24 Fireballs made up the numbers that contested the 2010 Irish Fireball Nationals, hosted by Baltimore Sailing Club over the last weekend of August. 23 visitors and one local boat sailed a nine-race series that went down to the outcome of the last race.
In a regatta where the winner's enclosure was dominated by two combinations, Noel Butler and Brian Flahive and Kenny Rumball and Seamus Moore, nobody else got a look in and the outcome of the regatta was determined on the last race result. Both combinations suffered a DSQ, Butler/Flahive on a black flag and Rumball/Moore on a protest, but in each instance the other combination got the first place on the scorecard.
Butler/Flahive's second place in Race 9 was enough to give them a one-point margin over Rumball/Moore in the overall points count after the second discard kicked in.
The regatta also highlighted the need for greater vigilance on the paperwork issues of class membership and sail measurement which the Class Association will have to address in revised regatta documentation.
Baltimore's Race Officer, and Rear-Commodore, David O'Brien must have a direct contact with the wind Gods because over the three days of the event there was something for everyone. Friday was light and somewhat fickle and saw three races completed after an initial delay to let the wind fill in. Saturday saw four races sailed in good trapezing conditions that left the fleet tired but satisfied. Sunday saw the final two races completed in wind that had gone up a notch in the wind strength gauge. Crews were seen adjusting their rigs as the breeze built during the morning.
Butler/Flahive took three bullets on the Friday only to have the middle race consigned to a black flag infringement. They weren't the only transgressors as almost every successful start was conducted using "El Negro" leaving a sprinkling of DSQs across the fleet scorecard. Some people managed to acquire two infringements of this type. Rumball/Moore had a quieter start to proceedings picking up a 7, 1, 3, which allowed them to lead the regatta overnight.
John Downey/Jon O'Dowd scored two top-ten finishes making the regular fleet sit up and take notice as they are a combination we haven't seen before and they were sailing a borrowed boat. Bryan Byrne & Cillian McGee also scored two top ten results. Byrne is normally at the less blunt end of a Fireball, but showed that he is no slouch when he exchanged a tiller for a jib-sheet. But for consistency, Mike Murphy and Alex Voye, the latter just back from Commodore's Cup duty, picked up second prize for the day and the commensurate slot in the overall standings.
Day 1: Close of play.
1. Kenny Rumball & Seamus Moore – 11pts.
2. Michael Murphy & Alex Voye – 13pts
3. John Downey & Jon O'Dowd – 21pts.
In the Silver fleet, Cearbhall Daly & Martina Michels led, followed by Jim Ryan & Pat Culloo, with Emma Geary/Jack Hogan and Brian O'Neill/Owen Synnott tied in third.
Others to have a good first day were Mick Creighton/Conor Kinsella (2nd & 4th), Louise McKenna & Hermine O'Keeffe (4th & 7th), Michael Ennis/Marie Barry (3rd & 9th), Frank Miller/Grattan Donnelly (7th & 8th) and John Dunne/Jon Evans (5th & 10th).
The fleet ate in Baltimore on the Friday night enjoying glorious late August weather and beers "al-fresco".
Saturday belonged to Rumball/Moore who dominated proceedings on the water with 4 bullets. They would later lose one of these to the aforementioned protest. Butler/Flahive kept the pressure on with a 7,2,1,2 but they admitted that in the stronger breeze they were at a disadvantage, Flahive's 71kg not having the same effect as Moore's bigger leverage. Creighton/Kinsella consolidated their good first day with four top ten finishes, 6, 6, 4, 5, while Neil Colin & Margaret Casey got back to their normal position in the fleet with four top ten results, including a 2nd in Race 4. Ennis/Barry continued where they left off with three more top ten results. Geary/Hogan also built on their foundation from Friday to show that when they breeze was up they could still compete, three top ten results showing their pedigree.
Stephen Oram & Cormac Bradley had a better second day with a 5th in Race 6, two 11th and a tenth. A black flag infringement on day 1 skewed Niall McGrotty's scorecard on Friday but on Saturday he and his crew Robert Mahon came back with a 5, 7 and 8. The 24th entry to the event, Messrs Harken and Walsh joined us on the Saturday.
The close of racing on Saturday saw the running order as follows;
Gold. Silver.
1. Butler & Flahive – 13pts. Geary & Hogan – 66pts.
2. Rumball & Moore – 14pts. Daly/Michels – 97pts.
3. Downey & O'Dowd – 36pts O'Neill/Synnott – 98pts.
The fleet enjoyed a sit down dinner in the club on Saturday evening before adjourning, once again, to the delights of beer drinking in the village square.
Sunday saw the weather forecast correct for the third day in a row with stiffer winds greeting the competitors as they rigged. Race Officer David O'Brien was able to get the racing underway punctually again. Butler took the first race of the day with Downey second and Rumball third. Creighton slipped off the pace with a 12th which for some neutral observers seemed to spell the end of his challenge for a podium finish. Murphy/Voye continued their good form with a 4th and Byrne got a fifth to stay in contention for a low place finish overall. Colin/Casey came unstuck with a black flag, while Laverty/Butler continued their run of very low scores that had begun in race 5.
Race 9 saw Murphy/Voye lead the charge to the first weather mark and onward round the first triangular lap. They would eventually finish 3rd to Rumball who won again and Butler who finished second. Creighton pulled out a 5th place to re-ignite his challenge for a podium finish and Laverty/Butler continued to undo the damage of two black flags earlier in the regatta to finish 4th.
Thus Butler/Flahive took the regatta with a single point margin from Rumball/Moore with Creighton/Kinsella in third overall. In the Silver fleet, the local heroes won with the visitors, Daly/Michels (Dublin) and O'Neill/Synott (Belfast/Dublin) in third overall.
1st Noel Butler & Brian Flahive 1 DSQ 1 7 2 1 2 1 2 10
2nd Kenny Rumball & Seamus Moore 7 1 3 1 1 DSQ 1 3 1 11
3rd Mick Creighton & Conor Kinsella 2 4 15 6 6 4 5 12 5 32
Silver
14th Emma Geary & Jack Hogan 18 10 20 8 5 15 10 16 14 78
18th Cearbhall Daly & Martina Michels 10 6 19 14 22 21 20 19 16 104
19th Brian O'Neill & Owen Synott 19 18 11 19 19 17 14 DSQ 15 113
The final regatta of the Irish domestic regatta scene is in Dunmore East under the burgee of Waterford Harbour Sailing Club, a favoured venue of the fleet, over the weekend of 18/19 September.
With the absentees from the Nationals back in the saddle for September, and our new recruits to the fleet who have contested single regattas also in place, this promises to be a mega-fleet to conclude the regatta schedule.
