IRC Welsh National Championship 2023 at Pwllheli Sailing Club
by Victoria Cox 19 May 2023 09:22 NZST
12-14 May 2023
This years IRC Welsh National Championships, hosted by Pwllheli Sailing Club in conjunction with the Royal Dee Yacht Club, at the Welsh National Sailing Academy and Event Centre, proved challenging for the race officers.
Friday got off to a great start with Plas Heli flags flying in glorious sunshine, as crews on the pontoons enjoyed a fly past of fast jets out of RAF Valley. But once out on the water, not even a zephyr could be seen and AP was raised for both IRC classes.
Meanwhile, further inshore, race officer Robin Evans managed to get the cruiser class off on their first race along the coast, heading down towards Penychain. Percy, racing with their parrot by the same name got off to a good start, winning race one but failed to maintain consistency for the next three races, leaving Cryd-yr-Awel to take 1st in race two.
Eventually, race officer Mike Butterfield was able to get the IRC classes off on their windward/leeward course after a lot of work by both race officer and mark layer.
Sadly the shifting winds disappeared and racing had to be abandoned for the day and crews headed to Plas Heli for daily prize-giving and jugs of beer sponsored each day by Tudor Estate Agents, Partington Marine Services and Firmhelm respectively.
Day 2 and light winds prevailed again but race officers persevered to provide a full day of racing for all classes. Race officer Mike Butterfield was determined to get as many races in as possible so hoisted the U flag after race 1, much to the disappointment of Gelert who were pushed over the line just seconds before the gun.
At the end of the day, Eazitiger and Checkmate were on equal points at the top of IRC2 with Altima in third place.
Mojito led class 1 with a four point lead over Only Magic, closely followed by Xpletive. Although Cryd yr Awel won the first race of the day, a consistent performance and a win in race 4 put Suspicious Minds in the lead in the cruiser class.
With day one abandoned, day 3 was brought forward with an earlier start for both IRC classes to extend racing time and fit in another four races.
Grey skies soon turned to mist but visibility was sufficient to start racing and the 10-15kts from the south was welcomed by the fleet.
As the mist lifted and winds clocked right as forecast, race management worked hard to keep to the schedule.
By the final race, a windward/leeward race finishing with a round the cans element, the sun appeared and winds started to drop, favouring the faster boats in the fleet, allowing Jackknife a comfortable win, putting them in 2nd place overall in IRC class 1.
Full results on the event website at www.IRCWelshChamps.com
As the fleets retired to Plas Heli for refreshments and prize-giving, everyone agreed that it had been a fantastic weekend.
Whilst runner up positions changed, top spots in each class were cemented.
Suspicious Minds taking 1st in cruisers, Eazitiger pulling away from Checkmate to take IRC class 2 and Mojito taking 1st in IRC 1 and overall Welsh Championship.
Next years Championships are scheduled for 17th to 19th May 2024.
Look out for Notice Of Race, coming soon at www.IRCWelshChamps.com