ILCA Ireland End of Season at Royal Cork
The ILCA/Laser has had a very long association with Royal Cork Yacht club. In conversation with Neil Kennefick and Finn Lynch on Sunday after racing had finished and boats packed away, Neil recounted winning a Youths title in Ireland in 1977 beating Bill O’Hara (who went onto represent Ireland in 1984 and 1988 in the Olympics). Neil’s laser number was 23147 and was built by performance Sailcraft in Waterford. It cost 310 punts. The worlds were held in La Trinite in France that year and Neil travelled to the world Youths in France by boat (not his laser, but he probably would have tried).
Some of the sailors that competed with Neil in 1977 in the laser class were David Gay, John Ryan, John Sugars, Joe English, Marcus Hutchinson, Gordon MAguire, Bruce Douglas, Michael Wallace, Fed Cudmore, John ross Murphy, Tom Fitzpatrick, Killain Bushe, Stuart Musgrave, Jillian Guinness, Colm Barrington and Jimmy Fitzpatrick. Neil’s family continued the laser sailing tradition and George and David were both junior national champions.
World renowned boat designer Ron Holland also purchased a laser with a blue hull. It has seen better days, but the hull design has not altered very much since those days. Ron described Bruce Kirby as the richest boat designer in the world given the popularity of the laser design.
Picture of Harold Cudmore racing his laser in the Baltimore Icicle series.
Celebrating 50 years of racing recently, the ILCA(Laser) is a single-handed Olympic class dinghy sailed by both men and women at all levels — from local clubs to the Olympic Games. Recognized for its simplicity, speed, and fairness, it continues to be the ultimate test of skill, endurance, and tactical decision-making.
Royal Cork has hosted many ILCA events over the past 50 years including world championships, provincial, national, youths, sprints and club level. Even then, it is rare that the club gets to host the #8 ranked female fleet sailor in the world, Eve McMahon alongside Olympic campaigners from Ireland and Canada. It is even more rare to be able to compete on your local waters with them in a one design class (albeit with three rigs these days).
Finn Lynch came straight from a victory in the Grand slam finale event raced in Netherlands the previous week having beaten Lorenzo Brando Chiavarini and world #1 ranked male fleet sailor Micky Beckett in the medal race.
The attraction of launching and sailing alongside these champion Olympic class sailors fueled the entry to over ninety sailors in the only Olympic class boat that available for regular coaching and racing in Crosshaven today.
Fair winds and sunshine bless the course on Saturday which was set outside Roches Point a little east of Trabolgan by Race Officer John Corkery, who recently officiated at the U21 ILCA worlds in Dun Laoghaire. A North West breeze averaged 10kts for the day backing and veering across the day with pretty solid sunshine for the afternoon. An ebbing tide pushed the competitors out to the course in 45 mins. To highlight the competitive nature of the visiting senior sailors, they raced from Currabinny pier out to the course, had their racing and still raced back to the pier in the evening. John’s efficient race management with very few restarts allowed three good races for the three fleets before four pm and he pushed on for a fourth series of races due to the Sunday forecast of very light breeze. Along with the sunshine and nice breeze came a fair tide to push the competitors back into Crosshaven and Royal Cork to rest for the evening. Patrick Fegan led the way in ILCA 4 with RCYC’s Blake Vaughan close behind in fourth and Asta Dolleris who is schooling in Crosshaven for the year in fifth. In ILCA6, Eve McMahon was leading with Caoilinn McDonnell, Sieena Wright and Lucy Ives following behind before the first male, Bobby Driscoll in fifth. In the ILCA 7 fleet, Finn Lynch won the last two races to get to the top after Ewan McMahon started with a win the first race. Fiachra McDonnell followed closely with Liam Bruce and James Juhasz from Canada in fourth and fifth place. Andrew Kingston from RCYC lay in 8th place.
Some more amazing pictures by Bob Bateman from day 1 here:
On Sunday, the Royal Cork patio was bathed in sunshine and a beautiful autumnal stillness in the air. It was time for coffee, croissants and scones. After an AP from ten to just before 12, the breeze arrived, the boats were quickly launched and a course set on the bank. A NW-SE course across an ebbing tide and fickle breeze made for a challenge even for the Olympic sailors, but they did indeed show their class with a win for Eve in Ilca 6 and Finn in ILCA 7, followed closely by Ewan McMahon. an AP/A was flown though and the racing that had not started was concluded for the day. The ILCA 7 sailors still hungry for more, raced in a mini fleet to the pier.
Pictures from racing and presentation on day 2 here:
Annamarie Fegan with Finn Lynch and Eddie Kingston
Volunteers included Safety lead Marcas Wurth, Beachmaster Ronan Duggan, Medic Aoife O’Sullivan, Dana Duggan, Patricia Kingston, Isabelle Kingston, Peter and Juliet Coulter from Ballymena, Tim McCarthy, Maurice Collins, Geraldine Peretti, Joanne O’Brien, Andy Jenkins, Dominic and Fionn Daly, Isabel and Eve McCarthy, Bella Waterman, Ed Vaughan and Ben Foley, Gary O’Neill, Ciaran Dunne, Paul Brennan Hobbs.
Expert mark laying on Saturday was provided by Nick Walsh and Jim McMahon on the pin, Ed Rice and Bernard Lynch on the windward and Michael Crosbie and Bob Ennis on the leeward end of the course, with Joe O’Sullivan and Sam Long providing cover for leeward on Sunday.
The sprint series has help build great relationships with laser fleets across Cork and we were able to draw in some safety cover with Sadbh LeDonne, Eadaoin OFarrell and Tara Fitzpatrick from Cobh, Aoife OSullivan(RCYC and ISKC) Sam Long and Bob Ennis from ISKC. Visiting laser captain Bernard McEnroe from Lough Ree was shanghai’d from the dinghy park to help on both days. Sinead Byrne (BYC and RCYC) was also draughted in to help on tally.
The post ILCA Ireland End of Season at Royal Cork appeared first on Royal Cork Yacht Club.