The J24 Western Championship weekend was characterised by great racing, sailing conditions and fantastic hospitality in Foynes Yacht Club.
The Championship - which saw boats from all around the island of Ireland take part - culminated in a great two final races in southerly breeze of 25 knots with gusts up to 30 knots.
Principal Race Officer Raymond McGibney chose Race Area Two and set a course east of Foynes Island.

The penultimate race got underway on schedule with JP McCaldin on Jamais Encore from Lough Erne / Sligo YC and Flor O’Driscoll, Hard on Port, from Royal Saint George Yacht Club duelling for the championship title. After a difficult first beat, only about 25% of the fleet flew spinnakers on the first downwind leg resulting in a big change in the leaders on that leg. In the testing conditions, Hard on Port fell outside the top three giving the title to the Lough Erne boat with one race to spare.

The last race of the day got underway with a clear start with the boats taking the right hand side of the course gaining at the top. Three rounds of the course were completed with the HYC K25 Team leading from the start to the finish followed in second place by Flor O’Driscoll, and Finbarr Ryan on Jelignite in third. Battles continued throughout the rest of the fleet with Jumpin Jive from Greystones YC representing the east coast on the podium in third place. After finishing the fleet sailed to the safe haven of FYC where all were quickly lifted from the water by BCS Crane Hire LTD.

First place for the Jamais Encore crew from Lough Erne Yacht Club

J/24 Class Association of Ireland President, Flor O’Driscoll, commented with delight about the rejuvenation in the J/24 fleet. This event had two newcomers to their regional events, the new HYC K25 Team on Scandal sailing a superb event and finishing first in the Silver Fleet, three points ahead of another newcomer Fergus Kelliher on Jibe from Tralee Bay Sailing Club. Third place went to Dave Lane & Sinéad Enright on YaGottaWanna from the Royal Cork Yacht Club.

The local contingent was led by Gala Racing from Foynes YC, coming in fifth in Gold & seventh place overall.

The prizegiving took place in the club with all competitors in attendance. Sponsors Yachtsman Euromarine, UK McWilliam Sailmakers, North Sails, Quantum Sails, BCS Crane Hire LTD and Cliffords Cash and Carry were thanked. A special thanks went to the members of FYC for all their help over the weekend.

Yachtsman Euromarine J24 Western Championships Overall -

Gold Fleet
1st IRL5278 Jamais Encore JP. McCaldin Lough Erne / Sligo Yacht Club
2nd IRL4794 Hard on Port F. O'Driscoll Royal St. George Yacht Club
3rd IRL3060 Jumpin Jive M. Usher Greystones Sailing Club

Sliver Fleet
1st IRL4212 Scandal HYC K25 Team Howth Yacht Club
2nd IRL4252 Jibe F. Kelliher Tralee Bay Sailing Club
3rd IRL5098 Ya Gotta Wanna D. Lane / S. Enright Royal Cork Yacht Club

Day one of the Yachtsman Euromarine J24 West Coast Championships at Foynes Yacht Club dawned to overcast skies with a westerly force 8-10 knots of breeze writes Elaine O'Mahoney. Last minute tweaking on the pontoon was followed by a procession of J/24’s out of the main channel. Race area one, west of the club house was chosen, which paid dividend for anyone travelling the coast road during the races as they were sailing close to the shore at Mount Trenchard which made for a spectacular sight between Foynes and Glin.

“The first Championships of the 2017 for the Irish J/24 fleet showed a high level of skill from the teams, matched by a very competitive spirit. The racing was physical but fun with new J/24 crew (press ganged at the last minute) getting a baptism of fire. The close racing, typical of the class, gave the newcomers an experience they will remember for some time. The fourteen year old on our boat didn’t know racing could be so scary and fun at the same time. I think we have a new convert! The future of the J/24 is looking good!”

Finbarr Ryan of LRYC/HYC
“Race one, after battling with the pin end, the fleet headed left up the beat, hugging the shore, which led to several port-starboard incidents across the fleet. Both windward marks were incident-rich, with many suffering from tide and port raiders.
Race two Hard on Port nailed the pin end, hugged the shore, and led from start to finish, oblivious to the battles going on astern. A similar format at the front followed for race three.
In race four, with an ebbing tide, eager beavers led to a general recall. Hard on Port was taken out at the start, leaving Jelignite, Scandal and Jamais Encore in a battle up the first beat. With the breeze shifting right and the tide having turned, the right side of the course was favoured, catching much of the fleet off guard after the swelling flood tide. More pressure and an early gybe allowed Jamais to move from third to first & dominated the rest of the race to take the bullet.
All the fleet were met with a pontoon beer reception which was a perfect finish to a great day’s sailing.” 

