Regatta to be plain sailing as Deasys make it a real family affair
This year’s Cork Week, organised by the historic Royal Cork Yacht Club (RCYC) at Crosshaven in Co Cork, will be a real family affair for the Deasys.
Dad Peter is the vice admiral of the RCYC and chairman of Cork Week.
His wife Judy is working behind the scenes to ensure everything runs smoothly.
And as they finalise preparations for the event, which begins on July 10, they are looking forward to having their four sons – all of whom have worked or competed in Cork Week, and two of whom met their wives at the event – together for the first time in several months.
“It will be a very busy household for me that week. It will be very exciting but very busy. We’ll spend the mornings fighting for the bathroom,” Judy joked.
Ross, 31, who works in finance in London, worked on Cork Week as a teenager, and said it was the highlight of his summers.
“Sailing has had a huge impact on the course of my life. It allowed me true independence at a young age, introduced me to some incredible people, including my wife, Alvin, and opened my mind to the world beyond Roches Point,” he said.
Professional sailor Clive, 30, was born just weeks after the first Cork Week in 1978, is in Rhode Island managing the refit of a yacht.
He is due to return to Crosshaven to attend this year’s event which he said gave him “the keys to the world”.
He worked as a bartender in the RCYC during Cork Week, then catered on board the spectator vessel Watonia, before moving on to delivering boats for the regatta.
“It was in the big boat fleet that I made the connections that facilitated my current career managing sailboats and cruising and racing all over the world,” he said.
“I have participated in the event at all levels too, from testing the boundaries of a father-son relationship on his 32-footer, to the thrill of being chased by the media in the SuperZero class on a Swan 60R.”
Scott, 21, who is studying for a degree in finance in UCC and who began a professional rugby career with Munster Rugby on Monday, said Cork Week is a very significant event for his whole family.
Niall, 20, has worked on several regattas and said he is looking forward to working for his dad at this year’s event.
“My jobs would include picking up glasses, dropping people out to their boats and making sure that the place is clean for the spectators,” he said.
“This is the first time that my dad is chairman for this regatta so there is a big responsibility he must face in making this regatta a very successful one.
“I am employed down there for this regatta so it should be good working for my dad as my new boss.”
Cork Week, which is every two years, takes place this year from July 10 to 16 at the RCYC – the world’s oldest yacht club. A total of 250 yachts from around the world will race on the waters of Cork Harbour from July 12.
Despite the recession, some of the world’s most expensive ocean-racing yachts have signed up to compete, include the hi-tech Super Zero class.
Piet Vroon from Holland is a former Fastnet Winner and he is returning to compete with Tonnerre de Breskens 3.
Richard Matthews will be in Crosshaven with his Oystercatcher XXVI to defend his Class Zero title.
The event, which features a tented village and shoreline entertainment by The Coronas, Fred, The Chapters, Jerry Fish and the Frank and Walters, is worth more than €6m to the local economy.
* www.corkweek.ie
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