Lough Ree Yacht Club

has proven to be the world's first and oldest yacht club. In any event it is probably the oldest club based on an inland lake.The tradition of organized pleasure boating in Athlone goes back to at least 1731, with a regatta on the River Shannon amongst the 'diversions' promised for a festival week in the town. Athlone is founded on the River Shannon, just south of Lough Ree, the second largest of Ireland's big lakes.Early activities appear to have involved a rendezvous at some agreed place and a cruise in company in the manner of a naval flotilla but racing eventually developed. From these incidental activities an organization in the form of a club was established. Originally it was known as Athlone Yacht Club and was renamed Lough Ree Yacht Club in 1895, probably because by this time most its members sailed out of a small, sheltered bay at Ballyglass, on Lough Ree itself; Ballyglass is recorded as the venue of the Annual Regatta as early as 1836.The Club Members have since, the early twentieth century, owned their own premises. Recently, on July 25th 2006, new, larger premises were officially opened, as the second substantial expansion of the clubhouse premises. Yet the original building built in the early twentieth century is now a "building-within-a-building", in that it now functions as the office housed entirely within the clubhouse proper.The Club is closely, but not exclusively, associated with the Shannon-One-Design (SOD), a single-sail class of open clinker built boat. The SOD was designed by Morgan Giles of Teignmouth and it was introduced to the Club in 1922 in response to a growing demand for a one-design competitive and less expensive dinghy. Over a hundred and forty have now been built for the Shannon Lakes, almost all by the master craftsmen such as Walter Levinge, Peter Quigley, and Jimmy Furey of Lough Ree. Other than SOD's, the Club is made up of a few barge owners, as well as a mixed cruiser class and a junior section, both of which are very active. Junior sailing was introduced in 1968, and today instructs beginners with a fleet of Optimist, Laser, Mirror and Laser Pico dinghies. The largest and most significant event run by the club annually is the Annual Regatta commencing on the August Bank Holiday.