The RS Fest is back for 2024 after a hugely successful weekend in Blessington last year; this time, the fleets are heading to Lough Derg Yacht Club. The core ethos remains the same of all RS Sailing to have family-orientated sailing with plenty of fun on and off the water.

Lough Derg Yacht Club (LDYC) was formed in 1835, making it one of the oldest in this country. The first Annual Regatta was held the following year, home to many talented sailors, both those whose competitive successes have been achieved representing Ireland at World and European events, but far more importantly, full of people who enjoy being out on the water, with their friends and families, pottering about in boats and enjoying a Swallows and Amazons existence, with the occasional adrenalin charged race, far removed from "Play Stations" and the like.

This year, RS Fest is guaranteed to have all the active RS racing classes represented in Dromineer

A major benefit of Lough Derg Yacht Club is its centrality, being accessible by most places in Ireland in around two hours, perfect for the RS family that is spread far and wide.

This year, RS Fest is guaranteed to have all the active RS racing classes represented in Dromineer, including the well-known youth RS Fevas, the competitive RS 200 and RS 400 fleets and the ultra-modern RS Aero single-hander.

The RS Aero singlehander will compete on Lough Derg at RSFest 2024

Racing will occur over the weekend of the 6th and 7th of July under the watchful eye of principal race officer John Leech. Registration will be open from Friday evening, allowing sailors to set up early to prep for a full day of racing on Saturday. Camping opportunities are available with showers, laundry and changing facilities in the yacht club.

For young or old sailors who may be interested in taking to the water for the first time, Irish RS Agents, MarineServices.ie will have some of their demo fleet on location, including the RS Tera, RS Neo and RS Zest for new sailors to try their hand at the sport and test out the latest models from RS Sailing.

For those sailors looking to sample new boats and minimise travel hassles, MarineServices will have many charter boats available, including the RS Feva and RS Aero boats. For more information or to book your boat, don't hesitate to get in touch with kenneth@inss.ie

At the end of a busy season for many clubs in Dun Laoghaire Harbour and along the west coast, Lough Derg Yacht Club played host to the Fresh Water Keelboat Regatta last weekend, drawing a fleet of over 60 boats from a variety of Irish and international clubs to County Tipperary.

What began nearly two decades ago as an invitation to Royal Irish Dragon sailors to visit Dromineer has grown into a successful inland sailing event featuring four classes of boats, including 35 Squibs, 10 SB20s, seven Dragons, and 12 Flying Fifteens.

This year's regatta saw representation from twelve Irish clubs and UK entry Dick and Pamela Batt from the Royal Victoria YC and Swiss sailor Alain Munier.

As Afloat reported, Kinsale Yacht Club were double winners at Dromineer, topping the Dragons and Squibs. A Royal Cork trio took the SB20 title and there was more Connemara success in the Flying Fifteens. 

Lough Derg's top-notch facilities have long been a welcoming destination for sailing enthusiasts, and the club pulled out all the stops for the regatta's 150 sailors and supporters.

Lough Derg Yacht Club's Freshwater Keelboat Regatta Race Committee: Vice Commodore Fergal Keating, Liam Moloney Race Officer, John Leech Race Officer, John Tierney Race Committee with Tadg Murphy Commodore of Garrykennedy Sailing Club

The event featured wooden half models crafted by retired boat builder Reggie Goodbody as LDYC trophies.

Hundreds of photos from the previous day's races taken by club member and photographer Josh St John were on display at the prizegiving.

Retired boat builder and sailor Reggie Goodbody made the handcrafted half model prizes for Lough Derg Yacht Club's Freshwater Keelboat Regatta

With four enthusiastic clubs located around its shores, Lough Derg is poised to continue hosting major events in the seasons to come. Garrykennedy to the north, Killaloe with its new clubhouse to the south, Iniscealtra to the west, and LDYC at Dromineer offer the vital experience of wind conditions for dinghy sailors and cruising enthusiasts alike.

Lough Derg Yacht Club's Freshwater Keelboat Regatta began 19 years ago when the club's Niamh McCutcheon invited a few Dragon Sailors for an October sail on Derg

Despite being cut short by strong winds, the regatta's success was met with applause, with next year's event already scheduled for October 11th-13th, 2024.

