Ballyholme lead the way in Dublin Bay
SAILORS from Ballyholme Yacht Club (BYC) recently won the top prize at the RS Feva East Coast Championships in Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin.
Three boats travelled to the Royal Irish Yacht Club last weekend to compete against a total of 28 other crews from across Ireland.
Weather conditions in Dublin Bay for the two-day event were close to ideal, with plenty of sun and wind. The event was brilliantly organised and efficiently run, and like all RS Feva events, great fun for young sailors from 8-18 years old.
Ballyholme’s Emily and Annabel Ridout led most of the six races with confidence and flair, keeping ahead of the main fleet. With five first places and one second, they comfortably took the Gold Fleet first prize.
BYC members Jessica Dadley-Young and Sally Nixon also raced very hard amongst the front runners of the fleet. Their best race place was achieved whilst struggling with a broken tiller extension – quite an achievement. Their performance was rewarded with third place in the Gold Fleet.
Matthew and Peter Ridout also competed for Ballyholme as a parent and child team and were pushed very hard by the excellent Irish teams, achieving a final overall ranking of second place.
The RS Feva is a double handed sailing dinghy, complete with asymmetric spinnaker. It is fun to sail, and the class is growing.
Ballyholme Yacht Club has three RS Fevas that can be rented if you want to have a go this summer. The class is predominantly a youth class, but parents are also able to sail with their children, even during competitions.