Irish J/24 Easterns at Dundalk & Carlingford Sailing Club

12 & 13 April 2003

A record 20 boats, almost 100 sailors, raced on Carlingford Lough, on the North East coast of the Republic of Ireland, at the J/24 Eastern Championship on the weekend 12 & 13 April. This first event of the new Irish J/24 season, with 8 races over the two days and best 6 results counting, was hosted by Dundalk & Carlingford Sailing Club.

Flor O’Driscoll, Bray SC, in Hard on Port, emerged new Eastern J/24 Champion 2003, counting four first and two second places. He is a past Irish National Enterprise dinghy champion. Second was past Irish National J/24 Champion 2000, Michael McCaldin, Lough Erne YC, in JOG. Third was Barry O’Neill, Jazz, Royal St George YC, who was top placed Irish helm in August’s European J/24 Championship, 51 boats from 6 nations for 9 races on Dublin Bay.

James Byrne, DCSC Sailing Secretary led the event organising team and also competed in JAB. The local hero, seventh overall, he won the much coveted trophy for best placed among the 10 old Westerly built J/24s competing, ahead of eighth placed defending 2002 Eastern Champion, Frank Heath, Crazyhorse, RStGYC. JAB’s closest Westerly rival was Robin Eagleson’s Luder Too, Lough Neagh SC, who had won this Westerly prize at last September’s Irish National J/24 Championship. Ninth overall, Luder Too got a race prize for third in the sixth race.

Other race prize winners included Andrew Algeo, in Scandal, bought from Falmouth in December, second in race two on his first ever Irish J/24 outing, Tim Sheard, Jay Kay, past Irish National Champion 2001, second in race two, Richard O’Connor, Nivola, winner of race four, and Douglas Harrison in Jay, eleventh overall in an old Westerly built J/24 with his very keen young family crew, girl and boys. Their best and a prize result was a second in race five.

On Saturday morning, the fleet sailed out from Carlingford Marina into a light south easterly wind with some sunshine for the days’ first race due at 10.00 am. The course was a traditional Irish J/24 windward-leeward course, set by Michael Harris-Barke and his team between two buoys, about a mile apart, starting to windward and finishing downwind after three rounds - similar to courses since adopted for the recent America’s Cup races in New Zealand.

Crews eager for the fray crowded boats round the start line, and many were over it before the signal, prompting no less than three general recalls, then a repeated sequence of start signals. The black flag was raised, meaning disqualification for any boat over the line in the final minute of count down. One only, Diarmuid O’Donovan’s Virjin, LEYC, was over and out, as the fleet started on fourth attempt. Race two and three again had three general recalls and a black flag start, with two disqualifications. However, all the remaining five starts were clean and orderly.

This J/24 racing, as always, was tight close competition among boats that are one design, that is each boat, hull, rig and sails is exactly the same by rule, so success depends largely on tactics, sailing skills and team work. In most races the last boat finished inside five minutes of the first - a measure of the close sailing sport that Irish J/24s enjoy. Another measure is that 12 of the 20 boats, 60%, had at least one top 20% race result, that is a fourth place or better.

Sunday’s weather was different, colder, foggy east coast wind, same direction, but much stronger, rising to 28 knots by the end of racing. Six boats retired, two following an incident where mast tops entangled, heeled when passing close. This was excellent fast sailing, same course but longer legs, boats planning fast, up to 10 knots, downwind, big coloured real spinnaker sails straining, and upwind, crews leaning body weight hard over the side to keep the boat flat and fast. As it ended, crew were wet and exhausted, but exhilarated by the very best of sailing sport.

This first J/24 championship of the Irish season was also a preparatory event, set three weeks ahead of the Waterways Ireland 24th Irish National J/24 Championship, to be hosted by Lough Erne YC, 10 races on Lower Lough Erne in Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, over three days at the May Day Bank Holiday weekend.

Waterways Ireland, the cross border body responsible for working together on inland waterways in the Republic and Northern Ireland, headquarters in Enniskillen, is main sponsor for May’s national J/24 championship. Up to 30 boats and 150 sailors are expected from inland waters, Loughs Erne, Neagh and Ree, and Dublin Bay, Carlingford and Strangford Loughs on the coast. Other key sponsors are Fermanagh Tourism, and Mollan Brothers, Irvinestown, marking an historical link to the early origins of yacht racing. Ireland’s first rules for sailing as a fleet sport were published in 1822 by Henry D’Arcy Irvine who named this town. First Trust Bank, Enniskillen, also supports the event.

With delivery soon of four brand new J/24s from Italy, there will be sixty J/24s in Ireland, over twice the number of a few years ago, and over 300 members in the J/24 Association of Ireland. All is part of the world’s most numerous and widespread one-design fin-keel class. There are J/24 fleets in most yachting nations across five continents. In Ireland, local coastal fleets are in Carlingford, Dublin Bay and Lough Foyle, and inland, on Loughs Erne, Neagh and Ree.

Overall Results: (8 races, 2 discards)