Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
#Creeragh - Independent.ie reports that a man has died after he was swept into the sea by an unexpected wave near Kilkee in Co Clare yesterday (Saturday 13 January). The 30-year-old man, believed to be a Hungarian national resident in…
#VOR - Sun Hung Kai/Scallywag retain the lead in Leg 4 of the Volvo Ocean Race despite a dramatic man overboard scenario on Sunday (14 January). Crew member Alex Gough was washed overboard by a wave during a sail change,…
The first boats have finished the Atlantic Challenge ocean rowing race. The Four Oarsmen from Britain won in a record time of 29 days and 15 hours, which the organisers say is the fastest time ever for a row across…
End of an Era As Unique Passenger-Cargoship RMS St. Helena Prepares to Bid Farewell
13th January 2018 Ports & Shipping
#Ports&Shipping - The unique Royal Mail Ship, RMS St Helena (see related ship for sale report), will depart on a final voyage from the remote South Atlantic island of St. Helena on Saturday, 10 February, having dutifully served for the…
Work began this week at Oldcourt near Baltimore in West Cork on reconstructing Conor O’Brien’s Saoirse. One of the most remarkable sailing vessels in Irish and world maritime history, the 42ft Saoirse is unique in many ways. W M Nixon…
#Jobs - Waterways Ireland is currently recruiting for an Inspector of Navigation based in Athlone, and an engineer based in Dublin. The Inspector of Navigation will be responsible for a number of strategic work areas, including the monitoring and management…
#Shellfish - Predicting risk and impact of harmful algal bloom events that cause impact to the shellfish aquaculture sector (PRIMROSE) is a new €2.7-million marine science project led by the Marine Institute. The project is funded by the Interreg Atlantic…
#VOR - The Volvo Ocean Race fleet was gearing up to jump on the highway to Hong Kong on Friday (12 January) after returning to the Northern Hemisphere for the first time since mid-November. All seven teams have now crossed…
3Di NORDAC: A Smarter Way to Make Durable, Affordable, High Quality Cruising Sails
12th January 2018 North Sails Ireland
North Sails, the worldwide leader in sailmaking technology is pioneering a revolution in Dacron sailmaking. For thousands of years, sailcloth has been made by the ancient process of weaving fibers into a finished material. For over 60 years, Woven Polyester…
Time please Ladies and gentlemen. It’s a wrap. Get out. Never quite the latter, no matter how hard we tried, but the 2018 SB20 World Championship of Hobart in Tasmania are now confined to the annals of history writes Ted…
DMYC organiers are studying a dip in entries for its annual Frostbite series. Numbers have dropped significantly from the typical 80 – 90 boats over recent years to 52 this year, 24 of which are Lasers. Despite best efforts to…
Sprint Race Turns Into Marathon For Clipper Fleet Off Australian Coast
12th January 2018 Clipper Race
#ClipperRace - On Day 7 of Race 6: The Wondrous Whitsundays Race, the Elliot Brown Ocean Sprint has turned into a marathon. Wind holes have halted the progress of the Clipper Race fleet as it battles against the strong East…
#ClipperRace - The UK’s Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has issued a Safety Bulletin on the “use of safety harness tethers on sailing yachts” following the tragic fatality of GREAT Britain crew member Simon Speirs on Leg 3 of the…
Royal St. George & National Yacht Club to Jointly Host Youth Pathway Sailing Championships
12th January 2018 Youth Sailing
After last year's successful Belfast Lough inaugural staging of the Irish Sailing Youth Pathway National Championships, the regatta stays on the east coast in 2018 with the Irish Sailing announcement today that the event will take place from 5th–8th of…
Barcelona World Race 2018/19 Notice of Race is Published: One Year to Start
12th January 2018 Solo Sailing
With 365 days to go until the start of the fourth edition of the Barcelona World Race (12th January 2019), Barcelona’s round the world event has issued the official document containing details of the key rules of the regatta. This…
#MarineScience- The Marine Institute's CEO says the key risk with microbeads is the potential to get into the food chain, eventually getting into products eaten by humans. According to RTÉ where Dr Peter Heffernan was speaking on 'Morning Ireland', the CEO…
#RNLI - In the East Cork lifeboat station’s first callout of 2018, Youghal RNLI was requested to launch at 1.02pm on Wednesday 10 January to reports of a fishing vessel that was taking on water. The lifeboat proceeded to the…
White Star Line's S.S. Laurentic Bell Makes Homecoming Voyage to Derry
12th January 2018 Historic Boats
#HistoricBoats - The bell of S.S. Laurentic, one of the most significant artefacts in local maritime history, will make its return to the Derry this week, following purchase at auction by Derry City and Strabane District Council. The Bell, which…
With a readers poll already showing trends in the Sailor of the Year Award stakes, the ceremony itself is less than a month away. The past year, in the view of Winkie Nixon, has produced some 'extra-special sailors', and over the…
#Ferry - Across Northern Ireland businesses continue to be disadvantaged by poor road access to their key markets in the UK. Ferry operator Stena Line has raised concerns with local political and business stakeholders to increase the focus and necessity…