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Thrilling Action at the 2024 Melges 15 Irish National Championships

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Howth Yacht Club played host to an exhilarating weekend of sailing as the 2024 Melges 15 Irish National Championships unfolded on August 24-25.

The event showcased the rapidly growing popularity of this versatile dinghy class, which has taken Ireland by storm since its introduction just a year ago.

Video: Event Wrap-Up and Competitor Interviews

Experience the excitement of the 2024 Melges 15 Irish National Championships through our wrap-up video, featuring thrilling drone footage and exclusive interviews with competitors.

A Rising Star in Irish Sailing

The Melges 15, a product of the renowned US boat builder Melges, has quickly established itself as a force to be reckoned with in the sailing world. With over 850 boats built and having clinched the Boat of the Year award in 2022, the M15's appeal lies in its stability, ease of handling, and adaptability to various crew combinations. From family duos to all-female teams and teenage crews, the Melges 15 is proving to be a truly versatile platform for the future of sailing.

Ireland has embraced this exciting class with open arms. What started as a fleet of 11 boats in Dún Laoghaire last year has now expanded to include another 13 boats in Howth, bringing the total to 24 across the country.

The National Championships saw an impressive turnout of 19 boats on the starting line, a testament to the class's rapid growth and popularity.

Photo Gallery: Pre-Race Preparations

Browse through our gallery showcasing crews rigging up their Melges 15s onshore, and also plenty of action on the race course

Day One: Champagne Sailing Conditions

Saturday dawned with perfect racing conditions - a bright blue sky, winds up to 18 knots from the west, and a flat sea. Race Officer Richard Kissane and his team were ready to provide top-notch race management, aided by the cutting-edge Vakaros RaceSense software .

Each boat was equipped with a Vakaros Atlas instrument, which automatically synced with the RaceSense network. This innovative system provided real-time information to competitors, including countdowns, OCS (On Course Side) warnings, and clear signals for postponements and general recalls.

A special mention goes to Ross McDonald of Ropedock , who expertly managed the RaceSense setup on the committee boat.

The race team delivered four superb races, each lasting approximately 40 minutes. The competition was fierce, with a different winner in each race, highlighting the depth of talent in the fleet. By the end of the day, competitors had covered an impressive 50 nautical miles , with top speeds reaching an exhilarating 17 knots!

Evening Festivities

After a day of adrenaline-pumping action on the water, sailors gathered for the championship dinner following the class AGM. It was a perfect opportunity for crews from both sides of the bay to share their experiences and enjoy some well-deserved craic.

Spot prizes were awarded for the most spectacular capsize (Ronan Murphy), fastest speed (Doc and Teddy), and top couple (Theo and Clodagh).

Day Two: Safety First

Sunday brought challenging weather conditions, with forecasts predicting gusts up to 30 knots. After careful consideration and an hour-long assessment of the conditions, Richard and his team made the prudent decision to abandon racing for the day. This decision was met with quiet relief from the competitors, allowing the event to conclude on the high note of Saturday's excellent racing.

Celebrating the Champions

The event culminated in a prize-giving ceremony at noon on Sunday. Commodore Neil Murphy opened the proceedings, setting the stage for the celebration of achievement. Special awards were presented to Sarah McLoughlin for first female helm, Florence Butler for first female crew, and Will Cullen for first male crew.

The podium finishers were then announced:

• Overall Winners: Daragh O'Connor and Brian (Teddy) Byrne from Howth Yacht Club, crowned as the inaugural 2024 Melges 15 National Champions
• 2nd Place: John Sheehy and his niece Katie Sheehy from Royal St. George Yacht Club
• 3rd Place: Mike Evans and his son Andrew from Howth Yacht Club

Photo Gallery: Prize-Giving Ceremony

A special mention goes to Goncalo Melo from Bowmedia , who traveled from Lisbon, Portugal, to capture stunning drone footage of the event, ensuring that the excitement of the championships can be remembered  and relived for years to come.

