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Displaying items by tag: The Naval Association

#FarewellEMER – L.E. Emer (P21) has completed a four-hour farewell patrol 'cruise' in Dublin Bay today for former crew members of the 1978 built vessel, writes Jehan Ashmore.

The Naval Service offshore patrol vessel (OPV) had on board both members of the The Naval Association and Merchant Navy and where no doubt numerous naval career stories were recalled down through the years.

She slipped her moorings this morning and departed Dun Laoghaire Harbour and made a clockwise circuit of Dublin Bay, passing the Baily Lighthouse, rounding the North Burford bouy and then proceeded south before reaching off Killiney Bay.

In calm sunlight seas she stayed in these waters before slipping through Dalkey Sound to Scotsman's Bay and off Sanycove Point, she also momentarily took some time there before she headed to dock in Dublin Port just after lunchtime.

At the next berth is the French Navy's mine-warfare vessel Croix du Sud which arrived this morning.

Yesterday, L.E. Emer made the short passage from an anchorage call off Skerries to Dun Laoghaire Harbour where tours of the vessel were made to the public while berthed at Carlisle Pier.

As previously reported, L.E. Emer is to be de-commissioned on 20 September and in the following month a pubic auction is to take place to sell the 35 year veteran unless previously sold.

 

Published in Navy

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