SAILING: Sonar sailors Paul McCarthy, Paul Ryan and Chris Thomas have secured a place for Ireland in the Sonar fleet at the 2008 Paralympics. The team finished seventh overall in the Sonar World Championships which ended yesterday in Perth.
The second Irish Sonar team, John Twomey, Brian O'Mahony and Anthony Hegarty, finished 11th in the 16-boat fleet.They had an unlucky start when an American boat collided with them in a practice race, holing their boat and injuring helmsman Twomey.
Abroad, the latest boat built to the international Class 40 design, will have an Irish sponsor, an Irish builder and an English skipper for an attempt at the 2006 Route Du Rhum. Built to a box rule, the boat is to be launched at the end of June from Jaz Marine in South Africa, a boatyard run by Dublin bay sailor Rachel Fallon. The boat is for British sailor Ian Munslow who is sponsored by Irish firm Benton Property.
Munslow (32), a mini-transat sailor with four Atlantic crossings to his credit, will be sailing back from Cape Town to shakedown the new boat and get qualified for the Route Du Rhum. On arrival in Europe, Munslow will head straight for Dublin to use the yacht to promote a new property development at Boland's Mill Wharf, in Dublin's Grand Canal Dock.
Munslow is also considering attempting the Round Ireland single-handed record but given the National Yacht Club's withdrawal last December from ratifying single-handed attempts on safety grounds, it is not clear how Munslow would have such an attempt ratified.
Last weekend's Leinster schools' team racing championship title was retained by Gonzaga College in light, sunny conditions inside Dún Laoghaire harbour.
Some 24 teams will contest the Southern University Team Racing Championships at Schull Community College on February 4th. The following weekend, Royal Cork YC will host the South of Ireland Team Sailing Championships at Crosshaven. Overseas competition is expected from London, Edinburgh, Sheffield and Brighton.
As the international boat show season draws to a close at Dusseldorf this weekend, there was further evidence of the buoyancy of the Irish yacht market when Dublin dealer Noel Davidson of BJ Marine outgunned British rivals to become the top Beneteau dealer at the recent London show, with the French manufacturer's Oceanis 50-footer (starting at 300,000) having considerable Irish appeal.
The run of new boat sales could be short-lived, however, due to a shortage of berths and marinas around the Irish coast. Dublin Bay and Cork Harbour, representing 3,000 craft, have five marinas between them, and are full to capacity. The lack of berths is on the agenda for today's Irish Marine Federation agm at IBEC headquarters in Dublin.
