Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

The Youth Nationals and Junior Pathway Championship 2009 concluded in Schull, Co Cork  (Friday 17th April) after yet another exhilarating day’s racing. In an easterly force 4 to 5, frequently gusting over 20 knots on Roaringwater Bay, the top boats…

The fleet are nearing the halfway point of Leg 6 to Boston. Leg leader Telefonica Blue has a 100 mile cushion to the pack behind as the remaining fleet stay close and push hard to close the gap. The crew…

Tokoloshe King 40 03 designed by Wicklow's Mark Mills (pictured below the fold) won the first major event of the UK calendar last weekend, the RORC Red Funnel Easter Challenge. The boat is owned and helmed by South African Mike…

SPRING WARMER SERIES (O'ALL) Etchells: 1, Matatu Dubh R & D Burrows (6.00);2, The Prodigy O'Grady/Reilly (8.00);  3, Jabberwocky S Knowles (15.00);  SB3:  1, Dinghy Supplies   S Murphy HYC (6.00);  2, Seriously Bonkers Cuppage/Lee RStGYC (12.00); 3, Sin a Bhuifl…

Sailors from over 50 nations are in Hyères, France preparing for the start of the Semaine Olympique Française this weekend, the fourth event of the ISAF Sailing World Cup. Following on from the competition in Melbourne, Miami and last week…

Nothing's more embarrassing than a premature obituary. So we in the sailing media should probably apologise to the dinghy family, which is, apparently, alive and well. Two events over the Easter break drew masses of dinghy sailors to Cork, proving…

All fleets were ashore early yesterday (15th April) at the ISA Youth Nationals & Junior Pathway Championship 2009, which are taking place in Schull, Co Cork this week. On the outer course, where the Youth Nationals classes were competing, the…

Tonight's RTE Seascapes radio programme at 10.30pm reports on Killybegs fishermen prevented from fishing in their own waters plan to go to South America.  In a separate item on Tom MacSweeney's show, he features the 200-year-old sailing tradition on Rathlin…

Telefonica Blue, skippered by Bouwe Bekking (NED) are first through the scoring gate of Fernando de Noronha at 19:58:56 GMT 16/04/09, securing 4 points, on of leg 6 of the Volvo Ocean Race, from Rio de Janeiro to Boston.

The Grand Soleil 43 Open Transom called Codiam (owned & skippered by JC Nicoleau and N Loday) won the extremely competitive racing Class IRC 1 by four points. The result is being called 'absolutely fantastic' by UK agetns Key Yachting…

The work has been completed on these locks and they are now open to navigation. Marine Notice No. 25 of 2009 is now withdrawn.

Suunto, the leading manufacturer of sports precision instruments, today announced the acquisition of the UK based Tacktick Ltd, manufacturer of wireless marine sensors, instruments and displays. The acquisition was carried out by a sister company Amer Sports UK Ltd, a…

All right folks, nothing to see here, move along. That's the message that's coming from the Green Dragon camp, if you care to read between the lines. Missives from the Irish-Chinese entry are increasingly downbeat, with little to show for…

Afloat magazine is now fully Twitter-synced. Just part of an Armada of new web 2 features from Ireland's marine journalists. All posts from our website are auto-tweeting. Handy! You can join this free text service here.

There are less than 170 nm left to the scoring gate at Fernando de Noronha and winds have dropped below the 9 knot mark as the fleet is due at the gate today by midnight. Telefónica Blue are holding onto…

Irish Cruiser Racer Association Commodore Barry Rose has called a meeting of interested skippers for a 2010 Irish Commodore's Cup team at the Radisson Hotel, Cork Airport on Wedneday, April 29th. To facilitate people travelling from Dublin the meeting will…

Waterways Ireland advises tha the Killaloe canal remains closed to through traffic due to the placement of a dam mid way on the canal to facilitate on going refurbishment work.

Waterways Ireland has advised users of the Lower Bann Navigation that Cutts Lock at Coleraine will be closed from 15th April until 22nd April 2009 to facilitate essential maintenance works on the lock gates. Contact the lock keeper on 028…

Colm O’Regan claims the title of Optimist Pathway Champion for the second consecutive year at the conclusion of racing in Schull, Co Cork at the pathway championships.After discarding his worst result, O’Regan (Kinsale Yacht Club) was just one point ahead…

There's plenty happening on the water this coming week, so get on your PFDs and check out the National Powerboat Circuit Race at Killaloe (18th April), or some of the other events around the coast. There's some rowing activity also…