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Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
The start of the first ILCA 7 race at French Olympic Week 2024 in which Ireland has two sailors competing, Ewan McMahon of Howth and Finn Lynch from Dun Laoghaire
French Olympic Week kicked off on Monday, 22nd April 2024, at Hyères (Cote D'Azur). More than 800 sailors from 90 nations competed, including a full Irish squad just months before the Olympic regatta. The week-long event is the last major…
Maiden arrives at Cowes on Tuesday 16 April after more than 150 days racing offshore in the Ocean Globe race
Maiden has won the McIntyre Ocean Globe Race, taking first in IRC handicap rankings against a 14-strong fleet of very experienced and committed sailors. And Maiden’s sailors have also been written into the history books as the first ever all-women…
Adrian Harkin on Lough Foyle in a double kayak paddled by his eldest daughter Jessica on Saturday 20 April
After being diagnosed two years ago with motor neurone disease, which has taken away much of his physical ability, experienced kayaking and outdoor “legend” Adrian Harkin turned his attentions to supporting crucial medical research into the condition. The culmination of…
File image of Ireland’s Eye
A tourist was rescued from the waters off Howth in North Co Dublin at the weekend after attempting to swim from Burrow Beach to Ireland’s Eye. As RTÉ News reports, the man in his 20s was discovered clinging to a…
Irish lawyer Michael Kingston
“The families of those who died in the Whiddy Island Disaster, are steadfast in their pursuit of justice and are not going away,” the Irish solicitor who represents the French/Irish Association of Relatives and Friends of the Betelgeuse has told…
Ireland’s first new Marine National Park (Páirc Náisiúnta na Mara) of 70,000 acres on the Corca Dhuibhne peninsula in west Kerry has been welcomed by Irish Lights with its inclusion of the Inishtearaght and Skellig Michael lighthouses.
Ireland’s inaugural Marine National Park, Páirc Náisiúnta na Mara,Ciarraí, has been unveiled today and Irish Lights is delighted to announce the inclusion of Inishtearaght and Skellig Michael lighthouses, which have been in operation since the early 1800’s. The significant announcement…
In north-west England, the Peel Ports Group, which includes Liverpool, has implemented hydropower to supply energy to its Queen Elizabeth II Dock at Eastham on the Manchester Ship Canal. The move has seen a twin Archimedean screw generator installed at the dock, which will generate enough power a year to fuel 190,000 homes for one day. AFLOAT adds that above is the floating ship crane Lara 1, which carried out work at Dublin Port last year, as previously reported, when installing oil-jetty-related infrastructure
The UK's second largest port operator, Peel Ports Group, has today announced its Queen Elizabeth II Dock at Eastham, England, will utilise energy from hydropower. It’s the latest move to drive forward Peel Ports’ ambition to become net-zero across its…
One of the Naval Service's larger ships, possibly the OPV80 P50 class LÉ Niamh, could be back on patrol duties within the next few weeks. Afloat understands the LE Niamh (P52) has been in refit for more than a year, with the vessel berthed alongside Cork Dockyard.
Since the start of the year, the Naval Service, which was only able to have in operation a single patrol ship within Irish waters, could have two more vessels made available within a matter of weeks. Due to a combination…
Having been successfully deployed at the Irish Sailing League, Dublin Bay Sailing Club will trial robotic marks in its summer racing in April and May
Not content to bask in its 140th-anniversary glory, Dublin Bay Sailing Club (DBSC) will experiment with using the latest yacht race technology this season to deliver the largest racing programme in Ireland. DBSC Commodore and Race Officer Ed Totterdell, who…
The Sun Fast 3600 Black Sheep took the overall win in RORC's 2024 Cervantes Trophy race
RORC Racing Manager Steve Cole reported glorious conditions for the Cervantes Trophy race start off the Squadron Line with 14 knots from the north west giving a fast downwind sail through the Western Solent. The 110-mile race to Le Havre…
The 2024 DBSC racing marks chart
The ever-changing need for compliance has forced Dublin Bay Sailing Club (DBSC) to position seven high-tech marks, and some changes in colour requested by members have meant that the familiar old chart of the bay needs a refresh. To identify the…
Competitors arrive at a robotic mark in the INSS J80 fleet of keelboats at the inaugural Irish Sailing League hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club on Dublin Bay
Kinsale Yacht Club emerged as the winner of the inaugural Irish Sailing League 2024 after 20 races sailed off Dun Laoghaire on Sunday.  The light wind league was hosted by the Royal Irish Yacht Club and organised by Kenny Rumball and…
LE Orla (P41) and LE Ciara (P42) depart Cork Harbour on Sunday for disposal in an overseas scrap recycling facility
On Sunday afternoon, Cork Harbour was poignantly reminded of passing times as the now decommissioned LE Orla (P41) and LE Ciara (P42) were led out of their home port for the last time, heading overseas for disposal at a scrap…
24 Fireball dinghies compeed in Cork Harbour for Munster Title honours at Monkstown Bay Sailing Club
Ewen Barry and Sandy Rimmington of the host club are the 2024 Fireball Munster Champions after a six-race regatta held at Monkstown Bay Sailing Club (MBSC) in Cork Harbour. A bumper 24-boat fleet contested the light to medium wind championships that…
File image of the d’Amico bulk carrier Cielo di San Francisco
The European Communities (Safe Loading and Unloading of Bulk Carriers) (Amendment) Regulations 2024 (SI No 110 of 2024) entered into force on 27 March 2024. Changes to the regulations for the safe loading and unloading of bulk carriers now apply…
Mother and calf pairs in a bottlenose dolphin nursery group in Glandore Harbour sighted on Wednesday 17 April
A rare sight was caught on camera this past week with the birth of a bottlenose dolphin in Glandore Harbour. Following reports on Monday (15 April) to the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) of a large gathering near Mizen…
The black-hulled Garavogue (No 4) pictured right brings the number of restored Dublin Bay 21 keelboats moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour's new bandstand moorings to four. Naneen (blue), Geraldine (white) and Estelle (yellow) are also pictured
The three-restored Dublin Bay 21 vintage one-design wooden yacht fleet on their new moorings off the bandstand at Dun Laoghaire's East Pier since a fortnight ago now have a weekend addition. The trio were joined by the black-hulled beauty Garavogue…
Helvick Head RNLI inshore lifeboat
On Sunday afternoon (21 April), the RNLI Helvick Head was called to rescue three boaters who got into difficulty near Helvick Head, southwest of Dungarvan. The Irish Coast Guard requested the assistance of the volunteer crew who launched their inshore…
Class 1 of the Axiom Spring Series at Kinsale Yacht Club was dominated by James Dwyer's Half-Tonner Swuzzlebubble
What a difference a week makes in the Axiom Spring Series for mixed cruisers at Kinsale Yacht Club. From last week's dramas in winter-like conditions to the blue skies and sunburn this week, Race Officer John Corkery and his team…
Howth J109 Indian (Colm Buckley and Simon Knowles) on port tack clears Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the way to winning Sunday's 11-boat ISORA Viking Marine coastal race
Howth Yacht Club J109 Indian (Colm Buckley and Simon Knowles) was the winner of Sunday's 11-boat Viking Marine coastal race with ISORA JPK 1030 debutante Alan Hannon finishing second. A light wind start for the third ISORA Viking Marine Coastal…

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