The Gandelows

Within the shadow of the bigger ship, under its awesome or more impressive presence, the swarms of lesser fry, like City One sailing dinghies and the Gandelows, are seen in their full richness and clarity.

The Gandelows, elegant and up to 23’ feet long, are Limerick’s traditional Shannon river and estuary wooden rowing and fishing boat. Like their distant cousins the Gondolas of Venice, they are flat bottomed to stay free of the shallows.

The Gandelows, beautiful and powerful in their races on the river, and potent in their deep diffusion through the city and districts, have gone on to carry Limerick’s prowess to victory once more over Dublin in 2014 one thousand years to the day after the Battle of Clontarf.

Battle of Clontarf Gandelow Racing Dublin 2014 Ilen School — Munster v Leinster – Battle of Clontarf Gandelow Races, Dublin 2014 – a joyous waterborne day for the Ilen School’s fleet of Gandelows, crews and builders on the River Liffey, and great welcome from the crew of the Jeanie Johnston

And they have gone further, overseas, accompanied by the Mayor of Limerick, on a great raid and reception on the waters of Venice.

Gandelow Racing Venice Ilen School — Gandelow Races, Venice – Wherever the Limerick racing crews went they won great admiration for their seamanship and their fleet of four beautiful Gandelows. This welcome, as if for a long lost boat, was found everywhere the Limerick Gandelow fleet went. People stopped on the canal sides to offer their precious moorings and to admire this fine expression of culture as if it were that missing element from their own fleet.

Since then they have been gathering a great haul of silver in community festivals and races throughout these islands.