Saturday afternoon was windy and rough but this was not enough to put off the enthusiastic club members and well wisher who attended the club to take part in the naming and launching of the club’s second St Ayles Skiff, Birdie Bowers. Ian Clark’s wife Susie cracked open a bottle of whisky and used a small amount to christen the new skiff. A larger amount was used to warm the crew on returning from the inaugural trip round the Whiteforeland channel marker.
Birdie Bowers and Chippy McNish rowed out from the club together in choppy conditions. As the club crews have learned recently these skiffs are designed and built to withstand far worse conditions than those experienced on Saturday. The skiffs and their crews performed well.
Both boats are travelling to Antrim a week on Friday to take part in the Dalriada Challenge race, a 7km endurance race off Glenarm. They will be joined by Gobhancroit built at Galgael in Glasgow as part of a joint project with Glasgow Schools.