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Simon McGrotty & Mark Boylan of Skerries won the season’s fourth Fireball championship in Wicklow in the last weekend of August.

The 27 boat fleet completed four races in gushing tides and flicking force one to three winds.

McGrotty/Boylan convincingly took Race 1, and the strong tide pushed five boats over the start line into disqualification. Race 2 was underway after a long wait, Owen Laverty / Ed Butler ahead only for some of the fleet to round the wrong mark, resulting in Race Officer Philip O’Sullivan abandoning. In Race 3, McGrotty/Boylan were once again in the lead only to be hauled from the course at Mark 1 for a premature start, along with four other boats. Conor Byrne/ Leo Bishop held off Andrew Pierce / Hugh Butler and held the lead to the finish line.

McGrotty/Boylan came back to take Race 4 from Pierce/Butler.

Noel Butler & John Hudson were clubhouse leaders, with his ever consistent scoreline, this time 2, 5, 3.

On Sunday, Race 4 was to be the last of the event, starting in a light breeze and only getting lighter. Conor Clancy / Francis Rowan rounded Mark 1 and bolted with the tide to an enormous lead which nobody was going to take from them. As the rest of the boats were finishing, the tide let the fleet know that it was not going to go out quietly, as the wind vanished. The discard was now in force, Pierce/Butler one point behind McGrotty/Boylan for the championship.

Race 5 started, but no boats made it to Mark 1, most were closer to rounding Wicklow Head by the time racing was abandoned for the weekend.

Niall Mcgrotty / Robert Mahon won the Gold 2 fleet, Ed Lowe and David Tanner the Silver.

1st Simon McGrotty / Mark Boylan; 1, 28, 1, 3
2nd Andrew Pierce / Hugh Butler; 7, 2, 2, 2
3rd Noel Butler / John Hudson; 2, 5, 3, 6