Howth Yacht Club’s Daragh Sheridan won the UK RS Aero 6 Masters Nationals event at a blustery Felpham Sailing Club on the South coast of England last weekend. Sheridan and Noel Butler of the National Yacht Club travelled to the event to compete against sailors from across the UK.
Felpham Sailing Club hosted forty-three Aero 6 and twenty Aero 9 rigs. Both Irish boats finished in the top ten overall with Sheridan in 7th and Butler in 9th. The event was won by Noah Rees, and the runner-up was Jack Miller, who have been welcome visitors to Irish events in the past.
After a gentle start on Friday with light breezes, the wind kicked in for the next two days to over twenty knots, with some gusts into the high twenties. This provided for exhilarating sailing and epic surfing conditions for the downwind legs.
One aspect of the event that was not for the faint-hearted was coming ashore on a beach with a strong onshore breeze and large breakers. The Felpham volunteers got everybody back ashore safely after having to close the beach for a period of time following racing on Saturday.
As Afloat previously reported, the Aeros return to Howth Yacht Club for their Irish Nationals in a little over two weeks on the 15th & 16th of June 2024, with coach Thomas Chaix providing a training session on Friday afternoon before the event.
A week later Irish sailors will then travel to Carnac in France for the Europeans and then make a return to the South coast of England and Hayling Island for their World Championships at the end of August.
