SAILING ICRA conference: Last weekend's Irish Cruiser Racing Association (ICRA) annual conference in Kilkenny delivered a number of fresh developments for the nationwide fleet as the year-old organisation continues its drive to reform the lacklustre racing scene.
Following this year's ground-breaking combined championships staged in Howth, next year's event, to be held as part of Sovereign's Week in Kinsale, is likely to be the first and last time it will be held alongside an existing series. Instead, a stand-alone event is the preferred option to adequately recognise this area of the sport that counts thousands of sailors.
Discussions also centred around a suggestion that Category Three, or professional sailors, be allowed to take part in ICRA events in classes one, two and three. Since the emergence of the Class Zero, a division generally reserved for the biggest all-out racing boats, exotics and custom-builds, professional crews have been permitted on board in several otherwise amateur events. Such professionals would be hired by the owners to boost the regular crews and often were in steering or tactician roles.
The latest suggestion under consideration would see eligibility rules softened to allow pros race in Class One in any role, be limited to simply crewing in Class Two while Class Three would not allow any change from the current position.
"There is nothing concrete about this concept," commented Fintan Cairns, the ICRA commodore. "This is just in discussion for now and it definitely won't affect Kinsale next year."
Nevertheless, the suggestion has raised considerable concern and is certain to face resistance. Former Royal Cork YC admiral Anthony O'Leary, the current Class One national champion predicted such a move would be akin to "turkeys voting for Christmas" and pointed to the experience of the 1720 Sportsboat fleet.
In the first season of that class, an amateur crew won the national championship. However, after professionals and Olympic medallists were hired in for Cork Week in 1998, the fleet has steadily declined to the point that just O'Leary now races the class in Cork and the Dublin fleet struggles to mount a credible turnout.
"I think it would start an arms race and would put winning out of the reach of many sailors," said James Hynes, a professional Dublin-based boat captain. "There's no doubt the pros make a difference on board any boat and owners would be faced with upping their annual budgets considerably."
Professionals in Ireland charge between €250 to €700 per day, while international "rock-star" talents earn in the order of €2,000.
Meanwhile, there was good news for the west coast fleets as the West of Ireland Offshore Racing Association is now represented on the ICRA committee, a development that will help the argument to stage a future national championship in that region.
The 2005 WIORA championship at Kilrush in July is expected to attract between 70 and 80 boats, with 20 entries already received.
The ICRA conference also heard that the challenge of locating racing boats to far-flung locations will be tackled by establishing a register of suitably qualified and experienced cruising sailors to act as delivery crew.
