The Pre-Worlds phase of the GUL sponsored Fireball World Championships started off yesterday morning in much the same way as it had concluded the day before – with lots of breeze, from a broadly similar direction – 240°. However, early on in the morning it brought in rain as well but by race time the rain had disappeared leaving us with the odd short sharp shower.

A reduced fleet came out to the race area and maybe by way of being a smaller fleet, the starts got off that much smoother though they were all under a “U-flag”. The majority of the fleet decided that left was the way to go on the beats, though conventional wisdom in these parts apparently suggests that “when it comes from Hare, go to Clare”, Hare being an island in the racing area and Clare being the right-hand shore of the Lough. Certainly, in one of the latter races of the day there was a noticeable difference in angle of sailing between the solitary boat who worked the Clare side of the course and the rest of the fleet.

In the first race of the day (Race 4) wind speeds in excess of 20knots were being regularly recorded on the committee boat’s anemometer, getting as high as 26knots is some of the more severe gusts that came through. That would explain some of the two-sail reaching across the top reach of the course after a 1-mile beat. However, the same three red spinnakers of Messrs Marsh & Davenport (15162), Paruzek & Kosvica (15141) and Bateman & Chaix (14750) dominated the occupancy of the leading bunch. Further back we could see the green spinnakers of another Czech boat and Barry McCartin & Conor Kinsella (15093).  At the leeward mark for the first time the sequence of rounding was, 15162 (Marsh & Davenport), 14750, (Bateman & Chaix), 15141 (Paruzek & Kosvica), 14941 (Derian & Andy Scott), 15061 (Noel Butler & Stephen Oram), 15152 (Heather McFarlane & Chris Payne), 15093 (McCartin & Kinsella) and in eighth, 15091 (Martin Kubovy & Roman Rocek). The approach to the second beat was mixed, some when right for a short period before heading left, others tacked immediately at the mark.

The downwind leg of the sausage was high speed stuff, some flew bags, others didn’t, deciding that discretion was the better part of valour.

The finishing order for the race was 14750, 15162, 15141, 15019, CZE 15163 (Milan & Matej Snajdr), GBR 15112 (David Sayce & Gareth Edwards), 15093, AUS 15152 (Heather McFarlane & Chris Payne), 15061, GBR 15145 (Steve & Tom Goacher).

Race 5 saw a slight abatement in the wind with less of the 20+ knots being registered though still in the high teens. Again, the favoured approach to the beat was to go left and the same three red spinnakers were broken out after the weather mark – Marsh, Paruzek and Bateman. Again, the action was fast and furious, even under two sails on the off-wind legs. The latter half of the race saw a further drop in wind strength but it had little impact on the placings on the water. The same three boats occupied the podium places with the finishing order being Paruzek & Kosvica (15141), Bateman & Chaix (14750) and Marsh & Davenport (15162). McCartin & Kinsella took 4^th, ahead of Snajdr & Snajdr (15163), Butler & Oram, Kubovy & Rocek, Frank Miller & Conor Flynn (IRL 14915), GBR 15096 (Michael & Adam Whitehouse) and tenth, GBR14753 (John Cowper & Martin Mills).

By Race Six, the pace of the race started to become positively pedestrian compared to what had got beforehand. Wind readings on the committee boat were getting down to the mid-teens by mid-race but the high-octane and physicality of the preceding two races had taken its toll on the fleet and the start line length was halved for an 18-boat fleet. Yet again the fleet favoured going left and Marsh & Davenport revelled in the conditions building an insurmountable lead by the weather mark. Instead of three red spinnakers at the head of the fleet we could only see two followed by two green spinnakers and again some boats two-sailing the top reach. At the first rounding of the leeward mark the sequence was; 15162, 15141, 15093, 14750, 15061, 15163, 15019, 15145, 15096, IRL 14637 (Tiarnan Brown & Oisin McAllister), FRA 14950 (Charles LaCalves & Eloise Maussio), 14915 and IRL 14213 (David Evans & William Draper). For the downwind leg of the sausage the fleet favoured middle and (their) right and the pace of execution of this leg dropped with the reducing wind strength. It had a minimal impact on the occupancy of the podium places on the water which had been dominated by Marsh, Paruzek and Bateman, with Bateman & Chaix dropping out and McCartin & Kinsella getting into third place.

