - Conor O'Brien's Circumnavigation

In June 1923, Limerick man Conor O’Brien set off on his yacht, the Saoirse — named after the then newly created Irish Free State — on the two-year voyage from Dun Laoghaire Harbour that was to make him the first Irish amateur to sail around the world.

June 1923 - Saoirse’s arrival in Madeira after her maiden passage out from Dublin Bay

2nd December 1924 - Saoirse crossed the longitude of Cape Horn

June 20th 1925 - O’Brien’s return to Dun Laoghaire Harbour