Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Introducing an exciting, new 45’ offshore sailing yacht like no J boat before it. The J/45 is a true sailing yacht, designed and built for the sea by dedicated, life-long sailors. The J/Boats and J/Composites teams have collaborated to create…

A number of Irish owners have recently opted for the New Fusion M6 and M8 Membrane sails, built with Carbon. The first of these for an X332 has arrived at the Quantum Sails Galway loft. Another Main and Headsail is…

Mark Mansfield, Nautitech Catamarans agent for Ireland is highlighting a new video interview with a Nautitech Catamaran client who has decided to spend a considerable period aboard his new Nautitech 40 Catamaran. Key Yachting spoke to Rowan Gormley in Grenada…

Mark Mansfield, Professional sailor and agent for Quantum Sails goes through what options are available on rope and which to use in various circumstances Rope is one of the most used items on race boats, along with sails. Rope material…

The new Grand Soleil 44 has won Performance Yacht of the Year at the 2020 British Yachting Awards. "Key Yachting is delighted that the Grand Soleil 44 has won this award, it means so much because it is voted for by…

IRC specialist and Olympic helmsman Mark Mansfield analyses the rating rule changes agreed for next season. Following the IRC Congress earlier this month, chaired by Ireland's Michael Boyd, changes were agreed for the 2021 season. The two main areas of change deal…

Whether you are racing or cruising, the choice of the cloth that your spinnaker is made from is important for speed and longevity. Mark Mansfield from Quantum Sails goes through the main options and suppliers of spinnaker cloth. Quantum Sails…

With news that 65 boats have now been built, it is clear there are more owners attracted to this new J/99 cruiser-racer design which combines excellent all-round racing performance with attractive interiors. Inshore, the J/99 performs well around the windward/leeward race…

Four-time Olympic keelboat helmsman Mark Mansfield, a regular competitor at Irish IRC and one-design regattas and Irish agent for some well-known sailing brands, reviews how the 2020 sailing season 'happened' in pandemic and considers what could be done to keep the…

Mark Mansfield, Irish agent for Key Yachting, has announced that two Grand Soleil designs have been shortlisted in the 2020 British Yachting Awards. In the Cruising Yacht of the Year class, The Grand Soleil LC42, which premiered at the 2020…

Quantum Sails Ireland is reminding interested parties that its winter discounting of up to 15% is ending in two weeks. Since Quantum Sails brought out the offer, they have seen a big increase in sail orders all over the country…

Irish Quantum Sails agent Mark Mansfield, a J109 specialist himself, highlights the amazing run of victories for Quantum Sails in the J109 class in the United States. Three different Quantum Sails boats have won the J109 US Nationals since 2014…

As this shortened season draws to a close, Mark Mansfield, Quantum Sails agent, outlines five tips to think about at the end of the season in order to get better life from your sails. If the sails are at the…

Mark Mansfield, Irish agent for Grand Soleil, highlights recent Irish sailing successes on different Grand Soleil models and looks forward to the New Grand Soleil 44 Performance being similar The much-lauded Grand Soleil 44 performance was announced at Dusseldorf Boat…

Gentoo, a Sunfast 3300 with a full Quantum Sails inventory, won the RORC IRC Doublehanded Championships last weekend. Gentoo is a sister ship of Cian McCarthy's Cinnamon Girl from Kinsale which finished second in the recent Fastnet 450 race. Commenting…

Mark Mansfield, Olympian and Professional sailor and a member of this year's Fastnet 450 Race organising committee reckons lessons learned in this COVID-hit 2020 sailing season means there can still be good compliant big boat racing even in these strange…

Mark Mansfield, J/Boat agent for Ireland with news that wheel steering is now an option on the speedy J/99 cruiser-racer There is one J/99 already racing in Ireland, Andrew Algeo's’ Juggerknot 2. Juggerknot 2, the 2019 Dublin Bay Sailing Club…

Having the right headsail for the job is important. Quantum’s Chris Williams from the US and Mark Mansfield from Quantum Sails Ireland help demystify the different types of headsails and when to use them for optimal performance. Depending on the…

Mark Mansfield, Quantum sails Ireland agent and Professional sailor/coach outlines the options and deadlines for those wanting new sails for this year's Round Ireland Race and Wave Regatta at Howth. Due to COVID-19 restrictions, which have now virtually been lifted…

Often cruising boat owners are unsure what type of upwind sails to order. Many would have received sails with their boat when it was bought new, and no doubt these would have been the primary crosscut Dacron sails. Below, Mark…