With the Flying Fifteen national title going west for the first time this year, the 2023 season just finished on a high for the class's burgeoning Connemara fleet, with Galway boats taking first and second in Lough Derg Yacht Club's Freshwater Keelboat Regatta at Dromineer in County Tipperary.

Ros an Mhíl's Dermot Flaherty and Joe McDonagh sailing Phoenix were winners by four nett points from national champions Niall and Ronán O'Brien in a ten-boat fleet.

Four races were sailed on Saturday with one discard, but racing was abandoned on Sunday by Race Officer John Leech due to a lack of wind at Dromineer.

National Yacht Club trio Alan Green and Keith Poole finished third.

Ten Flying Fifteens competed.

Counting four race wins Kinsale Yacht Club's Shawn Kingston, Donal Small and Conor Hemlock, sailing 'Grey Hare' were the clear winners of the Dragon Class at a cut-short Lough Derg Yacht Club Freshwater Keelboat One Design Regatta on Sunday. 

Five races were sailed on Saturday with one discard, but racing was abandoned on Sunday by Race Officer John Leech due to a lack of wind at Dromineer. 

Clubmates Colm Dunne, Colm Daly, and Harry Lewis sailing Ghost were second on 11 points but only after count back sharing the same points as Royal St. George's Serafina helmed by Ronan Murphy. 

Seven Dragons competed.

A win in race four meant Kinsale Yacht Club Squib duo Ian Travers and Keith O'Riordan won a cut-short Lough Derg Yacht Club Freshwater Keelboat One Design Regatta on Sunday. 

Four races were sailed on Saturday with one discard, but racing was abandoned on Sunday by Race Officer John Leech due to a lack of wind at Dromineer. 

A 35-boat turnout of the Squibs – boosted by a local fleet of 14 – meant the tan sails had more than triple the number of the other competing classes of SB20s, Dragons and Flying Fifteens.

Howth Yacht Club pair Fergus O'Kelly and Rob Stanley were runners-up on 11 points with Kinsale's James and Harvey Matthews, the father and son winners of July's southern championships, continued their good form to finish on the same 11 points but be third overall after countback.

If Mother Nature was considered stingy with her allocation of wind to the 5o5 Worlds recently sailed in Cork and the start of the GP14 Worlds currently being hosted by Skerries, she lavished her bounty on the Fireball Pre-Worlds and Irish Nationals which are the curtain raisers to the Worlds which start on Sunday next.

We woke to grey and slightly overcast conditions and in his briefing to the competitors, International Race Officer, Con Murphy (Dun Laoghaire), indicated that a) we could also expect drizzle and b) the forecast was for the wind to go westwards.

Forty-six boats completed the first race, which was sailed in winds in the high teens and got away reasonably cleanly. The fleet had a three-race agenda for the day so races were restricted to a triangle and a sausage with an offset finish mark, administered from the committee boat which didn’t (voluntarily) move during the first race.

Chris Bateman and Thomas Chaix IRL blast reaching on Lough Derg

The P&B liveried boat, sail number GBR 15162 led the race for its entirety, I think as they flew a red spinnaker and there were three of those at the head of the fleet for the off-wind legs of the triangle. As has become the custom, the fleet spilt downwind high-wiring it on both sides of the course. It made for exciting racing as the fleet converged on the leeward mark from opposite sides of the course. If they weren’t always in the lead, they were at the most critical part of the race – on the finish line. Thus, Isaac Marsh & Ollie Davenport opened the regatta with a race win.

Second place went to David Hall & Paul Constable sailing GBR 15155, an experienced duo who relish the stronger winds. The first Irish boat also occupied third place at the finish. Chris Bateman & Thomas Chaix IRL 14750 were at the head of the fleet for the majority of the race. Bateman has just sailed the 5o5 Worlds in Cork and rumour has it that he thinks the Fireball is a nicer boat to sail in these conditions.

Fourth went to the father/son combination of Martyn and Daniel Lewis (GBR 15151) while the Swiss combination of Claude Mermod and Ruedi Moser (SUI 14799) took fifth and first of the continental visitors.

