Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Long-lasting McWilliam Sailing Bags have launched a new range to go with their distinctive stripe bags. To celebrate the launch Afloat readers can avail of a special 10% discount offer at the bottom of this page. Synonymous with sailing in Ireland,…

Racing a J/109 in IRC has its compromises because you're sailing with asymmetrics, you're limited to certain angles and only so much boat speed is generated both up-wind and down. While living in Hong Kong, I raced the J/109 Whiskey…

UK Sailmakers Ireland in Cork Harbour say they remain open during the Covid-19 Level 5 restrictions as the Crosshaven sail loft is treated as a manufacturing facility and a full production loft. As they continue to repair, service and produce sails,…

What has Brexit got to do with your winter sails service this year? Barry Hayes of UK Sailmakers Ireland, explains the situation and why it’s such an urgent matter. Dear customers, I want to let you know it’s really urgent if…

Barry Hayes from UK Sailmakers Ireland with tips on the dos and don'ts of reefing a sail for racing and cruising Times have changed, and this season we have moved to more ISORA short course, offshore sailing. This trend will…

Next Thursday week (September 8th) is the last evening race in the 2020 Dublin Bay Sailing Club season writes Barry Hayes of UK Sailmakers Ireland. As the summer season draws to a close, it is time to consider what we…

We've been working hard this weekend to keep the 1720 sportsboat boys in the game at the AIB Southern Championships at Royal Cork Yacht Club. When you rip it, UK Sailmakers Ireland can fix it in time for the next…

Cork Harbour sailors Mel and Kieran Collins from Crosshaven describe how they transformed Coracle VI, their vintage Olson 30, into an 'IRC weapon' Prior to buying the boat, we did extensive research on which boat to buy and why. The…

Barry Hayes of UK Sailmakers Ireland has been showing off a new 'Code D' gennaker that's been designed for simple and easy use. The Cork Harbour sailmakers say the cruising sail furls easily every time as he demonstrates in the…

In this article, Barry Hayes (UK Sailmakers Ireland) and Pat Considine (UK Sailmakers Chicago) explain headsail vertical camber and why it’s so important to boat speed and performance of the boat. In reality, understanding headsail vertical camber is the modern…

Keith Miller from Wexford transformed his Yamaha 36 from a slow cruising boat into a well-balanced and finely tuned IRC racer Keith’s Yamaha 36 was doing a race to the Fastnet and back when his backstay parted bending the mast…

Barry Hayes from UK Sailmakers Ireland gives his top tips on the backstay and using it to get the most out of your boat Now that we are back open making and repairing sail, getting back into sailing will be…

The Royal Cork Yacht Club has congratulated members of its U25 Academy who have been getting involved in UK Sailmakers Ireland’s recent PPE-making efforts. After closing its Crosshaven loft to customers in mid-March, UK Sailmakers Ireland last month took on…

Barry Hayes of UK Sailmakers Ireland goes through the different options for racing boats going 'Symmetrical' or 'Asymmetrical' with their spinnakers. What’s best and why? In the past 15 years, spinnaker options have increased considerably. Prior to that, it was…

UK Sailmakers Ireland’s Barry Hayes looks at the differences between Code Zeros and Flying Jibs on IRC, what are the best angles for each and tips for using them. Both sails are used reaching, but at what angels and why…

In light of the coronavirus situation effecting Ireland, Afloat.ie got in touch with Barry Hayes from UK Sailmakers Ireland, who has lived in three continents, to share his experience in Asia and what’s going on with Covid-19 in Hong Kong’s…