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Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
Ilen Boatbuilding School CityOne dinghies racing on the Shannon in the heart of Limerick city – just one aspect of a remarkable organisation’s many activities
Many people have dropped by the Old Cornstore on the riverside at Oldcourt in West Cork to see work progressing on the restoration of the 1926 Conor O’Brien ketch Ilen writes WM Nixon. And naturally they’ll have the impression that…
Tom Dolan from County Meath (left) is aiming to make history by becoming the first Irishman ever to finish on the podium of the Mini Transat race
They’d optimistically talked of “a week and a day” when the 54 solo sailors in the Production Class set out on 1st October in the 1350 miles La Rochelle to Las Palmas Stage 1 of the Mini Transat 2017 writes…
Top - the new Irish Ferries William Butler Yeats and above the Navy's new patrol vessel William Butler Yeats
Hello and you’re welcome to the weekly MacSweeney Podcast… The procedures and practices involved in the naming of ships once appeared to be the product of evolution and tradition, then became the choice of politicians – at least as far…
Ciaran Brady and Emily Dowling
#Rowing: Glenn Patterson of Sligo was the men’s winner of the Tullamore Time Trial on Saturday. Emily Dowling of the host club, Offaly, was the fastest woman. Dowling is a junior competitor. TTT 2017Race 414.00 p.m.                 …
Mairéad Ní Cheóinín
Mairéad Ní Cheóinín has been appointed to Seafarers UK as the charity’s new Corporate Fundraising Manager where her focus will be on engaging with the commercial maritime sector. Mairéad brings a wealth of business development, marketing experience and industry knowledge…
Minister of State Ciarán Cannon speaking at the EU’s Our Ocean Conference in Malta last week
#MarineScience - The Marine Institute has welcomed commitments of €6 million in funding for seabed mapping and marine research announced at the fourth Our Ocean Conference in Malta last week. Ciaran Cannon, Minister of State for International Development, addressed representatives…
Jack Dorney is presented with his prize by Pat Hickey.
#Rowing: Jack Dorney of Shandon Boat Club was the fastest at the Cork Sculling Ladder time trial at the Marina. More than 170 single scullers participated on Sunday in the 46th running of the event, which is sponsored by Argos…
#tallships- Last year a visit to Scotland was made to investigate a former Irish Lights lightship dating to 1910 that in much more recent years had been a museumship there but is now to be found relocated in England to…
Breezy sailing for J109s at last year's DBSC Turkey Shoot Series on Dublin Bay
Rathfarnham Ford will continue its support of the country's biggest winter yacht racing when Dublin Bay Sailing Club's (DBSC) Turkey Shoot Series resumes next month. A series of seven races will be held on Sunday mornings from 5th November to 17th…
Calls For Compliance & Enforcement As Salmon Farm Escapees Run Five River Systems
#Salmon - Inland Fisheries Ireland (IFI) confirms that 65 farmed salmon have been caught in five rivers in Counties Galway and Mayo. The news follows concerns raised by wild salmon conservationists since a major fish kill by jellyfish stings that…
Mermaids in action at this year’s Lendy Cowes Week regatta
#CowesWeek - Lendy Cowes Week organisers are seeking a new regatta director to replace the departed Phil Hagen. The job is a year-round, part-time post with responsibility to evolve the on-the-water side of the regatta, in order to build upon…
There were north-westerly 18-20 knot winds for Howth's Autumn League
This week and for the second time, HYC's Autumn League race management teams were presented with and efficiently managed the considerable challenge of running two races for the inshore and offshore fleets. Aided by some slight alterations to the sailing…
Green Marine’s composite manufacturing facility in Hythe
#TradeNews - BBC News reports that Green Marine, the high performance yacht builder in the UK responsible for entries in the Volvo Ocean Race and America’s Cup, has gone into liquidation. Forty-six jobs have been lost with the end of…
Dream on. Tom Dolan in the conditions he really enjoys, here he is using a weedstick to check his keel and rudder but this morning the Mini Transat 2017 fleet struggles in light airs towards the finish of Stage 1 at Las Palmas in the canaries.
The extensive area of calms and light winds north of the Canary Islands did provide some gratefully-received local zephyrs last night for the Mini-Transat 2017 fleet writes W M Nixon. But although at one stage Ireland’s sole entry Tom Dolan…
The late Martin Crotty (left) hands over the Chairmanship of the Dun Loaghaire to Dingle Race to Adam Winkelmann in the National Yacht Club, April 5th 2017
Martin Crotty of the National Yacht Club, one of the great enhancers both of our sport and of life itself, has been taken from among us all too soon, and the thoughts of the Irish sailing community – and a…
The decision by Irish Ferries to name their new vessel W. B. Yeats is one that continues the tradition adopted by the company of selecting names drawn from the world of Irish literature
Irish Ferries has chosen W. B. Yeats as the name for its new €144 million cruise ferry now being built in Germany for service on routes between Ireland, UK and France. The name was chosen after it had drawn ‘strong…
The racing will showcase dinghy racing that takes place on Dublin Bay run by DBSC every Tuesday evening during the summer
An end of Season race for all Dublin Bay Dinghies fleets is taking place on Saturday, 21st October. To be called the 'Final Fling 2017',  the new fixture is supported by DBSC and hosted by Royal St. George Yacht Club. …
The Royal St George YC team include former winning helms, Martin Byrne pictured above at the helm of his Dragon, Jaguar.
The RStGYC team retained the Cannonball Trophy for another year but only because there was no final result this weekend on the Solent. Racing was blown out on Saturday because of 25+knot winds all day. This was followed by literally…
RNLI lifeboats in Clifden, Co Galway
#RNLI - The RNLI is looking for “an experienced and dynamic leader” to run its 24-hour search and rescue on-call lifesaving service in Ireland and the Isle of Man. The lifesaving manager heads a team of area managers and dedicated…
Tom Dolan has found slightly better breezes out west in slow race to the finish
Solo Sailor Tom Dolan has again moved up the placing in the 1350-mile Stage 1 of the Mini-Transat fro La Rochelle to Last Palmas in the Canaries, as the leaders grapple with light and fluky winds in the final 300…

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