The 2024 Melges 15 Irish National Championships at Howth Yacht Club proved to be a resounding success, showcasing the best of what this exciting new class has to offer. With its growing popularity and the enthusiasm of its sailors, the future looks bright for Melges 15 racing in Ireland.

Report by Cormac Farrelly: Event Organiser

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At the Royal Irish Yacht Club we take great pride in the reputation we have earned for our excellent food and service standards. With local fresh produce, sourced daily, from quality certified suppliers; our Dining Room and Bar menus embody the best of modern Irish dining.  

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Jacket required, tie not required, polo neck replacing the collared shirt (if preferred). No jeans, sneakers, or tee shirts. More formal dress of jacket and tie is encouraged at the weekends for gentlemen. Sunday Lunch - Dining Room To encourage family dining the dress code has been relaxed to smart casual.    Drawing Room

Neat, tidy and clean casual clothes to be worn at all times. For greater clarity the following is not acceptable: Track suits, working clothes or boots, torn or wet clothes. Also no shorts or sailing boots allowed except on Regatta or event Days.

Neat, tidy and clean casual clothes to be worn at all times For greater clarity the following is not acceptable: Track suits, working clothes or boots, torn or wet clothes.

Overcoats, anoraks, cycling gear and helmets / head gear should be removed and either left in the changing rooms or on the coat racks in the hall. The dress code for special functions may be different to the above and should be specified prior to the event. It is the responsibility of members to advise their guests of the Club’s dress code and Rules & Regulations when visiting the Club. Should a member be alerted to a dress code infringement by a member of staff it is to be expected that their response will be sympathetic and conducive to correcting the infringement.

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Details of our Club Events; Wine Dinners, Rugby Matches, Steak Nights, Cruising Talks, Special Lunches and Dinners etc. can be found on our Social Programme page . Details of our Shore-based group's such as Bridge, Book Club, Snooker & Billiards, Chess, Hillwalking and Dance group, can be found here in our Shore-based Groups .

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2024 IRC European Championships | Hosted by the Royal Irish YC

Three major sailing championships will be hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire in Autumn 2024 in what will be a three week jamboree of keelboat racing, culminating in the IRC European Championship.

First up is the ICRA National Championships, which will see yachts across all classes competing on exciting Dublin Bay courses and with plentiful shoreside entertainment. The ICRA National Championships will run from Friday, 30th August to Sunday, 1st September. The timing of this event may put some of the Dun Laoghaire fleet at a dis-advantage if they are not careful to maintain crew discipline on ICRA’s Eve – typically, the last Thursday night race of the Dublin Bay Sailing Club season can be a rowdy affair!

Crews of J boats will barely have time to hose down their boats and fold away their racing sails before the Key Yachting J Cup Ireland kicks off with preliminaries in the Royal Irish yacht Club on Friday 6th September 2024. First run in the RIYC in 2023, this very successful event returns with back-to-back racing on the weekend of Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th September 2024. We expect large entries from England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland given the opportunity to race in the ICRA’s and/or the IRC Europeans the week before and the week after.

Crowning off the three weeks of competition will be the IRC European Championship which runs from 12th – 15th September 2024. Run in conjunction with the Royal Ocean Racing Club, this will bring the cream of Grand Prix cruisers racers to Dun Laoghaire and will prove to be a spectacular event for both participants and spectators. In a special partnership with RORC, RIYC are preparing a format which will be inclusive for Club, Regatta and Professional sailors alike while Dublin is only 20 minutes away by metro and full of sights and experiences for fellow travellers.

Running the events on consecutive weeks allows visiting boats to come and enjoy their pick of top level racing and also enjoy some downtime with their friends and families exploring the hinterland of the area. The Preliminary Notice of Race will be issued in the next few weeks.