Jeff Harrison of LEYC
The night finished off with over one hundred sailors sitting down for the championship dinner followed by a live band.
The day’s racing concluded with Jamais Encore, JP McCaldin from LEYC leading from Hard on Port, Flor O’Driscoll RStGYC in the Gold Fleet and in third place Mark Usher on Jumpin Jive from Greystones Sailing Club.
The Silver Fleet is all tied with HYC U25 Keelboat Team joint first with Fergus Kelliher on Jibe from Tralee Bay Sailing Club, with YaGottaWanna, Sinéad Enright and Dave Lane from RCYC in third.
Full racing results here

Eighty five sailors from around Ireland have gathered in Limerick with all province’s being represented at the two day Yachtsman Euromarine J/24 Western Championships. Looking east from the Foynes Yacht Club clubhouse the sixteen J/24’s gently move tied to the club’s new pontoon.

Crews were welcomed by their host with a complimentary bottle of beer/soft drink supplied by Gala Supermarkets. BCS Crane Hire LTD. made short work of lifting the boats in. The breakdown of the Gold and Silver Fleets has been made and can be found here.

“After the three hour drive - the smooth operation of the crane and the welcoming committee were second to none & rumour has it the Guinness is good in the clubhouse. Looking forward to the racing”, commented Harry Cronin of the K25 Team from Howth Yacht Club.

Proceedings get underway with a briefing at 0930hrs followed by First Gun at 1130 with four races scheduled on day one.

A report of day one’s racing & results will follow

With five days to go to First Gun, Seventeen J24’s representing nine clubs have entered for the first of their regional events this year, the Yachtsman Euromarine J24 Western Championships being hosted by Foynes Yacht Club on the Shannon Estuary will take place next weekend the 20th & 21st May .

Local Race Officer, Raymond Mc Gibney will take charge of proceedings on the water with National Race Officer Geoff O’ Donoghue lending his years of experience to assist.

The J24 Association of Ireland is availing of the Irish Sailing Association coaching grant at this regional event. Graeme Grant of Howth Yacht Club who has been coaching J24’s for a number of years will be onsite on the Friday evening to assist with rigging and tuning and will be coaching on the water between races on the Saturday and Sunday. This will be of huge benefit to the new owners who have joined the J24 fleet in recent times.

The first visiting J24 arrived at Foynes Yacht Club last week all the way from Lough Erne Yacht Club, its owner Diarmuid O’Donovan, himself a former National Champion of the class, who hasn’t had his J24 in the water for the past few years due to work commitments and his circumnavigation of the globe in the Clipper Yacht Race.

Some very well known names will be in attendance such as the J24 Class President Flor O’Driscoll sailing his well know J24 Hard On Port, Dave Lane & Sinead Enright from Royal Cork Yacht Club sailing YaGottaWanna, Steve Atkinson from Carrickfergus Sailing Club sailing Bád, Mark User from Greystones Sailing Club sailing Jumpin’Jive (Mark has already a prize to collect before hitting the water as he was the winner of the early entry draw for a North Sails kit bag), Martin Reilly from Sligo Yacht Club sailing Crazy Horse, JP McCaldin (previous J24 National Champion) from Lough Erne Yacht Club sailing Jamais Encore and the HYC U25 Keelboat Squad to name a few, it will be a very completive fleet.

The Yachtsman Euromarine J24 Westerns are also proudly sponsored by BCS Crane Hire LTD, North Sails, Quantum Sails, UK Sailmakers and Clifford’s Cash & Carry ‘Gala Supermarkets’. “Events like this would not be possible without the very generous support of sponsors and we owe them huge thanks” commented Darragh McCormack of Foynes Yacht Club.

Plans are well underway at the club to make it a very special event, with four races scheduled for Saturday, post racing debrief with video footage by Graeme Grant, and a sit-down Championship Dinner followed by a live band ‘The Irresisitibles’.

