Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

#fastnet – Bruce Douglas and Alan Bruce's Spirit of Jacana is vying for the overall lead in class one of the Fastnet race this lunchtime but snake and ladder conditions are keeping crews on their toes and praying for pressure,…

#dragon – Peter Bowring's Phantom was the winner of the ten-boat Irish Dragon nationals at the Royal Irish Yacht Club at the weekend. Second was Royal North's Simon Brien with Bowring's Royal St. George club mate Andrew Craig third in Chimaera.…

#RNLI - Courtown RNLI was called out on Saturday (10 August) to assist a sailing boat that had run aground on the Bradleys rocks just south of Courtown Harbour in Co Wexford. The yacht - called Jaws – had been…

#Fastnet – After the first night at sea in the 2013 Fastnet race, two of 12 Irish yachts are showing the potency of Irish offshore sailing with top five performances in the 335–boat fleet. Clidfen Boat Club's Inismor sailed by the French…

#rnli – Two maritime legends finally met last bank holiday weekend at the Gathering of the Fleet Maritime Festival when Arklow RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager Jimmy Tyrell climbed aboard the Shannon class lifeboat. Jimmy and his father before him lobbied…

#420 – Two races sailed outside Roches Point in light winds saw a conclusion after nine races and one discard to the 2013 420 dinghy National Championships at Royal Cork Yacht Club this evening. Results available to download below. The…

#Fastnet – Yachts in the Rolex Fastnet Race are off! They're heading for Ireland and the Fastnet rock off the Cork coast! Track all 335 boats here on the race tracker detailing all the times and handicap positions of the…

#fastnet – Up to a dozen boats of Irish interest are among those bunched up this evening in Poole Bay as the Rolex Fastnet Race 2013 set sail from Cowes this afternoon. Top performer this evening is Irish champion yacht,…

#thundercat – Building on last year's race across the Irish Sea to Holyhead, four Irish powerboat racers are taking on a Cork to Dublin challenge that puts them and their boats to the test, all in an effort to raise funds…

#laser – The Olympic Laser, the world's top selling dinghy, has been successfully fitted with a kit that allows it to foil and fly like the ultra modern Moth dinghy, according to a press announcement from Performance Sailcreft in Australia.…

#ShippingReview: Over the last fortnight Jehan Ashmore has reported from the shipping scene where the Isle of Man based Ramsey Steamship Company could face closure in its centenary year. Funding for a £81m renewable energy plant is to be built…

#MarineWildlife - The Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) has welcomed recent measures to protect deep-diving cetaceans from the potential effects of seismic survey noise. The new measures have been implemented by the Petroleum Affairs Division (PAD) of the Department…

#Astrid - Items thought to have been stolen from the wreck of the tall ship Astrid near Kinsale have been surprisingly recovered from the vessel this week. As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the ship's bell and compass were listed among…

#RNLI – The emergency services were alerted shortly before 5pm on Saturday afternoon, 10 August, that an elderly person might be missing at Garryvoe Beach. The Ballycotton RNLI lifeboat was asked to be on standby while the area was searched.…

#WorldJuniorRowing: Ireland’s campaign at the World Junior Rowing Championships ended on a good note, as Bridget Jacques and Hilary Shinnick won the B Final of the women’s double sculls. The host country, Lithuania led through the 500-metre mark, but Ireland…

#fastnet – The current weather may suit up to a dozen Irish boats readying for the Fastnet race tomorrow that includes Irish IRC Zero champion Antix, in one of its first debuts offshore.  Fastnet Race meteorologist Chris Tibbs says with…

#RNLI - The crew of the Holyhead RNLI lifeboat in North Wales have rescued two people from a 32-foot yacht trapped on the Harry Furlong reef half a mile north of Cemaes Bay in the Irish Sea. The lifeboat crew…

#Kinsale - The Irish Independent reports that the body of a man in his 60s was recovered in the water off Kinsale Marina on Thursday evening (8 August). The search was begun after sailors noticed two plastic bags left unattended…

#MarineWildlife - The coastguard were beaten to the punch by a group of children who helped a stranded dolphin back into open water in Co Clare, as TheJournal.ie reports. Kilkee Coast Guard were dispatched after reports that the striped dolphin…

#RNLI - It was a busy afternoon for RNLI lifeboats on the east coast on Thursday 8 August with separate call-outs in Wicklow and Wexford. Wicklow RNLI's all weather lifeboat Annie Blaker was launched at 3.15pm to answer a call…