“We are delighted to be hosting this unique jamboree of sailing in the Royal Irish Yacht Club next year. Our club’s excellent facilities, under the stewardship of our sailing manager Mark McGibney are gearing up to welcome all the sailors and guests. This is a great opportunity for Dun Laoghaire to show the World what a fantastic location it is for yacht racing. There are many attractions for the visiting crews their family and friends to enjoy “ said Jerry Dowling – Commodore of the Royal Irish Yacht Club.

Royal Irish Yacht Club website

Random Building

• 1850 – Royal Irish Yacht Club, Dun Laoghaire, Co. Dublin
• Buildings of Ireland
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Constructed between 1847 and 1850, at a cost of around £4,000. From The Builder, February 8 1851: “The Royal Irish Yacht Clubhouse, Kingstown, county Dublin, of which a view of the water front and a plan are annexed, has been lately erected from the designs of Mr. J.S. Mulvany, architect. It is situated near the terminus of the Dublin and Kingstown Railway, from which a good view of the building is obtained. The exterior of the building is executed in Roman cement. The principal entrance is in the elevation facing the railway in the centre of a colonnade, composed of eight Ionic columns, 15 feet 3 inches high. In front of the marine elevation is a terrace, supported by a substantial retaining wall, composed of hammer-dressed black stone, with cornice supported on cantilever blocks, surmounted by a parapet of granite. This terrace was designed for the purpose of affording the members and their friends an opportunity of witnessing the regattas which take place in the harbour; and a portion of the roof of the clubhouse is constructed flat, to serve as a platform for the same purpose.”

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How to get to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire by bus, train or light rail?

Directions to royal irish yacht club (dún laoghaire) with public transportation.

The following transit lines have routes that pass near Royal Irish Yacht Club

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From Dame Street, Dublin

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Click on the train route to see step by step directions with maps, line arrival times and updated time schedules.

Bus stations near Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire

• Dun Laoghaire Stn, 5 min walk, VIEW
• Dun Laoghaire, Town Hall, 5 min walk, VIEW
• Dun Laoghaire Sc, 7 min walk, VIEW
• St Michael's Hosp, 11 min walk, VIEW

Train stations near Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire

• Seapoint, 20 min walk, VIEW
• Dun Laoghaire (Mallin), 46 min walk, VIEW

Bus lines to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire

• L25, Dundrum, VIEW
• 46A, Phoenix Pk, VIEW
• S8, Dun Laoghaire Stn, VIEW
• 63, Kilternan Village, VIEW
• 63A, Kilternan Village, VIEW
• 111, Dalkey Village, VIEW
• 45A, Kilmacanogue, VIEW
• 45B, Dun Laoghaire Stn, VIEW
• 59, Dun Laoghaire Stn, VIEW
• DUBLIN AIRPORT - KILLINEY (FITZPATRICK CASTLE HOTEL), Fitzpatrick Castle Hotel, VIEW
• 7, Brides Glen, VIEW
• 7A, Loughlinstown Pk, VIEW
• DUBLIN CITY SOUTH, D'OLIER STREET - DÚN LAOGHAIRE-RATHDOWN, WOODBROOK GOLF CLUB, Woodbrook College, VIEW
• 7E, Mountjoy Square, VIEW

What are the closest stations to Royal Irish Yacht Club?

The closest stations to Royal Irish Yacht Club are:

• Dun Laoghaire Stn is 331 meters away, 5 min walk.
• Dun Laoghaire, Town Hall is 347 meters away, 5 min walk.
• Dun Laoghaire Sc is 503 meters away, 7 min walk.
• St Michael's Hosp is 773 meters away, 11 min walk.
• Seapoint is 1544 meters away, 20 min walk.
• Dun Laoghaire (Mallin) is 3606 meters away, 46 min walk.

Which bus lines stop near Royal Irish Yacht Club?

These bus lines stop near Royal Irish Yacht Club: 7, 7A, S8.

Which train line stops near Royal Irish Yacht Club?

What’s the nearest train station to royal irish yacht club in dún laoghaire.

