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Displaying items by tag: Shackleton Epic

#LectureShackleton – Neale Webb, who is related to the family of the Irish-born Antarctic explorer, will present his lecture 'Sir Ernest Shackleton - Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration' next Thursday, 14 February.

The talk which is for the Kilmacud-Stillorgan History Society, will be held at 20.00hrs in the Function Room of the Glenalbyn Sports Club in Stillorgan. All visitors are welcome –admission fee: €3

As previously reported, the five-man crew re-enactment of Shackleton's Epic Antarctic rescue continued, having this week reached landfall on South Georgia Island after sailing 800 nautical miles and taking nearly 12 days to complete to reach this destination, a key highlight of their journey.

To follow the team's latest blog reports, and to track the Alexandra Shackleton, a replica of the lifeboat James Caird used in the mission nearly a century ago, visit: http://shackletonepic.com/live-tracking/

 

Published in Boating Fixtures

#EPICVoyage - A crew of five led by British-Australian adventurer, Tim Jarvis, are attempting to become the first to authentically re-enact Sir Ernest Shackleton's Epic 800nm rescue mission across the Southern Ocean from Elephant Island to South Georgia.

The team, are on their 11th day onboard the Alexandra Shackleton which is heading for South Georgia, some 23 nautical miles away. The purpose built 22ft vessel is an exact replica of the lifeboat, James Caird, which made the same journey across the perilous ocean to reach the rugged peaks of the island.

Alexandra Shackleton was named after the Kildare born, polar explorer's only grand-daughter, who as previously reported on Afloat.ie was at the launch of the Shackleton Endurance Exhibition in Dun Laoghaire last September. The exhibition has a wonderful collection of photographs taken by Frank Hurley which relives the abandoning of the exploration ship Endurance, which became crushed in the pack ice, and the subsequent lifeboat rescue mission which can be read HERE in greater detail.

At only 22.5 ft/6.9m, Alexandra Shackleton, is a purpose built exact replica of the lifeboat, James Caird, which made the same journey across the perilous ocean to reach the rugged peaks of South Georgia.

The re-enactment of Shackleton's 'double' journey across sea and land using traditional gear will be according to Jarvis (46), a veteran of multiple polar expeditions, the most challenging expedition of his life.

Shackleton Epic has been in development since 2008, when Shackleton approached Jarvis with the idea of an expedition to honour one of the greatest leadership and survival stories of all time. To keep abreast of news of the re-enactment team, there's a BLOG and to track the vessel's progress, click HERE

 

Published in News Update

National Watersports Campus, Dun Laoghaire

Dun Laoghaire Harbour Stakeholders combined forces in 2019 to promote a project to improve the Harbour’s infrastructure resulting in improved access, job creation and greater tourism potential. 

A grant application to government made by Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council (DLRCoCo) assisted by stakeholders was successful with the announcement of a €400k feasibility study grant from the Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund (LSSIF) in January 2020.

It meant plans for the €8m National Watersports Campus at Dun Laoghaire Harbour got the green light from Government and came a step closer to reality.

The project recognises deficits in the current set up in the harbour, proposing the construction of an all-tide publicly-accessible slipway (none currently in the Greater Dublin Area) as well as a marine services facility, providing a much-needed home for the supporting industry. 

The campus also seeks to provide a marketing framework to make boating more accessible to the general public.

The benefits of such an increase might be obvious for the Dun Laoghaire waterfront but there are other spin-offs for the harbour town in the creation of the sort of jobs that cannot be shipped abroad.

Centre for Community Watersports activity and public slipway

  • High-Performance coaching centre
  • Flexible Event Space for hosting national and international events
  • Multipurpose Building
  • Campus Marketing and Promotional Centre
  • Accommodation for Irish Sailing and Irish Underwater Council
  • Shared NGB Facility
  • Education Centre for schools, community groups and clubs
  • Proposed site – Carlisle Pier

Watersports Campus FAQs

Similar to the National Sports Campus in Abbotstown, the watersports campus will provide quality, public, recreational and high-performance facilities for the many watersports participants. The Campus will considerably enhance the services currently provided by more than 30 clubs and activity centres to over 50,000 annual users of the harbour.

The passing of control of the harbour to DLRCC, the public appetite for a community benefitting project and the capital funding for sports infrastructure in the Project 2040 National Plan have aligned to create an opportunity to deliver this proposal.

Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council (DLRCC) and the Irish Sailing Association (Irish Sailing) are the project leads, endorsed by the National Governing Bodies of other Irish watersports and clubs and activity providers.

The National Sports Policy, published in 2018, established the Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund (LSSIF) to provide Exchequer support for sports facility projects. In some cases, these may be projects where the primary objective will be to increase active participation in sport. In other cases, these may be venues where the focus is more related to high-performance sport.

Government has allocated at least €100m over the term to 2027 to successful applicant projects.

The Watersports Campus was one of seven successful applicants for Stream 1 funding allowing planning to commence on the project design and feasibility. €442,000 has been granted in this phase.

NThe project will provide for a municipally-owned public access facility to include a small craft slipway that is accessible at all stages of the tide (currently none in public ownership in the greater Dublin area), storage and lock-up resources, watersports event management space, a high-performance centre and NGB accommodation.

The project aims to enhance the profile of Dun Laoghaire as a major international venue for maritime events, shows and conferences. Establish Dun Laoghaire as the 'go-to place' for anything marine – generating revenues Create employment in the county - attract businesses, visitors and events. Grow the market for watersports Promote the services of activity providers to the public. Complement the plan to develop Dun Laoghaire as a 'destination.'

As of January 1 2021, The Department of Transport, Tourism and Sport has approved the applicant project and DLRCC are expected to appoint a team to further advance the project.

©Afloat 2020