A late start has been pre-planned for Sunday morning with First Gun at 1155hrs with two races scheduled. BCS Crane Hire will have two cranes on hand to ensure efficient lift out immediately afterwards. The Gold and Silver Fleet winners will be announced at the prizegiving in the clubhouse at 1630hrs.

Four years after he sailed around Ireland as part of a fundraising campaign, Limerick cancer survivor Chris Egan will take to the seas again - only this time he's battling a debilitating sight condition writes Andrew Carey.

In 2013, Chris Egan and David Bevan, who were both cancer patients, completed a remarkable 1,200 nautical mile journey that included stopovers in Dublin and Cork for treatment.

However, Chris' health problems are far from over and two years ago, he was diagnosed with a retinitis pigmentosa which will eventually lead to the complete loss of his sight.

The Rathkeale postman is losing all peripheral vision and whatever remaining vision he has is affected by light.

"I only see shadows now most of the time”, the avid yachtsman said as he announced details of his new sailing challenge.

Chris, who recently qualified in independent living skills training with the Irish Guide Dogs for the Blind, is retracing his round Ireland sailing challenge when he leaves Limerick during this May's Riverfest.

Explaining his condition, Chris said that "if I was to look a person’s face, I would just see either their right eye or the left eye, not both. In saying that, the sight I have is good, but limited - just like looking down a tunnel and not being able to see anything outside of that".

He is determined to do one last round Ireland fundraising campaign as a gesture of thanks to those who have helped him in his latest struggle. He says that he is undertaking the round Ireland challenge in a bid to repay that help and to raise awareness and funds.

"There have been moments when it has been tough and realising the challenge of dealing with this because it is a condition that only worsens," Chris explains.

Chris, who uses a long cane to overcome obstacles like kerbs and steps, says that his ability to cope is helped by learning new skills and tapping into his memory of when he had full sight.

In 2010, he was diagnosed with lymphoma and Hodgkins Disease that required surgery and chemotherapy.

“You just keep going one day at a time - but you have moments. Thankfully I have a huge interest in sailing and that helps with lots of very good people around when you need them.

"Facing a cancer battle, as many know, was a challenge but visual impairment is different because it is a worsening condition. There is no light at the end of this tunnel, if you pardon the pun," he adds.

James McCormack, Commodore of Foynes Yacht Club, who will assist Chris in his latest sailing challenge along with fellow club members, said that he knows the postman to “be always hugely positive for almost 30 years.

"This is another hurdle in his life and he will overcome it and I will support him whatever way I can."

Mr McCormack said that his yacht will be used for the sailing challenge with Chris and two other crew members from the County Limerick yacht club.

Chris’ sailing challenge will raise money for Irish Guide Dogs for the blind and the RNLI.

“Anything we do on the water is hugely dependant on the RNLI and we want to support them but the Irish Guide Dogs will be the main benefactors.

"We will sail around Ireland and leave Riverfest on May 1 and hit off down to the bottom of the River Shannon, turn right (at Loop Head) and keep going around until we come back again", he said.

Fundraising events have been planned for March and April in the lead up to the May Bank Holiday departure.

Leading figures in sailing, national politics and regional industry and commerce joined with many members at Foynes Yacht Club on Sunday in honouring its award of the Volvo ISA Training Centre of the Year title for 2016 at the FYC base on the south shore of the Shannon Estuary.

The club was already a hive of activity in the morning with a fleet of upwards of twenty dinghies taking to the water in a freshening southwesterly breeze to compete in the Foynes Pharmacy February Chill Series. Boats from UL, Killaloe Activity Centre, Tralee Bay Sailing Club and the home club took part. In a gesture of hospitality, the local fleet allowed visitors to claim victory in the first race, the win going Tadgh O’Loinsigh from Tralee Bay SC, but Mary McCormack of Foynes took the bullet in the second contest.

Pre-start manoeuvres on Sunday morning at Foynes for two races in which the honours were evenly spread among the clubs of the region

In the afternoon the members of the club were joined by members of other local sailing clubs, junior sailors past and present and other dignitaries including Minister of State for Tourism and Sport Patrick O’Donovan in the celebration with ISA President David Lovegrove, ISA CEO Harry Hermon, Tom Neville TD, Adam Teskey and Stephen Keary of Limerick County Council, Philip Madigan from Lyons of Limerick Volvo Dealers, and Pat Keating, CEO Shannon Foynes Port Company.