For Race 2 the breeze ramped up and became more variable in direction and that signalled problems for the pin end boat which was having difficulty staying on station and eventually had to be replaced with a rib flying the pin end flag. It was a wet station in life! The rising wind took its toll on the fleet with only 24 boats finishing the race and that in part may have been due to the difficulties in getting the second start away. A swinging breeze, a pin end that was moving, multiple attempts at a start under P, U and eventually black flag resulted in three boats being sent home for an early shower. For those who persevered, they were rewarded with another exciting race. We could see the boats scudding across the top reach but negotiating the gybe mark seemed to a bit more challenging. By now the wind speed was routinely going above the 20knot mark on the anemometer on the committee boat. Many chose to two-sail the reach, having seen the difficulties the leaders had.

Race 2 went to the Czech combination, Jiri Paruzek & Jakub Kosvica (CZE 15141), with Davis Hall & Paul Constable second and Bateman & Chaix 3rd and the first Irish boat again. Fourth went to another Irish combination, Barry McCartin & Conor Kinsella (IRL 15093), while another Czech combination, Marin Kubovy & Roman Rocek (CZE15019) rounded out the top five. Special mention must be made of Ben Graff & Alexander Farrell (IRL 14378) who were the only boat to fly spinnaker between the leeward mark and the finish line.

By Race 3 the rib on the pin end had been replaced by a Dory and the start that got away was the most conservative of the day. The fleet had almost halved again! Bateman and Chaix arrived at the leeward mark with a considerable lead, that was obvious across the top reach except, we in the committee boat didn’t know that it was them – it was simply another red spinnaker. The P&B boys, Marsh & Davenport were chasing hard and by the time they reached the leeward mark for the second time the Irish lead had been shortened considerably. However, a home win was secured by Bateman & Chaix to end the day on a high for the hosts. Behind Team P&B were the Czechs, Paruzek & Kosvica, ahead of their compatriots Kubovy & Rocek with another Czech boat Milan Snajdr & Matej Snajdr (CZE 15163) fifth.

Thus, with three races complete, the overall situation is as follows;

1. Chris Bateman & Thomas Chaix, IRL 14750: 3, 3, 1, 7pts
2. Isaac Marsh & Ollie Davenport, GBR 15162: 1, 7, 2, 10pts
3. Martin & Daniel Lewis, GBR 15151: 4, 6, 7, 17pts
4. Martin Kubovy & Roman Rocek, CZE 15019: 13, 5, 4, 22pts
5. Milan & Matej Snajdr, CZE 15163: 6, 11, 5, 22pts
6. Steve & Tom Goacher, GBR 15145: 12, 8, 6, 26pts
7. Noel Butler & Stephen Oram, IRL15061: 10, 9, 8, 27pts
8. Michael & Adam Whitehouse, GBR 15096: 16, 13, 9, 38pts
9. Niall McGrotty & Neil Cramer, IRL 14938: 20, 20, 11, 51pts
10. Frank Miller & Conor Flynn, IRL 14915: 24, 15, 13, 52pts.

Another three races are scheduled for tomorrow.

After a two-year gap forced by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Watersports Inclusion Games returned successfully this weekend (25 & 26 June) at Lough Derg Yacht Club.

Nearly 100 people with physical, sensory, intellectual and learning disabilities took part despite some adverse weather conditions.

This year’s participants were offered an expanded range of sports including sailing, powerboating, kayaking, canoeing, paddle-boarding, water skiing and fishing, all on the beautiful waters of Lough Derg Yacht Club in Dromineer, Co. Tipperary.

Despite the wind and rain, participants all got out on the water to try different activities.

The Watersports Inclusion Games enable people of all abilities from the physical, sensory, intellectual and learning spectrums to take to the water to participate in a wide range of water activities.

Lough Derg Yacht Club, with the support of Dinghy Performance, will be running three days of mid-term coaching for Optimist sailors from Thursday 24 to Saturday 26 February 2022.

“We are sure this is going to be a great event and a cracking way to kick off the year,” the International Optimist Dinghy Association Ireland says.

Entries are limited and more than a third of all available spots have been claimed, so early booking is essential.

wJosh Porter and Cara McDowell are the new Fireball Munster Champions after seven races at Lough Derg Yacht Club over the weekend. The pair showed outstanding consistency and speed over the races in a wide variety of conditions.

