Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
The leaders of the Mini-Transat 2017 are now at the latitude of Lisbon, but well offshore in trying to keep in a line of the fading north to northeast wind writes W M Nixon. The pace in this first 1350-mile…
Operator to Withdraw RMS St Helena from Unique South Atlantic Service Seeks Buyer for Passenger Cargoship
5th October 2017 Ports & Shipping
#RMSstHelena - Operators of one of just four of the world's surviving Royal Mail Ships, St Helena Line has announced today, that it is to withdraw the passenger cargoship RMS St Helena from service in February 2018. The ship has…
#ports&shipping - A record-breaking 50% rise in profits has been announced by Foyle Ports and the news has led to the company's "strongest financial performance" in its 162-year history. The Irish News reports that the Derry port reported its fifth…
#ClipperRace - PSP Logistics is returning to Punta del Este today (Thursday 5 October) after a collision with a whale in the first 24 hours of the Clipper Race’s second leg caused damage to the starboard rudder. All crew on…
Dublin sailors Aoife Hopkins and Finn Lynch currently lead Irish hopes at the Laser European Championships in Barcelona after a delayed start this week. Racing started yesterday with two races completed. Yesterday was cloudy and the sailors launched in a…
#RYANI - Richard Honeyford has been appointed as the new full-time chief operating officer of the RYA Northern Ireland. Previously performance manager for the RYANI for the last 11 years, Honeyford “has played an integral role in the organisation” during…
Tom Dolan Now 14th, Mini-Transat Fleet May Run out of Windpower Towards Canary Islands This Weekend
5th October 2017 Tom Dolan
A large area of lighter winds and calms currently developing around the Canary Islands may hamper the closing speeds of the Mini Transat fleet as they near the finish of their 1350-mile race from La Rochelle through this weekend and…
#dublinport- Lands in Dublin Port must not be “reallocated” by Dublin City Council for uses not associated with strategic port activities, business representative group Ibec has said. Ibec was responding to a decision by the council this week writes The…
#Coastguard - Castletownbere’s Irish Coast Guard team was alerted on Friday night (29 September) by Valentia Coast Guard to a medevac scheduled for the early hours of Saturday. FV Argeles, a French fishing vessel, had an injured crewman onboard and…
#RNLI - Baltimore RNLI’s inshore lifeboat Patricia Jennings was called on Sunday (1 October) to go to the assistance of a 28ft yacht with one person on board. The yacht had lost power near the West Cork harbour's west pier…
#ICRA - The Irish Cruiser Racing Association has reaffirmed its decision to allocate the 2018 ICRA National Championships to the West of Ireland Offshore Racing Association (WIORA) and Galway Bay Sailing Club. The event from 16-18 August 2018 will be…
#DMYC - The Notice of Race for the Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club’s upcoming Frostbite Challenge is now online. The DMYC will be celebrating 47 years of winter racing in the 2017-18 Frostbite series — and entries are now open…
#navy - Concerns have been played down by the Taoiseach as to the number of personnel quitting the Defence Forces has left the combined strength of the Army, Air Corps and Naval Service at a 50-year low. As The Irish…
The Carrick-on-Shannon eatery, St. George's Terrace Restaurant in County Leitrim that is popular with boaters has won a Taste of the Waterways Award in Georgina Campbell's Annual Restaurant Awards this week. Campbell said 'There are plenty of good eating places…
At 17th in Mini Transat, Tom Dolan Has Most of Fleet Behind Him, But Four Leaders Are Very Clear Ahead
4th October 2017 Tom Dolan
Ireland’s solo sailor Tom Dolan and the other contenders in the leading group in the Mini Transat have finally been able to start exiting the Bay of Biscay at better speeds this morning as new east to nor’east winds have…
#dublinport - The Irish Times writes that the giant bronze timepiece the “time ball” that was visible across Dublin city until the time of the 1916 Rising, could be reinstated as part of the refurbishment of Ballast House at O’Connell…
Volvo Ocean Race CEO Mark Turner has spoken out about last month's decision to leave the race just weeks before it starts in Alicante. Turner also talks in the video below about how the proposed 2019-20 Volvo Ocean Race in…
The Dublin University Sailing Club is hosting the first of four Dublin Team Racing League Events in Dun Laoghaire this Saturday, 7th of October. As discussed at the ISA meeting earlier in the year, the goal of the League is…
Ireland is a nation which has been slow to recognise its maritime resources and its international maritime achievements made by Irish sailors. This I was reminded about again this week. But there are indications of changes for the better, driven…
With something like 25 seriously-campaigned J/109s around Ireland and throughout the Irish Sea, obviously you wouldn’t expect every boat to be heading for this weekend’s Irish Open Nationals in Dun Laoghaire. But by any standards a crack fleet of 15…
