Clontarf Yacht & Boat Club
Clontarf is one of the oldest sailing clubs in Ireland being founded in 1875! There are 14 active IDRAs at Clontarf with a few more hiding in sheds. The sailing area is very convenient to the club with public parking adjacent. Soup and pints are typically served in the bar after sailing. Clontarf has a lively class of all ages, who are active socially both on and off the water. The Clontarf class have a full program of sailing events with over 50 races in a season, enjoy training days and social activities throughout the year. Please do pop in and say hello to us in the yard.
Racing
Racing at Clontarf takes place throughout the year even into the winter and continues to grow in popularity with numbers of boats increasing annually. The race area is opposite the clubhouse and boats launch down the slipway and sail to the starting area. The starting area is located 200m from the slipway and offers a great vantage point on the promenade for spectators to sit and take in the racing.
Full CY&BC and quick reference race diaries can be found here.
Social
The Clontarf class is a welcoming, lively and social group of individuals who are always keen to catch up and share stories after sailing in the clubhouse bar. The class arrange a number of social nights throughout the year including vinyl disco and pizza night which are always open to all members of the class and prospective new members to the class.
Clontarf Training & Development
The Clontarf fleet is going from strength to strength with a team approach to the class helping eachother on and off the water with maintenance, training and advice. Training sessions take place locally by using boat handling drills on the water and hosting rigging and Q&A sessions in the yard. Recently some members have refurbished two boats which have been made available to sail and race to help both new and existing members get into the class without having to buy their own boat - 14/142 Cheeky Gin and 14/114 Swift.
14/142 Cheeky Gin
Each year the class makes 14/142 ‘Cheeky Gin’ available to charter for a small group of new members giving them their own boat to learn in. The participants can use the boat to sail with each other or to take private coaching lessons with club instructors. Cheeky Gin is maintained by the class but participants are encouraged to join in on maintenance and repairs to learn new skills.
The Cheeky Gin project has been a great success and a new of past participants have grown in confidence and are now boat owners who actively take part in events in Clontarf and away events too.
If you’d like more information on Cheeky Gin you can contact the CY&BC IDRA 14 class captain.
14/114 Swift
Swift is a great example of the potential that can come with renovating an old boat.
The Clontarf class host a second boat with a similar principal to that of Cheeky Gin to encourage new members to our fleet. The difference being Swift is dedicated to youth development within the class and used exclusively by the clubs youth category of membership.
Other Activities
Junior day - Annually the class volunteer to show the CY&BC junior section what it is like to sail a boat with a trapeze and spinnaker with most children experiencing kites and wires for the first time.
The Clontarf fleet of IDRA’s are also known to go on a few small cruising adventures during the year. These include picnics around Dublin Bays beaches, a trip to Redrock in Sutton and ice creams in Dun Laoghaire.
We also have a bar on site with a dart board and amazing snooker room which hosts games weekly.