The nearest train station to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire is Seapoint. It’s a 20 min walk away.

What’s the nearest bus stop to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire?

The nearest bus stops to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire are Dun Laoghaire Stn and Dun Laoghaire, Town Hall. The closest one is a 5 min walk away.

What time is the first train to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire?

The DART is the first train that goes to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire. It stops nearby at 9:15 AM.

What time is the last train to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire?

The DART is the last train that goes to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire. It stops nearby at 12:10 AM.

What time is the first bus to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire?

The DUBLIN CITY SOUTH, D'OLIER STREET - DÚN LAOGHAIRE-RATHDOWN, WOODBROOK GOLF CLUB is the first bus that goes to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire. It stops nearby at 3:27 AM.

What time is the last bus to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire?

The S8 is the last bus that goes to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire. It stops nearby at 12:24 AM.

See Royal Irish Yacht Club, Dún Laoghaire, on the map

Public Transit to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire

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Looking for the nearest stop or station to Royal Irish Yacht Club? Check out this list of stops closest to your destination: Dun Laoghaire Stn; Dun Laoghaire; Dun Laoghaire Sc; St Michael's Hosp; Seapoint; Dun Laoghaire (Mallin).

Bus: 7 7A S8 L25 46A 63 63A 111 45A 45B 59 DUBLIN AIRPORT - KILLINEY (FITZPATRICK CASTLE HOTEL) Train: DART RAIL

Want to see if there’s another route that gets you there at an earlier time? Moovit helps you find alternative routes or times. Get directions from and directions to Royal Irish Yacht Club easily from the Moovit App or Website.

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Royal Irish Yacht Club Address: Harbour Road street in Dún Laoghaire

Attractions near Royal Irish Yacht Club

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Dún Laoghaire has 3 transit type(s), including: bus, train or light rail, operated by several transit agencies, including Luas, Bus Átha Cliath – Dublin Bus, Bus Éireann, Go-Ahead Ireland, Nitelink, Dublin Bus, Citylink, Kenneally's Bus Service, Aircoach, TFI Local Link Mayo, Irish Rail, Express Bus, JJ/Bernard Kavanagh, Dublin Coach, Kearns Transport and Matthews Coach Hire

Public transit lines with stations closest to Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dún Laoghaire

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ROYAL IRISH YACHT CLUB

September keelboat regattas.

30th August - 15th September 2024

UNIO ICRA National Championships 2024

The Northern Trust J-CUP IRELAND 2024 incorporating the J109 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS 2024

THE MAPLES GROUP IRC EUROPEANS 2024

A Snippet of the Sailing on offer in Dublin bay

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Royal Irish Yacht Club, Dun Laoghaire

The Royal Irish Yacht Club is situated in a central location in Dun Laoghaire Harbour with excellent access....

• Royal Irish Yacht Club, Harbour Road, Dun Laoghaire Harbour
•   +353- 87 9481707  -  Royal Irish yacht Club
•   [email protected]
•   0900 - 2300 Daily

Royal Irish Yacht Club

Dun Laoghaire town has a wide range of accommodation available including hotels, B&Bs and AirBnB

Royal Marine Hotel. http://www.royalmarine.ie

Haddington House Hotel. https://haddingtonhouse.ie

Rochestown Lodge. www.rochestownlodge.com

Killiney Castle. www.fitzpatrickcastle.com

Bed & Breakfast

There are a number of Bed and Breakfasts in the town, only minutes from the Yacht Clubs. Click Here to view the list of other options available in Dun Laoghaire.

Helpful information for your trip to Ireland

Travel By Car Ferry - Note we are currently in discussion with Ferry companies to negotiate special rates for competitors. Details will be announced.

Ireland is an island with easy access by air or sea.  

