Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

A blustery westerly breeze made for challenging conditions today at Hyères for Finn Lynch in the men's Laser fleet yesterday writes Nathaniel Ogden. A mixed set of results seem to be becoming a theme in this year's Sailing World Cup…

Three weeks hence from this morning, on Saturday May 19th, an unlikely convoy of vehicles with a very special collection of unique vintage boats and people will emerge in Cherbourg from Irish Ferries’ ship just in from Rosslare writes W…

#RNLI - Rosslare Harbour RNLI volunteers launched their all-weather lifeboat in the early hours of this morning (Friday 28 April) following a call for help from a yacht with two men onboard off Tuskar Rock. The 15m yacht broke its…

Dun Laoghaire RNLI is making a timely warning this Bank Holiday weekend to all lifejacket owners to ensure the appropriate safety checks are carried out by a competent agent ahead of the main boating season. The safety appeal comes following…

#Festivals - Limerick becomes a mecca for watersport enthusiasts this May Bank Holiday weekend for the city’s Riverfest 2017, which kicks off today (Friday 28 April). Highlights of the city’s premier summer maritime festival include the Riverfest BBQ Competition, the…

Waterways Ireland, and their project partners Monaghan County Council, Cavan County Council, Fermanagh & Omagh District Council and Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council, propose to develop a long-distance Greenway in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, linking…

#HowToSail - A new series of short yachting courses at the Irish National Sailing & Powerboat School (INSS) begins with a one-day course on various techniques for mooring and handling a yacht under power. This day-long course (9.30am-5pm) will run…

Ireland’s mini class sailor Tom Dolan from County Meath has finished an impressive third place out of 52 boats in the first single–handed race of the French Solo Offshore Racing Championship. The podium result came after a 300 mile match…

#Old&Newferry – Ferry services to Rathlin Island are operating though the new carferry Spirit of Rathin built in Arklow, remains undergoing essential crew training and certification from the Maritime Coastguard Agency, writes Jehan Ashmore. The £2.8 newbuild car ferry built…

#NYC - The National Yacht Club hosts an evening for new and prospective members tonight (Friday 28 April) from 7pm to 9pm at the Dun Laoghaire clubhouse’s main dining room. The evening promises an opportunity to learn about the club’s…

#Rowing: The Afloat Rowers of the Month for April are the UCD men’s senior eight. The crew, stroked by David O’Malley, beat Commercial, the champions of Ireland, at Skibbereen Regatta. They went on to Trinity Regatta and beat the hosts…

The Annual Student Yachting Worlds, sailed in performance keelboats each Autumn in France, has seen Irish overall success in times past, a noted international varsity star being Nicholas “Nin” O’Leary during his college days in Cork writes WM Nixon But…

#PortDelay - The delay in issuing a decision on the Port of Galway's multi million euro harbour extension looks set to continue, with An Bord Pleanála stating this week that they have no timeline on a possible decision date, writes…

World Sailing has confirmed its support for the existing roll out plan to release the first batch of 45 Foiling Nacra 17’s on June 26. The European Championship, as previously stated in the released NoR will be a foiling event,…

Four boats bravely fought the cold this evening and ventured out to the start line for the first Thursday race of the 2017 DBSC SB20 sailing programme. The forecast was an enticing 12knts gusting 18knts from a steady north west…

Olympic Silver Medalist Annalise Murphy was on hand last Saturday to help parents Con Murphy and Cathy MacAleavey launch the new family dinghy, a traditional clinker–built Water Wag dinghy, a class that celebrates its 130th season this year. The champagne…

Royal Irish Yacht Club's Saskia Tidey and Charlotte Dobson continued to deliver top results on day three at Hyeres, France today writes Nathaniel Ogden. The pair, competing for team GBR in the 49erFX fleet, are placing 3rd overall after a…

SB20 sailor Jimmy Dowling will host a training session on the basic techniques of handling the gennaker on Saturday morning, May 6. The session is aimed at the less experienced SB20 class members but all are welcome. A brief lecture,…

A low tide and north–westerly wind gusting to 15–knots greeted a strong turnout of Dublin Bay Sailing Club's 200 boat fleet in 20 classes for last night's first Thursday race of 2017. Provisional results are downloadable below. Paul O'Higgins's Rockabill…

With its first hire this Saturday, River Shannon Boat hire firm Carrickcraft is launching the first of its new steel–built Linssen vessels just in time for the 2017 season. As Afloat.ie reported earlier, Ireland's largest cruise hire charter company is expanding…