Few Irish sailing figures, if any, can lay claim to the legendary status that the name Harold Cudmore evokes. Although keeping a lower profile these days, he has certainly not retired from the sport and his presence at Ford Cork Week goes beyond turning up for a pleasant week in the sailing waters of his early years.

For the second year running at this event, he is responsible for leading the charge in Class Zero on board Barlo Plastics. Although competing as a different craft than in 1998 when it won the overall prize, the title has stayed with the crew and sponsor rather than the yacht and Cudmore's previous winning yacht, Roy Dickson's Cracklin' Rosie has moved to class one for handicapping reasons.

But if the Cudmore name remains strong today, it is for his past exploits topped by occasional forays into his former hunting grounds. "I'm no longer active in yachting on a full-time basis, my old bones creak a little too much on long races," he said. In truth, Cudmore has lost little of his winning edge and once again he brings this to the fore in Cork.

Instead of competing at the sharp end of yacht racing afloat, he is more likely to be found on the management side. A long-stand UK resident, as it is currently in the offyear between events, he will again be organising the British Admiral's Cup Team in 2001. But for this season at least, his campaign for Richard Matthews of Oyster has been to concentrate on his Corby designed 41 footer.

"Having built the boat during the winter, we started out with the Scottish Series and this year Ford Cork Week will be the highlight of the summer season," he said, but also added that his presence on board should be seen as continuing to fly the Irish flag.

His formula for success in 1998 has been taken a step further to make his team event favourites for class zero. A regular crew including Olympian Andy Beadsworth, veteran campaigner Lou Varney and Guy Barron secure the core talent of his team.

Also racing on board is John Corby who designed Cracklin' Rosie and responsible for many of the top performing mid-sized `oneoff' racing yachts. The others on board are hand-picked by Cudmore too. Topping off the crew list is the owner plus local expert Eddie English.