There are several sea links to Ireland

UK - Irish Ferries and Stena Line

France - Irish Ferries

France & Spain - Brittany Ferries

The closest port to Dun Laoghaire is Dublin Port, which is approx. 30 minutes by car, depending on time of day. There are excellent ferry connections daily from the UK and mainland Europe. 

Rosslare Port is about 2 hours south

Belfast or Larne Ports are about 2 hours to the north.

Cork is 2.5hrs South

Tim Carpenter

Royal Irish Yacht Club Commodore

Mark McGibney

Sailing Services Manager

Mark is our go to man and the main point of contact in the Club

Sailing Event Co-ordinator

Fintan Cairns

Chairman of the Events Committee

Patrick Burke

Chairman of the IRC European Championship

Paul McCarthy

Chairman of the J Cup and J109 Europeans

•     [email protected]
•   Royal Irish Yacht Club, Harbour Road, Dun Laoghaire Harbour

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Home » News » European Championship » IRC European Championship to crown three weeks of competition in Dublin Bay

IRC European Championship to crown three weeks of competition in Dublin Bay

Three major sailing championships will be hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire in Autumn 2024 in what will be a three week jamboree of keelboat racing, culminating in the IRC European Championship.

First up is the ICRA National Championships , which will see yachts across all classes competing on exciting Dublin Bay courses and with plentiful shoreside entertainment. The ICRA National Championships will run from Friday, 30th August to Sunday, 1st September. The timing of this event may put some of the Dun Laoghaire fleet at a dis-advantage if they are not careful to maintain crew discipline on ICRA’s Eve – typically, the last Thursday night race of the Dublin Bay Sailing Club season can be a rowdy affair!

Crews of J boats will barely have time to hose down their boats and fold away their racing sails before the Key Yachting J Cup Ireland kicks off with preliminaries in the Royal Irish yacht Club on Friday 6th September 2024. First run in the RIYC in 2023, this very successful event returns with back-to-back racing on the weekend of Saturday 7th and Sunday 8th September 2024. We expect large entries from England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland given the opportunity to race in the ICRA’s and/or the IRC Europeans the week before and the week after.

Crowning off the three weeks of competition will be the Maples IRC European Championship  which runs from 12th – 15th September 2024. Run in conjunction with the Royal Ocean Racing Club, this will bring the cream of Grand Prix cruisers racers to Dun Laoghaire and will prove to be a spectacular event for both participants and spectators. In a special partnership with RORC, RIYC are preparing a format which will be inclusive for Club, Regatta and Professional sailors alike while Dublin is only 20 minutes away by metro and full of sights and experiences for fellow travellers.

Running the events on consecutive weeks allows visiting boats to come and enjoy their pick of top level racing and also enjoy some downtime with their friends and families exploring the hinterland of the area. The Preliminary Notice of Race will be issued in the next few weeks.

“We are delighted to be hosting this unique jamboree of sailing in the Royal Irish Yacht Club next year. Our club’s excellent facilities, under the stewardship of our sailing manager Mark McGibney are gearing up to welcome all the sailors and guests. This is a great opportunity for Dun Laoghaire to show the World what a fantastic location it is for yacht racing. There are many attractions for the visiting crews their family and friends to enjoy “ said Jerry Dowling – Commodore of the Royal Irish Yacht Club.