And thus, the Pre-Worlds and Irish Nationals were concluded, finished under a substantially blue sky and moderating winds, though they came back before the afternoon was out.

GUL FIREBALL WORLDS PRE-WORLDS & IRISH NATIONALS FINAL RESULTS
Pos.	Sail No.	Crew	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	Nett
1	GBR 15162	Isaac Marsh & Oliver Davenport	1	7	2	2	3	1	9pts
2	CZE 15141	Jiri Paruzek & Jakub Kosvica	DNC	1	3	3	1	2	10pts
3	IRL 14750	Chris Bateman & Thomas Chaix	3	3	1	1	2	7	10pts
4	IRL 15093	Barry McCartin & Conor Kinsella	7	4	BFD	7	4	3	25pts
5	CZE 15019	Martin Kubovy & Roman Rocek	13	5	4	4	7	5	25pts
6	CZE 15163	Milan & Matej Snajdr	6	11	5	5	5	4	25pts
7	IRL 15061	Noel Butler & Stephen Oram	10	9	8	9	6	8	40pts
8	GBR 15145	Steve & Tom Goacher	12	8	6	10	11	6	41pts
9	GBR 15096	Michael & Adam Whitehouse	16	12	9	11	9	9	50pts
10	IRL 14915	Frank Miller & Conor Flynn	24	14	13	18	8	12	65pts
13	FRA 14950	Charles LaCalves & Eloise Maussio	30	18	DNC	DNS	13	10	126pts
19	RSA 14877	David Laing & Mark Dee	29	17	DNC	17	DNC	DNC	173pts
21	AUS 15152	Heather McFarlane & Chris Payne	15	DNC	DNC	8	DNC	DNC	188pts
24	SUI 14863	Laura Markwalder & Tobias Frey	45	23	DNC	19	DNC	DNC	197pts
30	CAN 14547	Richard & Liam Quinlan	32	RTD	DNC	22	DNC	DNC	219pts

 

 The prize-giving opened with a welcome from Irish Fireball Class Association Chairman, Neil Cramer (IRL 14938) and the prizes were handed out by Lough Derg Yacht Club Commodore Joe Gilmartin. Neil thanked all the volunteers who had worked to get the event to this point but especially mentioned (International) Race Officer Con Murphy for running the two-day event. Con commended the fleet for their efforts and said that it had made for very exciting viewing. Special mention and thanks were also made to recently appointed Class Measurer, Chris Henderson who had been on site from early in the week. As Chris will be en route to Canada for another major regatta from Ireland he won’t be in attendance for the Worlds themselves. Irish Class Measurers Owen Sinnott and Eddie Ferris were thanked for managing the local input to the measuring process.

The presentations for the Pre-Worlds and Irish Nationals were made as follows;

Perseverance Award (Discretionary)

David Evans & William Draper, IRL 14213, for their attempts to finish all six races. David had stepped into a Fireball for the first time the day before racing commences.

Classic Trophy (Irish Class Trophy)

David Evans & William Draper, IRL 14213.

Youth Trophy (Discretionary)

Tiarnan Browne & Oisin McAllister, IRL 14637.

Veteran Trophy (Discretionary)

David Hall & Paul Constable, GBR 15155.

First Lady Helm

Imogen Hauer & Hugo Micka, IRL 14740.

“Silver Fleet” prizes.

1. Tiarnan Browne & Oisin McAllister, IRL 14637 (12^th Overall)
2. Charles LaCalves & Eloise Maussio, FRA 14950 (13^th Overall)
3. Ben Graff & Alexander Farrell, IRL 14378. (17^th Overall)

 

“Gold Fleet” prizes.

1. Isaac Marsh & Oliver Davenport, GBR 15162
2. Jiri Paruzek & Jakub Kosvica, CZE 15141
3. Chris Bateman & Thomas Chaix, IRL 14750.

Irish Nationals (Perpetual Prizes – which don’t leave the island of Ireland).

1^st Place – Chris Bateman and Thomas Chaix, IRL 14750

2^nd Place – Barry McCartin and Conor Kinsella, IRL 15093

3^rd Place – Noel Butler & Stephen Oram.

Silver Fleet.

1^st Tiarnan Browne & Oisin McAllister, IRL 14637 (12^th Overall)

2^nd Ben Graff & Alexander Farrell, IRL 14378 (17^th Overall)