Irish 12 Foot Dinghy Championship at the Royal St George Yacht Club
by Vincent Delany 2 Sep 2021 03:32 PDT
28-29 August 2021
Over the weekend of 28-29 August the Royal St George Yacht Club was filled with 12 foot dinghies of four different types for a weekend of celebration of the smaller dinghy.
Eighteen Uffa Fox designed National Firefly dinghies took part in the annual Elmo Trophy event for youthful team racers with teams from across the country. One hundred and thirty- seven races were held over two days in eighteen dinghies. Despite these dinghies being designed in 1946, 75 years ago, they remain to be the best dinghy for team racing with teams of three boats. This event took place over two days at the eastern end of Dun Laoghaire harbour.
Meanwhile at the western end of the harbour, The Irish 12 Foot Dinghy Championship (designed 1913) took place with the deserved winner being Margaret Delany's 100 year old 'Cora' which was built by Camper and Nicholson in Gosport or Southampton for Lieut. Colonel the Hon. Claud Maitland Patrick Brabazon son of the 12th Earl of Meath in 1921. Although she now carries sail number '8' from the Seapoint Sailing Club (near Dublin), she originally carried 'K29' and sailed at the Royal Victoria Yacht Club on the Isle of Wight under the name 'Gadget'. The racing in Dun Laoghaire consisted of four races one over a triangular course with about 6 knots of breeze from the north-east.
A similar design to the International 12 foot dinghy is the Dublin Bay Sailing Club 12 Foot dinghy which shares the same hull design but carries a gunter rig designed in 1969, with an 80 sq. ft. mainsail, a small jib and a foredeck to keep the boat dryer when sailing in the Dublin Bay chop. This championship was won by 'Albany' which was built in 1936 and sailed by Gavin Johnston and Gail Varian from Dalkey.
Finally, the Bray Droleen class sailed their first ever Irish Championship despite the boats being designed in 1896 by William Ogilvy. Droleens had not sailed in Dun Laoghaire since the town and Harbour changed their names from Kingstown in 1920. 'Galway Girl' from Connemara arrived in style, when a 20 ton truck with its own crane stopped outside the club, blocking the traffic while she was transferred from the low loader to a launching trolley. The Droleen is described as being a cat-boat being of six foot beam despite their short length. After four races, Mark Delany in 'Windyridge' which was built by the late Paddy Sheridan in County Cavan, was declared the winner.
It was a remarkable day of racing, competition, sociability and friendship and everybody went home thinking over what the had learned over the weekend.