Today's forecast of fresher winds will be welcomed by the fleet racing in the biennial Halidon-sponsored Dun Laoghaire to Dingle race that started in near windless conditions on Tuesday evening. The two classes began their course inside the harbour just off the east pier before facing their passage south-east to the Muglins, the first mark on the course.

As the smaller boats in class two had the benefit of a gentle evening breeze to get a head-start, the larger racing boats of class one, starting 15 minutes later, were dogged by almost a complete calm. The handful of contenders aiming for overall victory lined-up for the sedate beat to the east pier lighthouse, though few seemed inclined to engage each other, perhaps opting for speed rather than antics so early in the race.

A short while later, after starting to spread out, the class one boats concertina'd once again off the Forty Foot as all looked wistfully out to sea to the class two boats enjoying an impression of a line of wind between the Muglins and the South Burford buoy. The wind line appeared to move inshore as one by one, the boats to seaward tacked off to take advantage.

The new breeze proved the undoing of Cormac Twomey's Sarah J, arguably the race favourite who was the most inshore of the class. The Beneteau parked in the flood tide as even Bob Stewart's Great Bear was able to pick up the new air and quickly disappear to seaward. Twomey's heavy 43-footer was becalmed while Stewart's new Prima 38 did a horizon job and was making ground towards the front of the fleet.

However, a long race seems in store for the 18-boat fleet thanks to the light airs.