Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Displaying items by tag: John Haig

As Irish sailing prepares to honour the team that brought the Commodores' Cup home after a ten year wait, the fact Ireland previously won the Cup 32 years ago will be news to many involved, wrote David O'Brien in last Friday's Irish Times Sailing Column.

It turns out a single Irish Team won the Cup in 1978 beating an English team, the only other entry that year. (See Jack Connor's note below).

What amounts to a lost chapter in the history of the cup reveals Ireland's long standing love affair with the top prize in cruiser-racing.

The 2010 achievement is being celebrated on November 13th at the Irish Cruiser Racer (ICRA) Conference in Cork and at a gala dinner in honour of the team at the Royal Cork Yacht Club in Crosshaven that same night.

After mounting multiple teams, considered favourites going into both the 2006 and 2008 events but failing to win either, the Royal Cork boats Antix, Marinerscove.ie and Roxy VI secured the Cup in August.

After first being jilted by the French and twice by the English, the Irish could be forgiven for giving up on the cup but we never did.

The win is the highlight of the sailing year and it is the centrepiece of an action packed conference that will reflect on a job well done, the same as in 1978.

Back then the Commodore's Cup was also staged in Cowes. It was hosted by The Royal Corinthian Yacht Club and sponsored by John Haig, Scotch Whisky.

Only two teams registered, Ireland and England, so it became a match racing event. The teams consisted of a One Tonner, a Three Quarter Tonner and a Half Tonner in the existing rating bands of the day.

The Irish team consisted of Jack Connor's Sheer Magic, from Carrickfergus, Poppy, a contention 33, on charter from John Deans to Pat Donovan and Silver Shamrock skippered by Harry Cudmore.

The English team consisted of Green Highlander, Samsara and Red Hot Granny.

Crew line-up included Cork sailmakers John and Des McWilliam and Dick Gibson.

The races consisted of three inshore races, one middle distance and the event culminated in a Channel Race, similar to today's event.

Skipper Jack Connor says "I remember all the details as the sponsor had put up a prize of a gallon bottle of whisky to the winner of each class for each race! We won two, I still have one of the bottles, but Harry and his crew of four others won every race, that's five one gallon bottles of Haig!

It's a seldom heard story that is certain to be applauded again in Cork next month and one that should renew efforts to bring the Cup home for a third time.

1978 Commodore's Cup Winner Jack Connor writes:

I have recently read of the success of our national team in the Commodore' Cup event, and I whole heartedly congratulate all involved. I do not wish to knock the wind out of any sails but I would point out that the Commodore's Cup was won by Ireland in 1978! The event was staged in Cowes, hosted by The Royal Corinthian Yacht Club and sponsored by John Haig, Scotch Whisky. Two teams registered, Ireland and England so it became a match racing event. The teams consisted of a One Tonner, a Three Quarter Tonner and a Half Tonner in the existing rating bands. the Irish team consisted of Sheer Magic,from Carrickfergus, my boat, Poppy,a contention 33, on charter from John(?) Deans to Pat Donovan and Silver Shamrock skippered by Harry Cudmore.
The English team consisted of Green Highlander, Tom Chadwick; Samsara, Odile Van Trom or Dom(I think); and Red Hot Granny, or Gonnagetcha. There was one French boat turned up at the marina, but it did not take part.
I remember all the details as the sponsor had put up a prize of a gallon bottle of whisky to the winner of each class for each race! We won two,i still have one of the bottles, but Harry and his crew of four others won every race! 5 one gallon bottles of Haig's!!!
Ireland won the event and we were presented with the Commodore's Cop trophy, a Gold Cup which had been donated by two well known sailors of the time (I do forget their names- sorry).I believe it is the same trophy.
The races consisted of three inshore races, one middle distance and culminated in the Channel Race. We had enlisted the help of John McWilliam and Dick Gibson from the McWilliam sail loft as crew and I recall Des joined us for the Channel Race.It was hard to get time off work in those days.
It was our first time in the "Big League" of sailing and we enjoyed every minute of it.My memory of those times is still pretty good if anyone wants more information.
(there is an interesting story attached to Sheer Magic if anyone is interested.) Regards Jack Connor.


 

 

Published in Commodores Cup

Irish Sailing Classes and Association – There’s no shortage of one-design classes from which to choose and each gives its enthusiasts great competition, fun and camaraderie, writes Graham Smith in this review of the classes. 

One-design racing is where it all starts. It is, after all, where all the top sailors earned their stripes, battling away for line honours without a thought for a handicapper’s calculator wiping away a hard-fought victory!

Indeed, you could count on less than one hand the number of top Irish sailors who didn’t cut their teeth in a one-design dinghy! Just think of Cudmore, Barrington, Watson, Wilkins, Hennessy and Dix to name a few and you realise that they honed their skills in everything from Enterprises to Lasers and a lot in between.

At present count, there are a little over 30 one-design classes in Ireland, split almost evenly between dinghies and keelboats, a statistic which might raise a few eyebrows. They range from the long-established Mermaids, IDRA14s and Dragons to the newer additions like Fevas, Topaz and RS Elite. They all fill a particular need and give their owners and crews considerable enjoyment.

Many have attracted their World or European Championships to Irish waters over the years and while 2009 is notable for a lack of such events here, the following year will see the Etchells Worlds at Howth and perhaps a few other international regattas too.

In addition to the review, we asked each class to complete a questionnaire giving details of their fleet numbers, whether they were on a growth pattern or holding their own, so we could highlight those ‘on the up’ and those remaining static in terms of numbers. The older traditional designs, as you might imagine, fall into the latter category, although that’s not a negative!

CLASS REVIEW  The State of the Classes – League Table (as at February 2009)

S = Static; U = Up/growing

275     Optimist   U

200+   Laser   S

189     Mermaid   S

160     Flying Fifteen   S

130     RS Feva   U

115     Shannon One Design    U

100+   Mirror   S

100+   Topper   U

99       Topaz   U

94       Laser SB3   U

87       GP14   U

85       Squib   S

70       Fireball   S

70       Ruffian   S

60       J24   S

60       Shipman   S

52       Dragon   S

50       RS400/200   S

50       420    U

43       Multihulls    U

42       Dragon    S

40       Water Wags    U

40       Wayfarer    S

34       IDRA14    U

33       Puppeteer    U

28       Etchells    S

27       E-Boat    U

26       Glen    S

25       Enterprise    S

18       Sigma 33    S

18       Howth 17    U

13       RS Elite    U