Making history for the club Foynes Yacht Club Sailing Academy Principal Patrick Finucane presented all the instructors with specially commissioned jackets to mark this momentous achievement. From one hundred and five training centres, FYC Sailing Academy received the national award as the “best of the best” as remarked by ISA CEO Harry Hermon to the huge gathering of juniors and adults at the club.

Commodore James McCormack paid tribute to all the hard work put in by the volunteers that has brought the club to this momentous point. ISA President David Lovegrove, after a tour of the club facilities which includes new showering units and new state of the art pontoons built by the members in the past twelve months, echoed the sentiments of Patrick Finucane at the Volvo ISA Sailing Awards of the great work being done through “volunteerism and hard work”.

Minister of State for Tourism and Sport Patrick O’Donovan, commenting on the success of the water sports at the Rio Olympic Games last August, spoke of the need to promote and develop sailing and water sport activities on our Island Nation. TG4 and Irish TV were on hand interviewing members of the Sailing Academy on what the award means to the club, and the day’s activities drew to a close with entertainment and treats for the junior sailors of the Sailing Academy.

They’re keen on their sailing in Foynes Yacht Club in its sheltered channel behind the island on the south shore of the majestic Shannon Estuary writes W M Nixon. And they’re keen on their teaching too. Elaine O’Mahoney stood down as Honorary Secretary as the club’s honorary secretary at the last AGM after guiding FYC through a period of notable growth. But it seems she stood down not because the job was completed, but because she wished to devote more of her time to teaching people to sail.

They’re keen on their sailing in Foynes - and the Shannon Estuary has rewarded this FYC Laser with a generous breeze. Photo FYC
This makes her a certifiable instructaholic, as her day job in the Autumn, Winter and Spring is as a schoolteacher. But she has the teaching bug big time, she has the sailing bug too, and the result is that Foynes is a national leader with people like Elaine, Simon McGibney, Academy Principal Patrick Finucane, Peadar McGrath and others giving freely and generously of their time to bring more than 200 young people to sailing during 2016.

This Sunday the 19th February, Foynes Yacht Club will open its doors for a Family Day celebration from 2.30pm to 5.30 pm to mark this historic achievement. ISA President David Lovegrove will be in attendance to award each of the instructors and assistant instructors with a memento of the special occasion from the Sailing Academy.

In 2016 Foynes Yacht Club brought more than 200 young people to sailing……Photo FYC

….and they covered a wide age range, but all were keen. Photo FYC
In 2015 Foynes Yacht Club was voted Regional Training Centre of the Year and has been delighted to go one better in 2016 with the National Award. It has taken a lot of hard work, dedication, volunteerism and foresight of the club members as a whole.

In recent years the Sailing Academy has upgraded its equipment including wetsuits, buoyancy aids, sails and invested heavily in boats, equipment and facilities. In 2016 Commodore James McCormack facilitated the opening of a new junior shower block consisting of male & female changing rooms and 10 state of the art shower units.

Much of this achievement was made through voluntary effort, and the Commodore’s praise for the club’s key group were echoed by Centre Principal Patrick Finucane, who picked up the award at the recent ceremony in Dublin. When asked what made it happen – he stated ‘Volunteerism and Hard Work’.

A mark of the success of the Sailing Academy is the revival of dinghy racing in the area. The first race of the new season started last week with 24 dinghies taking to the water for the February Chill Series. The event this Sunday will take place after dinghy racing in the morning and is an open invitation day to all who would like to join the Sailing Academy to celebrate the day.

The Topaz Irish Nationals at Foynes reflected the award-winning club’s success as a championship venue. Photo FYC

This August Foynes Yacht Club will host the 2016 Topper Topaz National Championships. The event will run over two days, Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th August writes Elaine O'Mahoney.

This is the club’s second year hosting the event which last year had 34 entries. This year the club has set itself a target of 50 boats. The event is open to anyone sailing Topaz Uno (one person) or Topaz Plus (two people). We would like to invite the sailing schools to enter a fleet with a special offer to enter five and get the sixth entry free. The aim is to have a fun and exciting event with competitors ranging from seasoned sailors to complete beginners at this level with a number of entrants taking the step from Optimist and Toppers to Topaz’ for the first time.