Their achievement is all the more impressive because they beat the rest of the 15-boat fleet in a relatively older Fireball which was totally refurbished by Porter over the last two winters. Going by the premise that Winder built FRP Fireballs remain stiff and light right throughout their lives he removed all the original gel coat and recoated the boat in two-pack acrylic paint.

The result is a twenty-something aged boat that actually looks, and obviously performs, like a brand-new boat.

The two-day event saw sailors challenged by a massive range of conditions, from quite light in the early race on the Saturday to impressive squalls on the Sunday. Race officer John Leech and his team gave the fleet a variety of courses from plain triangles to Olympic Triangles. Turnarounds were extremely impressive, especially considering that the racecourse was shared with the Mirror class competing in their Southern Championships. Sailing conditions throughout the two days of racing were as varied as you might expect from a lake famous for its decent winds, but a lake nonetheless.

For most of the races, crews were in trapezing mode and at times some of the lighter teams struggled with the conditions, especially on tight spinnaker reaches. In race one, a short triangular course in light airs, Louise McKenna and Hermine O’Keeffe got away cleanly off the line and sped away from the competition finding wind on the right side of the course and proved uncatchable by the chasing fleet. They were followed across the finish line by Ed Og Butler sailing with Ismail Inan and Josh Porter/Cara McDowell.

Fireball Munsters Photo Gallery by Joe St. Leger

Race two was another triangular race in much better breeze and this was won by Porter/McDowell, with Butler Og/Inan closely behind. Race three was won by the Thompson brothers Daniel and Harry, though this fast pairing struggled somewhat to find their usual speed and consistency throughout the event.

A forensic overnight rigging analysis on the Saturday identified a couple of issues that kept them off their usual pace. Porter/McDowell won the final race on the Saturday and went into a solid overnight lead, with Butler Og/Inan lying second and Frank Miller/Ed Butler Snr lying third, just a point ahead of McKenna/O’Keeffe.

Sunday morning racing was due to start at 9.55 am and race officer John Leech’s early call proved correct as the fleet awoke to bright sunshine and a snappy breeze. In the autumn sunshine, Lough Derg provided a stunning backdrop to the day’s activities.

Courses for the day were of the Olympic Triangle and races longer than the previous day in the improved breeze. Porter/McDowell won race five in good breeze but with significant shifts and light patches, with Butler Og/Inan again close behind. Before the start of race six the sky darkened and with signs of a squall approaching rigs were altered. The squall arrived in time for the first reach forcing lighter crews to drop their kites while the heavier teams revelled in the conditions. By the time the second reach was over the squall had passed and the more skilled sailors found the best routes around the course in the somewhat shifty conditions which followed. Once again Porter/McDowell emerged on top, this time with the Thompsons in second.

The final race was especially challenging with the fleet dealing with a gentler squall and uneven wind over the course. As the breeze appeared to be softening the race was shortened to the finish line after the second leeward mark rounding at the end of the run. On that run, however, places changed with those opting early for the gybe to the inside winning out. Thus, Butler Og/Inan and Miller/Butler Snr winning out over previous leaders. Butler Og took that win with the Thompson brothers second and Miller/Butler Snr in third. McKenna/O’Keeffe were particularly unlucky as they had led for much of the race and their 5th place in that race effectively lost them third overall in the series. When the scores were added up Porter/McDowell were the absolutely deserving winners on ten points with Butler Og/Inan a reasonably close second on 13 points. Miller/Butler Snr were 3rd overall of 20 points due to relatively a consistent Ent performance and four third place scores.

The silver fleet trophy was won by Killaloe sailors Andrew Mullaly and David Tanner, with Mick O’Callaghan/Neil Cramer second and Paul and Moris Ter Horst third. Clodagh Nash and Moris Ter Horst won the Under-21 prizes. Special mention should be made of transition year youth team Oscar George and Ella O’Callaghan who sailed one of the two Fireball class loan boats.

