Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Challenging winds kept sailors and race management on their toes on day one of the Elmo team racing Trophy at the Royal St. George Yacht Club, Dun Laoghaire Harbour. Some of the early racing at the Elmo team racing Trophy…

Breezy conditions which had a strong northwesterly at times tested the fleets in action in the first day of this weekend’s Royal Cork Yacht Club ‘At Home’ regatta on Saturday (26 August). Our own Bob Bateman reports that the proposed…

After a week in Caen, Normandy, the 32 competitors competing in the 54th edition of La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec will head out to the English Channel on Sunday to make ready for a challenging first leg to Kinsale, Ireland.…

Lindsay Casey's J97 Windjammer won Dublin Bay Sailing Club's (DBSC) AIB Summer Series race IRC Two division on Saturday afternoon. The Royal St. George Yacht Club series leader finished with a corrected time of one hour, 24 minutes and 35…

BJ Marine are delighted to confirm exciting line-ups of Beneteau sailboats for both the Cannes and Southampton boat shows this autumn. First up is the Cannes Yachting Festival from 12-17 September where there Beneteau will have six boats on display.…

The volunteer crew of Clifden RNLI were called out on Friday morning (25 August) at 7.30am to assist a stranded yacht off Connemara. The vessel with two sailors on board had come into difficulty to the south-west of Inishark, which…

Irish East Coast Yacht broker Leinster Boats is offering four racing yachts ready to race. Click on these links below for details of each boat: J109 First 31.7 Impala Sigma 33 OOD Call Ronan Beirne to view these or other…

An original portrait photograph of Irish Arctic explorer Francis Crozier, which was taken shortly before the doomed Franklin expedition, will be auctioned in London next month. As BBC News reports, Capt Francis Crozier and 13 other senior officers were photographed…

The ICRA National championships will be the main “on water” feature of the Howth Maritime and Seafood Festival, which takes place over the weekend of the 8th and 10th of September. The ICRA Commodore, David Cullen, has reported 52 entries for…

‘Antoni’ and ‘Betty’ provided a sharp reminder that we are not immune to severe storm conditions even in mid-summer. Craftinsure is helping a number of customers who have fallen victim to recent bad weather. Claims have included a yacht capsizing…

With the news that last year’s monohull and multihull line honours winners have entered, entries at the 44th Rolex Middle Sea Race have shifted gears again. The Dutch 30 metre (100 foot) Leopard 3, skippered by Chris Sherlock and which…

Newcastle RNLI’s inshore lifeboat, Eliza, and all-weather lifeboat, Leonard Kent, launched on Thursday, (24 August 2023) to assist a man who took ill on Murlough beach. At approximately 1.40 pm, Belfast Coastguard requested assistance from Newcastle RNLI. The RNLI’s lifeguards…

The Shannon Estuary’s resident population of bottlenose dolphins could be under threat from plans to transform the area into a green energy hub, a conservation group fears. Plans revealed last month in the final report of the Shannon Estuary Economic…

The Solitaire du Figaro has been a significant feature of the European sailing scene for 54 years now, and today it is well established as La Solitaire du Figaro Paprec, supported by the 1985-founded French re-cycling and green energy conglomerate.…

Irish offshore survey company Green Rebel has been recognised by Certification Europe for reaching global standards for quality and environmental management. The Cork-based company runs a fleet of vessels, buoys and aircraft used for research data for offshore wind farm…

The Department of Transport has issued a safety notice to advise all users of Deutsche Schlauchboot GmbH (DSB) life rafts of important information regarding the equipment. In June 2022, the UK-registered stern trawler Piedras (FD 528) flooded while fishing 78…

Defending Champions Cameron Good, Simon Furney and Henry Kingston sailing 'Little Fella' have moved into the lead at the Irish National Dragon Championships in Kinsale on Friday (25 August). The host club leaders have a five-point margin after five races sailed over Dublin Bay's Phantom…

There are two very specific points in the annual report of the Marine Casualty Investigation Board for last year (2022), which, in pursuance of maritime safety, should be heeded by the sectors involved – watersports and the fishing industry. The…

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, stories from Ireland will feature in the RNLI’s new 200 Voices podcast series, which explores captivating tales from the history of the charity that saves lives at sea through to the modern day. The first…

Shortly after 1:30pm on Friday, Valentia Coast Guard Coast Guard was alerted by Marine VHF radio (emergency channel 16) to a man overboard incident in Galway Bay. The Sligo-based Coast Guard helicopter R118, Galway RNLI and Costelloe Bay Coast Guard…