Regatta Results 2022-2025

2025

2025 - How it unfolded:
Light and sunny weather presented ideal conditions for the regatta which reached a record entry of 40 sailors.

Group A saw the Bedell brothers lock horns, dominating the top 2 positions with Rupert emerging on top and attempting to establish himself as a credible regatta contender (for once). Aisling Fenix was a surprise package finishing a very credible 4th, while Derek Sheehan and Steve Kennedy struggled out of the blocks and progressed straight to Spacker league.

Group B was highly competitive with several big names in the draw, but Darren Griffin showed his pedigree and navigated this early stage in relative comfort, progressing ahead of Gareth Giles, Evan Dolan and James O'Callaghan. Paula McNaughton squeezed into the semi finals on countback at the expense of Garrett May, who was banished to the Spacker league.

In Group C, former Optimist National Champion Ken Hoffman finally found his groove in this regatta, emerging top of a difficult group. He was pushed hard by Darragh Peelo and Cian Griffin at the top of the table, while Jeremy Law, Andrew Martin and Noel Davidson struggled at the other end of the group and would need to navigate the treacherous Spacker League to keep their dreams alive.

On to Semi Final A, where John Brereton exploded out of the blocks to win the first two races, with form out of nowhere. He was let down by a poor finish in race 3 (9th) but still progressed comfortably to the final. Rupert Bedell kept up his consistent good form to finish overall winner ahead of Colin Kavanagh who was improving throughout. James O'Callaghan finished mid-table but squeaked into the final on countback at the expense of Cian Griffin, which proved significant later on. After his impressive group form, Ken Hoffman fell away along with Aiden O'Connell and Patrick Stanley who sailed well but suffered a penalty with Kavanagh. Helen Vaughan finished a very creditable 7th and top lady overall again.

Semi Final B looked tougher on paper with several big names battling it out for just 5 finals places. Once again a dark horse emerged in the form of John Marmelstein, who has rediscovered the joys of Laser sailing of late, and was beginning to adjust to the ILCA 6 nicely. He sailed a great mini-series to win the section, closely followed by the ever-consistent Darren Griffin, who was showing ominous form ahead of the final. Toby Bedell, Evan Dolan and Darragh Peelo closed out the final qualifying places, reflecting the quality on show in this SF. Regular finalists Neil Spain and Tim Noone were the casualties, but Garrett May finished strongly in his debut regatta with a 3rd, and will hopefully be back next year.

The Spacker (repercharge) League is always one of the highlights of regatta day, and this year the format allowed for three additional chances for sailors to reach the final in a three race series. Jeremy Law had an outstanding run finishing well clear, but Derek Sheehan also found late form when he needed it with a double bullet. Ciaran Stanley sailed well to grab the last final place on offer, and tee up a great final...

Into the 2 race Final, Marmelstein led up the first beat only to capsize to windward on his final tack. John Brereton continued his outstanding form to win race 1, followed by O'Callaghan, Griffin, Toby Bedell and Gareth Giles. Pre-finals favourites Rupert Bedell and Evan Dolan messed up their scorecard with a poor first beat and could only recover to 9th & 10th, effectively ending their chances of victory. In Race 2 O'Callaghan was chased around the course by Rupert Bedell, but held on for the win, with Dolan and Toby Bedell following. Brereton slipped to 9th and out of the running, showing that you only need one bad race/start/tack to be out of overall contention in these short races. The 2,1 was enough to make O'Callaghan the clear winner from reigning champion Toby Bedell in second, with Brereton, Rupert Bedell and Darren Griffin making up the top five.

2024

2024 - How it unfolded: The Spacker League provides a second chance route to the final, and almost produces a regatta champion. Ciaran Stanley is the sole exit at the group stage (on his birthday!). Toby Bedell sneaks home in a tight final, sailed in light airs (again, ugh!)