Event website

Royal Irish Yacht Club website

November, 2023

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RIYC 2022 Sailing Review

2022 Sailing Review Dear Member

I’m not sure about you, but I certainly started 2022 with a degree of apprehension mixed with some optimism. Covid 19 had severely disrupted the previous two seasons, even resulting in the cancellation of the 2021 Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta. All club activities had been curtailed; however, we had worked hard at keeping the club open as much as possible.  2022 looked like it would be better, with a return to a more normal sailing season, and so it proved. DBSC was running a full programme and many of the events that are the mainstay of the sailing calendar returned.  We had been working on replacing the club’s crane for over eighteen months and this came to fruition in May with the arrival of the new Liebherr crane for Germany.  The old crane was twenty-five years old and had had a hard first eight years to its life when we acquired it 17 years ago. Miquel and his team had done a great job in nursing it through a number of crises and the relief at the arrival of the new crane was visible on his face! It is anticipated that the new crane will have a useful life of 30 years and will pay us back many times not just financially, but also in the flexibility of the service we can offer our members and in the events we can attract to the club.  We had a busy year running events in the club. The Dun Laoghaire Cup for sports boats kicked off the season on May 21st and 22nd and it was great to see the club come back to life so emphatically. The event was a great success with over 50 entries and will become a biennial event. Peter Carroll’s Yikes! won the Beneteau 21 class, Vince Lattimore’s J/80 Jambiya was second in the J/80 class and Ger Dempsey was third in the SB20 class.  The following weekend we hosted the Dragon East Coast championships with a very healthy 14 boats entered. Racing was in idyllic conditions and again the event was deemed a great success.  In June we provided assistance to Wicklow Sailing Club in hosting the larger boats entered in the Round Ireland Race. Later that month, unfortunately, the weather gods did not smile on us and our regatta had to be cancelled due to high winds.  The following weekend (July 1st to 3rd) saw us hosting the Feva Nationals and this gave some of our up-and-coming young sailors a chance to test their abilities against a wider fleet. In total 25 boats competed.  Mid-August saw the Beneteau 31.7s compete for their national championships. Ten boats came to the start line and after a lively weekend of racing Chris Johnson’s “Prospect” brought the silverware back to the Irish! Early in the year we were given the opportunity of submitting a proposal for the SB20 World Championships. We were successful in getting this event and used the East Coast Championships as a warmup event. This was held on August 27th and 28th and gave 28 of the competing boats a chance to acclimatise to Dublin Bay. Ger Dempsey’s Venuesworld.com took third place in a very competitive fleet.  The Provident CRM SB20 World Championships ran from September 2nd to 10th. The great sailing conditions that had prevailed through the summer deserted us and we lost the first day to high winds. The forecast for the following two days was not looking good, however the race committee managed to get races completed each day and, in the end, a full programme was run. We had 57 competitors in all and the feedback after the event from the competitors was overwhelmingly positive. The race committee led by David Lovegrove ran a great event on the water and our boathouse team were a joy to watch as they lifted 57 boats onto trailers in a matter of a few hours after the event finished.  Whilst this event was a great success for the club it was overshadowed by the sad loss of Jack Roy. Jack had agreed to act as a race officer. Sadly, he succumbed to his illness early in the year and he was never far from our minds. His excellence as a race officer, his sage advice, and his good humour will be greatly missed by those who knew him.  As well as investing in the new crane we also were able to purchase six new RS teras. These are single handed beginner boats and replaced a number of our older Optimist dinghies which were showing signs of wear and tear. We also purchased a very lightly used rib and a second hand Feva to bring our fleet up to six.  Junior section, under the overall direction of Stephen Breen and with Hannah Leonard as our head A, went from strength to strength with great feedback from all participants.  On a racing front, the club was well represented by its members travelling to events.  The Wave Regatta in Howth in early June was sailed in challenging conditions. Pat Burke’s Prima Forte took 3rd place in class 0 IRC and Andrew Craig’s Chimaera was 1st in Class 1 Echo and 3rd on IRC.  In the Sigma Class David Townend took third place on Razzamatazz. This was quite impressive as he sailed two handed for the whole regatta.  