DBSC LASER FLEET - LASER SAILING IN DÚN LAOGHAIRE

Laser Association Training Officer – Sean Craig asked Dun Laoghaire class captain Ross O’Leary to write a few lines on the really successful local training and racing programme Ross masterminded from April to October in 2017.  Ross was very keen to make things really inclusive and make regular training available to all.  Read his thoughts and ideas here:

DBSC (Dublin Bay Sailing Club) Laser fleet has grown to 30 racing entries and over 40 active Laser sailors in the summer of 2017 – ranging in age from teenagers to ‘60 year old young lads’. It is a diversified fleet of all abilities underpinned by a good social and training structure.

Five years ago the Laser fleet in DBSC was on it’s knees and suffering from lack of participation. With improvements in race management and a separate class start this has steadily grown to be one of the largest fleets in DBSC. To keep the growth going into the 2017 season, a training programme was put in place to keep active Laser sailors involved and to encourage new participants.  So back in early April DBSC Laser Fleet targeted all types of LASER sailors including – Full rigs, Radial rigs, Females & Males, Oldfella’s & Nippers, Wanabee’s & Hotshots,  Absent Parents & Empty Nesters – a message went out “We are looking for NEW VICTIMS RECRUITS!!”

The idea was to mobilize the boats sitting around and encourage more participation from all levels, ages and abilities – no matter what personal goals were:

Your LASER is sitting in your garden…. ???

Your Kid’s LASER is sitting in the club boatyard…???

Your Teenagers don’t want to use the LASER anymore….???

Hotshot LASER sailor – looking for good quality short & sharp racing….???

PUT A RIG ON IT…  JOIN US ON TUESDAY NIGHTS IN DUBLIN BAY!

Traditionally Laser training has been run over a weekend or a full day – this format didn’t suit more mature Laser sailors with family pressures or other time commitments. Long day training sessions with an overload of information might not be the best method of learning for some. So a programme was put in place to concentrate on 3 hour sessions – short and sharp – with an aim to concentrate on one specific skill each session. Friday evenings and Sunday mornings provided the best time opportunities. Often, other members of the family were already down in the club anyway on a Friday evening (eg Junior Oppie racing) or Sunday morning (“Sea Squirts” sailing for the very young). A panel of coaches was sourced, all with different strengths – technical, basic skills, encouragement & confidence building – to cater for all levels of ability.

Each session was on a pay as you go basis (cost never more than about € 15) which allowed sailors to jump in and out of the program as it suited their other commitments. The coaching program ran from May to October. Minimum numbers to run a session was 6 and the largest number we had out was 17 in all types of conditions.  It has to be pointed out the host club, the Royal St George Yacht Club, was very supportive but you’d expect that, since this kind of thing can only help new membership drives.

To give a flavour of the variety in the coaching, here are some videos from one of the October sessions with coach Troy McNamara https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_b1dUhxZ3yYp8CfAwcRPLw/videos?view=0&shelf_id=1&view_as=subscriber&sort=dd

From this programme at least four Laser sailors got the experience and confidence to compete in their first regional laser events. It encouraged five Lady sailors to come back to Laser Sailing after long breaks. More importantly, it has encouraged a lot of new laser sailors of all abilities to join in and improve their sailing while creating a social outlet for all.

For the 2018 season the coaching programme will commence in March. For DBSC racing, we plan to have separate Laser Radial results, targeting more U25’s entries, as the Radial fleet has grown massively, now with many older as well as younger sailors using the smaller sail. Our annual End of Season Regatta ‘Final Fling 2018’ is planned for 29th September 2018 with a repeat afterwards of 2017’s social event and Awards Dinner!

Ross O’Leary

DBSC Laser class captain

Winter is coming! It's time to sign up for the DMYC Frostbites 2017-2018

Sign up right here : On line entry form

The Final Fling - Dinghy regatta

Dun Laoghaire end of Season Dinghy Regatta

What else would you rather be doing on Saturday 21st October?

Now taking place on Saturday, 21st of October

Open to all dinghies in the Dun Laoghaire area and beyond - all welcome!

Great way to close off the summer season with some snappy sailing, après-sailing craic and prize giving - how's that for three languages in one sentence! 

Newcomers particularly welcome for the sailing or afterwards - see what Dublin Bay has to offer and check out the opportunity to sign up next summer. Please pass the word around, bring the boat down for a day, or let us know if you are looking for a boat or crew.

Plan is to run 4 races back to back approx 30 minutes races, first gun and approx finish time tba.
Entry fee is 20 euro to cover prizes.

