Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
Aurelia, White Mischief and Windjammer each completed IRC and ORC doubles in Dublin Bay Sailing Club's Saturday Series on September 5, as a south-easterly breeze provided racing across the cruiser divisions. The main DBSC fleet raced in generally light conditions,…
Ross McDonald and his Howth Yacht Club crew on Rope Dock Atara have won the 2026 1720 European Championship at Lough Derg Yacht Club, completing a National and European title double for the season. McDonald, sailing with Julian Hughes, Robbie…
One of Carrick-on-Shannon’s best-known waterside pubs has reopened after a four-year refurbishment following a fire at the premises in 2022. Gings Riverside Bar, beside the town’s main bridge and overlooking the River Shannon, has reopened after owner Brendan Whelan undertook…
Barry Cunningham’s Royal Irish Yacht Club J/109 Chimaera has won IRC 1 at the Welsh IRC National Championship at Pwllheli, completing a notable late-season sequence of victories following her successes at Cork Week and Greystones. The Dublin Bay yacht emerged…
Jean-Eudes Renier’s French Pogo RC Midnight Blues, racing double-handed with Joe Lacey, has won the Nautical Cloud Cherbourg Race, taking IRC Overall and Monohull Line Honours after a close 75-nautical-mile contest across the English Channel. As Afloat reported ahead of…
A sizeable Irish sailing contingent will be spread across some of the leading international campaigns when the Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup gets under way in Porto Cervo, Sardinia, on Monday (7 September). At least 16 sailors with Irish connections are…
International ILCA Sailors Give Dublin Bay Worlds Venue Thumbs Up
6th September 2026 ILCA Worlds 2026
Dún Laoghaire and Dublin Bay won praise from international sailors and coaches during the ILCA Men’s World Championships, with visiting teams highlighting the varied sailing conditions, strong organisation and extensive volunteer support at the Irish venue. The championship brought 141…
Galway Bay Sailing Club Fireball First Dinghy Home in Cong-Galway Race
6th September 2026 Cong-Galway Race
Galway Bay Sailing Club’s (GBSC) Alan Henry and Alan Stamp sailed their Fireball into first place in the PY fleet in this year’s Cong-Galway race.Rónán and Oisín Kelly took first in the keelboat fleet in a Flying Fifteen, sailing under…
49er Class Backs Lessons From ILCA 7 Finals Format in Dún Laoghaire
6th September 2026 ILCA Worlds 2026
The Olympic 49er class has pointed to the dramatic conclusion of the ILCA 7 Men’s World Championship in Dún Laoghaire as strong evidence that sailing’s new finals format can deliver close, understandable championship deciders. The assessment is particularly significant because…
The Department of Transport has been notified by Ward & Burke that a small OBS-BUOY 7-watt ocean data acquisition system buoy will be deployed this month off Inis Oírr in the Aran Islands for the purposes of scientific data collection.…
Ballyholme Yacht Club Cadets and their parents were delighted that the Bangor lifeboat crew were able to take some time out from their Sunday morning training on 23 August to present them with a donation towards the work of the RNLI in…
Shannon Navigation: Temporary Closure at Hartley Bridge This Month
6th September 2026 Inland Waterways
Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels on the Shannon Navigation in Co Leitrim that Hartley Bridge will be closed to passage on Wednesday 16 September. The temporary closure is required to facilitate the installation of bridge beams as part of…
Resolute, Don't Dilly Dally, Obsession, Big Mac and Four Seas took IRC class wins in the Cobh-to-Blackrock Race as the 2026 Hibernia Line Triple Crown opened in Cork Harbour on Saturday (5 September). Two of the IRC divisions were decided…
Spain’s Los Gallos made the most of home waters to lead the Spain Sail Grand Prix in Valencia after a dominant opening day that delivered two wins and a second-place finish. Diego Botín’s crew posted a 1-1-2 scoreline in Saturday’s…
Howth Yacht Club’s Darren Wright and his Adrenaline crew have finished eighth overall at the 2026 Melges 24 European Championship in Tønsberg, Norway, completing their campaign with seventh place in the ninth and final race. The Irish entry finished the…
International water specialist Ele Jan Saaf will use a Loughs Agency symposium in Derry this month to argue that rivers should have legal rights and be represented in negotiations over how water resources are managed. The call will be made…
Eve McMahon Leads Irish Challenge at ILCA 6 Worlds on Dublin Bay
5th September 2026 ILCA Worlds 2026
Ireland’s world number two Eve McMahon will lead a four-strong home challenge when the 2026 ILCA 6 Women’s World Championship brings 110 sailors from 45 nations to Dún Laoghaire from 7–12 September. The Howth Yacht Club sailor will be joined by…
Strong south-westerly winds provided a lively finish to the Thursday Night Points Series at Royal Ulster Yacht Club (RUYC), with gusts of up to 20 knots for the final race on Thursday, 3rd September. Twenty-one yachts and two dinghies took…
The SailGP Championship makes its first visit to València this weekend, with 13 international teams racing as the battle for places in November’s winner-takes-all Grand Final in Abu Dhabi enters its closing stages. Racing on Saturday, 5 September, and Sunday…
Export by Brittany Ferries of Live Irish Calf Ends Leaves One Operator Serving France
5th September 2026 Brittany Ferries
Brittany Ferries at the start of September ceased trading in the transportation of live farm animals, including unweaned calves exported from Rosslare Europort to Cherbourg. As the Maritime Logistics Professional reports, the move on Tuesday by the Breton-based operator marks another…