It was great to see Cork Week back again after its covid imposed absence. It was also the ICRA National Championships. Barry Cunningham’s new Cape 31 didn’t arrive in time so he skippered Chimaera and took 3rd place in class 2. The performance of the week was John Maybury’s Joker 2. John took his boat to four wins and five top three places in 10 races to become ICRA national champion and to be top boat of the regatta. A truly impressive performance in a very competitive fleet.   Calves Week ran from August 2nd to 5th and saw a small number of RIYC boats venture south for the popular regatta. Paul Higgin’s Rockabill VI took class 0 on IRC, taking two firsts and a third. Prima Forte was second in class 0 Echo.  Traditionally we have been well represented in offshore racing. ISORA continues to grow in popularity since it was revived some years back. In what was a very competitive year the overall trophy was won by Mojito from Pwllheli. Rockabill VI took fourth overall, winning three races in the process.  Rockabill VI dominated the ISORA coastal series winning class 0 and overall. Joe Conway’s Sigma 33 Elandra took 9th overall and won class 2, also in the coastal series.  The Round Ireland race was back again in 2022 and whilst there was not a large number of boats from the Club we more than made up for it with the quality of the entrants. Darkwood, skippered by Michal Boyd, took fourth overall and won Class 1. Rockabill VI finished 9th overall and took second place in class 2.  Within the Bay, DBSC ran a full season of racing and for the most part the weather obliged.  A full list of winners is available on the DBSC website , however there were a number of standout performances which deserve mention.  You can be assured that the world has returned to normal when Tim Goodbody is again dominating whichever class he is sailing in. White Mischief, sailed by Tim and his son Richard won Class 1 series A and B on both Saturdays and Thursdays and the overall trophy.  Class 0 was dominated by RIYC boats with Rockabill V1 taking the Thursday overall trophy and Prima Forte taking the Saturday honours.  In Class 2 Jim Mc Cann’s Peridot won Saturdays and was second on Thursdays. The SB20 class Saturday series was won by Colin Gallavan’s Carpe Diem and Thursdays was won by Ger Dempsey’s and Christine Nolan’s Venuesworld. The series A and B spoils were also shared by these two boats.  In the Beneteau 21 class, which has now grown to 14 boats, Jimmy Fishers’ Billy Whizz won Thursday and Saturday overall as well as the combined Thursday and Saturday series. In the Sportsboat class Vince Lattimore’s Jambiya won the Saturday series.   The Water Wag class, the oldest and  largest class in the bay continues to go from strength to strength. A total of 41 boats entered for their three series, sailed on Wednesday evenings. In a class renowned for its competitiveness Guy Kilroy won series B and C and also took the overall prize, in his aptly named “Swift”. Traditionally the Wag class sails its Regatta race on the Wednesday before the regatta and because we lost the Saturday to the weather it was the only class to have an RIYC regatta this year. The regatta was won by Bairbre Stewart sailing “Freddie” – a very popular win.   Racing cannot take place without a large team on volunteers who provide crew for committee boats, mark laying ribs and all of the other tasks that allow the rest of us to go out and race. These selfless people deserve our thanks. During the year Michael Tyrrell successfully completed the International Race Office exams. He will now work towards completing the three events necessary to become a fully fledged International Race officer. With our aspirations to run the highest level international events, having our own international race office I very important.  Before the new crane arrived Eric, one of our boatmen, successfully completed his crane operator certificate. This takes some of the pressure off Miguel, and enhances the services we can provide to you, our members.  I would like to thank our boathouse team of Miguel, John, Gerry and Eric and of course our Sailing Manager, Mark. They make everything run like clockwork.    We are now planning for 2023 and are working on some exciting initiatives that I will write about early in the new year.    As 2022 draws to a close I would like to wish you all a very happy Christmas and some great sailing in 2023. 

Regards Joe Conway Rear Commodore Sailing

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Royal Irish Yacht Club

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The Royal Cork Yacht Club is based in Crosshaven, Cork, Ireland and is the world's oldest yacht club founded in 1720.

It is the organiser of the biennial Cork Week, widely regarded as Europe’s premier sailing event.

The club encompasses a wide variety of sailing activities from Optimist dinghies to racing National 18s and 1720s, Toppers, Lasers, RS Fevas and more ...read more

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Icra nationals 2024.

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Crosshaven, Co. Cork, P43 HD40, Ireland. T: +353 (0)21 4831023 E: [email protected]