Open to all dinghies - Lasers, Fireballs, RS's, PY fleet etc. Please let us know if you would like to take part. You can pay on the day, but we need to know numbers asap please.

Contact Ross O'Leary 087 664 2297, Richard Tate 087 243 6878 or you class captain

Tranquil Tuesday - Prosecco conditions

9th May - Second evening of DBSC racing in the harbour.
A fine turnout of 15 Lasers, many of whom had recently completed a weekend training session, put on a scintillating display of close racing in a 6-8 knot breeze from 110 degrees. Darach Dineen and Damien Maloney finished 1st and 2nd in both races while 3rd was taken by John Marmelstein and Conor O'Leary respectively. "Places on the podium are hard - damn hard - to come by these days," muttered an anonymous source.

Elsewhere, Des Fortune pulled off a third successive victory in the Finn while the second race was snapped up by debutant Dara McDonagh's RS400 -despite attempting to miss the last lap! Looks like a fast boat..... Des leads the series, as Richard Tate and Tom Murphy did their stint with the amazing RC team on Firebird.

In the IDRA14's - another fleet with a healthy turnout - Dunmoanin (Frank Hamilton) and Slipstream (JulieAscoop) scooped the race wins. In the Fireballs Clandog Millionaire (Clancy Brothers) claimed a double bullet again - DBSC results here

Fortune Doubles up on Opening Night

DBSC dinghy racing finally got going this Tuesday after last week's blowout. It has to be said the harbour looked pretty busy with a very decent turnout of boats arriving to compete for the inaugural conferring of bragging rights. Dispensing with the unremarkable wind conditions (it was a bronchial 4 or 5 knots from the NE or whatever), there was some darn good racing to be had during the two races provided by a very slick race management team. Apart from some delicate bumps and muttering on the start line, silence ruled from start to finish as concentration and cunning stealth became the premium assets of those vying for victory.

Des "Ben" Fortune in his Finn secured two back to back wins in the PY fleet while the results show a similar feat by Damian Slingsby-Maloney in the Laser and yet again a double bullet by the Clancy Brothers in the Fireball fleet. Only the IDRA14 fleet could not agree who would win both races and therefore had to procure two different winners. Full Results here.

So, it was a calm and somewhat blissful summer evening, a joy to behold for the thronged spectators on the East Pier. The only disappointment for the baying crowds was Conor O'Leary abject failure to capsize - not even once! Perhaps they would have had more to cheer had they amassed in the RStGYC to witness Conor's namesake, "Young Man" O'Leary receive his incoming Captain's hat of office from outgoing Laser Tsar Craigovich. Captain Ross has organised training for Lasers on Friday evenings and Sunday mornings for the month of May, a great initiative to build both the numbers and skill levels of the fleet.

Finally, Troy McNamara presented an excellent talk in the George entitled "Be Your Own Sail Coach," with some particularly good tips on how to use your grey matter to climb up the leader board. On the water training sessions are available for single handers and double handers. Highly recommended that you sign up for some coaching, it's not expensive and it will do you a world of good. Click here or here if you are interested or would like a copy of Troy's slides. It all makes perfect sense, nothing to lose and everything to gain!

Be your own coach : you really - I mean really - should go to this talk!

Start the season with your head in the right place - sail with more confidence, enjoy your racing and watch your results improve!

Join us in the RSGYC on Tuesday, 2nd May after racing. Talk starts at approx 9.00pm. No charge, all welcome.
Drinks and hot plate available. To follow up, we also plan to set up some on-the-water sessions during May - details on the night.

DBSC - Tick, tock .... coming soon!

Summer Dinghy racing starts on Tuesday, 25th April in Scotsman's Bay.

Enter on line www.dbsc.org

First Tuesday 25th April (warning gun 19.00)

First Saturday 20th May (warning gun 14.15)

Up to 2 back-to-back races per session

Fees are very reasonable for a season's racing. Even better with under 25's discount. 

For example, an under 25 can race a Laser on Tuesdays for as little as €116

Or race a double hander in PY fleet on Tuesdays and Saturdays for only €232

Need some info? Need a boat? Need crew? Interested in some coaching?

Laser fleet captain - Ross O'Leary 087 664 2297

PY fleet captain - Richard Tate 087 243 6878

PY fleet - all comers welcome - Finn, OK Dinghy, K1, Solo, Aero, Mirror, Feva, RS 200, RS 400, Wayfarer, 420, 470 - too many to mention but all welcome. Finishing time are adjusted to decide who wins