The selection of date also allows for a nomination to be made to the Irish Sailing Association for the All Ireland Junior Sailing Championships which will be run the the Fastnet Marine OEC in Schull on the 25th & 26th September. The Irish Sailing Association makes the final decision on invitations to the All-Ireland Junior Sailing Championships.

Foynes Yacht Club are delighted for the second consecutive year to have Topper International Ltd. onboard sponsoring the overall prizes (1st Topaz Uno Racing Sail, 2nd Set of Hyde Padded Toe Straps, 3rd Carbon Tiller Extension) and also to have Ronstan (IMP Products), UK McWilliam Sailmakers and Hyde Sails generously sponsoring prizes in the different categories including under 18, under 16, under 14 and under 12, single and double handed.

Foynes Yacht Club has camping facilities on the grounds with 24 hr access to the clubhouse for showers and use of the kitchen etc. 

The Notice of Race and Entry Form are available to download from the club website. If you require further information on this event contact Elaine or Simon on 087 3354153.

Day 2 of the Optimist Connaught Championships at Foynes Yacht Club saw much better wind and the Main Fleet getting 3 Championship races successfully completed. The day’s racing kicked off at 11.05am with suitable conditions but a fairly light breeze of 6-10 knots. By race 2 the breeze had picked up with 10-15 knots of breeze filling in making for ideal conditions. A strong tide, occasional squalls, general recalls and a very competitive fleet made for very enjoyable and close racing. The Regatta fleet got another 5 races in today giving them a total 9 races for their division.

The second day of the Connacht Optimist event at Foynes Yacht Club started with light winds and heavy showers. The fleet launched at 0930 with the Main Fleet proceeded to the race area west of Foynes Island while the Regatta Fleet raced in the harbour just in front of the clubhouse.

The Main Fleet had yet to get a race in due to the lack of wind on day one but thankfully wind picked up to 12-15 knots westerly and OOD Geoff O’Donoghue got in three races to complete the series. Racing was very close with positions changing throughout each leg and different winners in each race across the fleets. In the Senior Main Fleet the consistency of Rory O’Sullivan from the

Royal Cork Yacht Club gave him first place overall in the Gold Fleet while Nathan G. Van Steenberge from the National Yacht Club took first in the Silver Fleet. In the Junior Main Fleet Michael Crosbie from the Royal Cork Yacht Club took first place overall in the Gold Fleet and Archie Daly from the Royal St. George led the Silver Fleet.

The Regatta Fleet under the auspices of OOD Raymond McGibney had a further four races to add to the five on Day One getting in the full race card. Again it was tight at the top and after discards applied one point separated winner Sam Ledoux from the National Yacht Club from Jessica Riordan from the Royal St. George. To the delight of the home club Killian Reidy took third place while Tadgh Shanahan had his first win at an Optimist event, both of whom only started Optimist sailing this year.

This was the largest dinghy event Foynes Yacht Club have held in a number of years spearheaded by James McCormack who took over as Commodore two years ago. It has been a huge undertaking and massive collective effort by the members who hope to build on this renewed enthusiasm for dinghy sailing on the lower Shannon.

A prize giving was held at the club at 4:30pm. Full results can be downloaded below. 

Following an onshore briefing at 11am, a fleet of 118 Optimists headed on to the water for Day 1 of the Optimist Connaught Championships 2016 at Foynes Yacht Club. Lack of wind and very poor visibility due to constant heavy drizzle caused a postponement as the race committee monitored conditions for a pick-up in the wind to counteract the 3 knots of tide on the course.

Prevailing light winds of between 1.5 – 3.5 knots which were no match for the strong ebbing tide led to a long postponement with hopes of getting at least one race in. At 4.20pm, having consulted the Coaches, Safety team and other on the water team members, the Race Committee made a final decision to abandon racing for the day. A more promising forecast for tomorrow should mean at least 3 races for the Main Fleet, first gun is scheduled for 10.25am.

The Regatta fleet of 26 boats managed to successfully complete 4 races as their racing zone was well in out of the tide. Full results can be found on the Iodai website: http://iodai.com/results-files/core16os.html. Here’s to a great day of racing tomorrow for the 2nd and final day of the 2016 Connaughts.