Strong Entry List For The 2013 Cat Sails IOM Ulster Championships
(incorporating the Celtic Challenge Cup)
"On Saturday 2nd and Sunday 3rd of November East Down Yacht Club will host
the second IOM Ulster Championships in Northern Ireland with a marked
increase in expected entries over last year's event.
To date (14th of October) 19 skippers have confirmed they will compete,
representing clubs from as far afield as Buchaness and Aberdeen, Howth and
Lough Erne. The depth of talent already entered should ensure last year's
winner Pat Johnston of Greenock MY & PBC, has a real task on his hands in
returning to defend his title.
The Venue:
On the advice of some of last year's more experienced Scottish competing
skippers a new venue for the event has been chosen. The 2013's
Championships will be held off site at Lough Money, a disused reservoir
situated just a short distance outside the town of Downpatrick, 7 miles from
the club; and it could prove a challenging venue for even the most experienced
of competing skippers.
Lough Money is over a mile long and almost half a mile across at its widest
point, and has the luxury of crystal clear waters with a large, weed-free race
area.
What could make it a challenge for the competing skippers? The topography.
A steep hill, rising to over 100 metres is situated right on the bank of its
Western shore in the lower body of the Lough where the race area is sited.
Its height, steep gradient and immediate proximity to the shore means this hill
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greatly affects prevailing winds, which predominantly blow from South West to
Westerly in direction, although can at times veer to North West.
The steep hill causes prevailing winds to bend sharply around it, resulting in
the altered wind flowing roughly in either a North-South or South-North
direction and along the length of this part of the Lough.
The effects of this natural phenomenon produce a continuously shifting and
difficult to read series of disturbed and pulsing wind patterns, which can be
particularly prevalent at windward marks and leeward gates if in fact we do
have a North-South or South-North wind flow over the race area.
This flow can also often suffer from significant and unpredictable holes in
pressure.
Allied to this and particularly if prevailing breeze is strong, is the presence of
katabatic gusts. These gusts drop like 'wind bombs', often taking skippers
totally by surprise.
Any of the Scottish or Irish entrants who might have previously raced big boats
in the Scottish Series on Loch Fyne should have a fair idea of what to expect.
But if the wind gods provide breeze from any other points on the compass,
then this disturbed air feature should be absent.
Venue video Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DudK4I3Kkr4
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Team Racing:
Over the course of the 2 days of racing a team element is included, as
competing skippers will also be representing their respective countries in the
battle for the Celtic Challenge Cup.
The Social Side:
For participants arriving on the Friday evening a social gathering with dinner is
planned at http://www.denvirs.com/ in the near-by town of Downpatrick. On
the Saturday evening and early Sunday afternoon of the event a dinner and
prize-giving lunch are also planned at http://www.paddysbarn.com/, close to
the venue.
Additional entries:
For guidance and advice with accommodation, directions to the venue, and
general enquiries for additional entrants, please contact the event secretary
via the MYA's Events and On Line entry page:
http://www.mya-uk-members.org.uk/events/event_details.asp?id=1148"
Pre-event press release for:
Yachts & Yachting
Ireland Afloat
The MYA (including the Scottish & Northern Districts' website)
EDYC's website
The Irish IOM Association's website
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Accompanying foreword with the press release on the resurgence of Model
Yachting in N. Ireland to:
Down Recorder
Down District Council (cc Dept of Culture and Leisure [FCILC Dept.])
Belfast Telegraph
Northern Ireland Sports Council
Belfast City Council (Head of Sport & Recreation & Water Management Dept)
RYA Northern Ireland
Foreword:
"Northern Ireland has very recently seen a strong resurgence of Model Yacht
Racing. In fact some readers might be old enough to reminisce the days of
model yacht racing in the 40's & 50's of the last century strongly featuring at
venues such as Belfast's Water Works.
Today there are two active clubs on the East Coast of Northern Ireland
involved in the scene, with a group of active enthusiasts likely to form a third
club in the Lough Erne area in the not too distant future.
The two current clubs are:
Carrickfergus MBC http://carrickfergusmodelyachts.blogspot.co.uk/ &
East Down Yacht Club
http://wolf.servers.eqx.misp.co.uk/~dunmurry/edyc.co.uk/joomla16/
Both clubs have active and regular organised racing and are keen to invite
potential new members to come along and 'Give It A Go!'
Growth in the sport here has been helped thanks to recently established
strong links with both the Scottish District of the Model Yachting Association of
GB & the Irish International One Metre Class Association, with the main focus
of racing being centred around the International One Metre Class - a highly
competitive and relatively inexpensive model yacht racing class with a wellestablished world-wide following.
Growth in spectating this dimension of the sport of sailing has been also seen
a phenomenal increase worldwide in recent years. This is partly due to the
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development of media and web interest via the likes of YouTube, with both the
mainstream and yachting press now able to provide the 'multimedia
experience' type of coverage.
At local level the most important factor contributing to spectator growth is the
fact that spectators are able to get a great 'close up' view, experience the wind
and race course conditions for themselves and watch the action unfolding live,
literally just a few yards from it.
Model Yacht Racing is exactly the same as the hussle, bussle and excitement of
normal sized yacht and dinghy racing, whereas with full-sized dinghy and yacht
racing one usually has to view the action 'in the flesh' from a vantage point and
follow progress around the race course with binoculars.
We have all experienced the multimedia type coverage such as what we
watched during the Olympics and the more recent America's Cup, now model
yacht racing in Northern Ireland is bringing this type of live close up, thrills and
spills viewing right to your doorstep.
The next event on the 2nd and 3rd of November is being held is at Lough
Money, just outside Downpatrick.
You are very welcome to come along to view this hotly-contested and highly
competitive event from the eastern and southern shores of the Lough. The
western shore is reserved for competing skippers, the event's race
management team and the media.
Race times are from 0930-1600hrs on the Saturday, and 0930 to 1100hrs on
the Sunday."
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