Pat Tanner

What is your opinion on dairy on dairy products?

What? Emmmm.... I just have no opinion on them... Just milk you put in your tea and coffee. Cheese, you eat it in sandwiches. Ehhh... What kind of questions are these?

Whats your favourite drink Pat?

I suppose it would have to be either a pint of Heineken or Mount Gay Rum and coke Depending on the weather or Joleen's punch! Sean Yeah, that was very nice. The problem with punch is you don't know how much alcohol is in it until you've had three or four of them and you fall off the stool
Yeah I found out all about that (Joleen)
Did they catch up on you after (Sean)

What would you do if you had an unlimited supply of money for the day?

For the day? And it runs out at midnight? Can you keep what you buy afterwards? Otherwise its no good! Right well I suppose you a have to buy all the little boys toys - racing car, racing yachts, computers.

You could em give at least half of it to charity and the third world to sort out all their problems, enough to pay off all their debts anyway. I suppose you'd have to buy Cronin's pub as well. When the money is unlimited everything is for sale isn't it Sean? You'd have to give everybody all the money they wanted. Yeah, that would make a whole mess of the country.

What's your favourite sport and why?

Sailing. The reason why? I don't know I just love it, Ive been doing it for the last 18 years and I just love it. Out in the fresh air and it's a bit of a team sport aswell so there is a bunch of people out there having a bit of craic, and of course its an excuse to go to the pub afterwards!.
Yeah, I remember one time the sailing was cancelled down in Kinsale, What happened then?
(Laughs.) Your not putting that into the interview! Ah tell us No! We'll just say we spent the day drinking and you can take it from there.

Tell us about your boat Pat

Its black with a red strip! It's a Galway Hooker called An Faoilean

It's a racing machine and its goes bob bob bob! (Sean)

Do you want the history then? I was at the classice regatta in Glandore two years ago and I meet Liam Hegarty from Old Court Boatyard, we were just chatting. He turned around later and said he had just the job for me over in his boatyard, and I thought great, a chance to earn some money and in the next breath he said "It wont cost you much!". It was a lovely little Galway hooker. So I went over to the yard and surveyed it with Mark Bushe. He told me the boat had just been abandoned in the yard and he told me I could have the boat for the price of the storage in the yard. And so I paid the outstanding bills and ended up with a 28 foot Galway hooker for 800 pounds, after swearing that Id never buy a boat! I spent that winter cleaning up the boat and repairing it. There were quite a few leaks and the boat spent most of that summer trying to sink. Last winter then I put it into Crosshaven boatyard and spent the time working on it. I launched it this year.

You've had loads of success this year haven't you?

Yeah, we went to the Classic regatta in Baltimore in May where I met my new girlfriend!

Tell us about her

(He smirks) She's gorgeous! She is Mary O' Flynn's sister Angela. Anyway, we won the Galway Hooker prize there. We then did the Crosshaven Traditional Sail with a crew of 14, where we won the prize for most crew and the best Galway Hooker. Mind you we were the only Hooker at the event!. Then we went to Glandore where we had to do a bit of racing but won the best inshore work boat. Our next expedition is to bring the boat back up home to Kinvara and go racing up there for the Crinniu na mBad at the end of August. I say there will be a lot of competition up there.

You know I'm half thinking of getting a channel handicap and putting it into class 3 next year!. It would be a great laugh and annoy everyone. I need to organise myself and measure the boat. It would be pretty cool to be the first Galway Hooker with an IRC racing cert! And we might do the October league this year if the cert. comes in on time.


What is your favourite pass time, besides sailing?

T'would be model making, making models of boats. I used to make models of houses before.

That's right, you were an architect before werent you?

Yeah. Well I went to college and spent 4 years there then spent 2 years in an office. So I got fed up of it, and started working in sailing boats, got bitten by the bug and decided I prefered working in the fresh air, thatÕs was the life for me!

Have you ever attended an All Ireland final?

Oh I have. Well my father played hurling and football for Cork so I would have as a child like. He used to play in the late 60's early 70's. Did he have much success? He has a few Munster medals alright, I don't think he has any All Ireland medals. He played in goal in the hurling team, and full back for the Cork football team.

Did you ever spend outlandish money on anything? Like emmm..... A banjo????

Yeah I spent 300 pounds on a model yacht. And last Saturday myself and Moco went to town shopping. He wanted to buy a Yukolalle and we ended up coming home with a small baby guitar, with its own little suitcase and everything so you can take it on holidyas! And I came back with a four string banjo! I bought that for 250 euros last Saturday and I learnt to play my first song last night.

What song?

"What shall we do with the drunken sailor?"

Have you got a fear of flying?

No, about 4 years ago I got a present of flying tickets. I went up and did about 4 hours of flying lessons. Great fun but a bit scary when the plane is bumpy and taking off into the wind. That would be another hobby Id like to get into, but it's terribly expensive. My motto is I'll try everything.. well most things at least once anyway. I've tried motor cross racing, flying an aeroplane, scuba diving.

***At this stage Joleen produces three brown envelopes. Inside are three different questions which were asked by different customers in the bar. Pat looks anxious as he selects one and begins to read the question inside. He starts laughing***

Customer's Question : When are you going to cut your hair?

Hahaha, there is actually a funny story behind that one. I was in the FCA for years and I used to have shaved tight hair and when I left that I just let it grow. When I was still working as an architect and I went into a licensing hearing for a pub, you know where you get the pub re-licensed every year and the case was postponed by the barrister. I'd say you know him, a real old fella with grey hair, official looking barrister. I bet you Dick Brazil would know him now. Very prim and proper. He said to me "Young man, would you mind if I said something personal. You are not properly dressed for court" And there was I, with a suit and tie and the whole lot. He says "no, its your hair, when the judge sees your hair he thinks of drug dealers!. Can you get a haircut in time for the hearing tomorrow?". So I went back to the client an says "That f***ker wants me to cut my ponytail!, and if you want me to cut the ponytail off, it will cost you an extra thousand pounds". And sure your man was stuck for his pub license so he gave it me. That was about 8 years and I'm growing it since. At the moment, I'm waiting for a better offer!.

Finally Pat, Why do you like Cronins?

I think it's the ambience and the character and the characters as well - nuts corner!. Its my taste of a pub rather than a super shiny modern one. I like to be able to sit down at a counter and have a quite pint where you know the bar man.

Pat & Angela