The lightweight pair showed gumption and promise and did extremely well for a first outing in a Fireball which they saw for the first time three days before the event. They were awarded the Classic Prize for their efforts and the class have awarded them a loan boat to practice throughout the winter with a view to competing in the World Championships at the club from 21st to 26th August next year. The 2021 Munster Championships proved to be a fantastic challenging event for all sailors, with a variety of conditions to test sailors of all abilities and weights. The event gave competitors a taste of what to expect for the worlds next August when some 80 Fireballs from around the world are expected to enjoy sailing in one of Ireland’s most beautiful sailing destinations.

Fireball Munster Championships scoresheet

Prizegiving photographs by Joe St Leger

Fireball Trophies prior to presentation at Lough Derg Yacht Club

Overall winners - Cara McDowell and Josh Porter

Second overall - Ed Og Butler with Ismail Inan and Commodore of LDYC Joe Gilmartin

Third overall - Ed Butler Snr and Frank Miller with Commodore Joe Gilmartin

Silver fleet winners -David Tanner and Andrew Mullaly

Classic prize - Youth sailors Oscar George and Ella O'Callaghan with Commodore

Race officer John Leech

So, as the sun rises hopefully on a welcome return to international regattas, the Irish Fireball Class, in tandem with Fireball International and the Lough Derg Yacht Club are delighted to announce that the World Championships of the Class with be hosted at the Lough Derg venue in August 2022.

The Covid pandemic has decimated the sailing calendar worldwide for the past 15 months, and the Fireball Class has not been immune to the inability to host regattas due to a plethora of reasons, including health issues, quarantining and the absence of international travel. Countries around the globe have had to endure different regimes of quarantining and rates of recovery from the initial and subsequent surges of the virus, and this has played havoc with the original schedule of international regattas for the Fireball Class.

However, a combination of circumstances allows us to make this announcement now, and a number of parties need to be acknowledged as being fundamental to the return of the Fireball Worlds to Ireland.

Host to the 2022 Fireball Worlds – Lough Derg Yacht Club, Ireland.

Howth Yacht Club initially sowed the seed of bringing the event back to Ireland to mark their 125th Anniversary in 2020. However, the onset of Covid caused that event to be abandoned and subsequently, Howth's commitment to another international regatta in 2022 and the lack of certainty to the timetable for dredging works to Howth harbour in 2022/23 precluded them from hosting in 2022 or 2023. We thank them for their support of the Irish Fireball Class in promoting the 2020 event, which included their Principal Race Officer and Regatta Organisers attending the 2019 Worlds in Canada.

The Australian Fireball Association were due to host the Worlds after Howth in 2022, but their domestic situation with respect to Covid led them to request Fireball International to defer this regatta. Fireball International was persuaded that with the time-lapse since Canada in 2019, a European-based Worlds was more likely to attract a bigger fleet of boats. On that basis, Fireball International consented to the Irish Fireball Association seeking a venue for 2022, and we are delighted that Lough Derg Yacht Club have stepped up to the plate to host the event. Within the past few days, we have had confirmation from Fireball International's Executive Committee that the event can go ahead.

Established in 1835, Lough Derg Yacht Club (LDYC) is based in Dromineer on the shores of Ireland's third largest lake with a surface area of 118km². Their most recent international regatta was the Mirror Worlds which was a very successful event, and they have a long pedigree of hosting National, Provincial, and domestic regattas and the Fireball Class have been regular visitors to their club. The club is ideally situated with easy access to a multitude of racing areas, has ample space for mobile homes, caravans and tents and has additional "roof and four walls" accommodation within easy access of the club. While it is an inland venue, travelling to the club from Ireland's major airports and ferry terminals is relatively simple with good roads, and the journey will afford competitors a chance to see more of Ireland and its "forty shades of green"!

For the Irish Class Association, this regatta provides an opportunity for a re-building of the domestic fleet with the incentive of a locally based Worlds. It also affords the Race Management Team, which will be led by a well-recognised International Race Officer the chance to run a Worlds on "their own doorstep".

All parties to the regatta are excited by the return of international sailing with the regatta scheduled for August 2022 between the 18th and 26th consisting of a two-day Pre-Worlds, a day for measuring and the normal Sunday to Friday race timetable with a Wednesday lay-day.

We look forward to a great event and invite more Irish sailors to consider our high-performance two-person dinghy for their next international challenge!