Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Displaying items by tag: cleaning

It’s St Patrick’s Day weekend and Viking Marine is going green!

Check out Viking Marine’s new green Ecoworks range of cleaning products just in time for getting your boat ready for the new season.

These environmentally safe cleaning products come with a free spray bottle so you can dilute the concentrate and clean away till they’re all home from the parade.

If you have any questions on application or uses, just ask us in the shop at The Pavilion in Dun Laoghaire.

Viking Marine will be open all bank holiday weekend for anyone working on boats — today till 6pm and Sunday and Monday from 1pm to 5pm.

Published in Viking Marine

#MARINE WILDLIFE - The Limerick branch of Birdwatch Ireland is seeking volunteers to assist in rescuing birds from oil spillages in the Shannon Estuary.

A report in the Limerick Post recounts a recent meeting at Shannon Rowing Club, where Birdwatch Ireand highlighted the impact on the environment and marine wildlife from both major and minor oil spills.

The meeting also discussed the role that local birdwatchers can play in determining crucial spillage incident response times.

A training exercise at Poulnasherry Bay is being organised for next month using equipment donated to the Irish Seal Sanctuary, preceeded by a similated planning exercise and "on-the-ground response".

The Irish Seal Sanctuary will also provide opportunities for training in the rehabilitation and cleaning of spillage-affected birds.

The Limerick Post has much more on this story HERE.

Published in Marine Wildlife
Wexford Sub Aqua Club has been recognised for its commitment to the environment in an awards ceremony in Dublin last week.
The Wexford People reports that Minister of State Fergus O'Dowd presented the club with An Taisce's Coastguard Initiative of the Year Award for its work in cleaning up the beaches and waters around Kilmore Quay.
The club was one of many organisations and volunteers throughout Ireland recognised by An Taisce's Coastcare Merit Awards.
Among them were the Portmarnock Community Coastcare Group and Malahide resident Philip Lynch, who was rewarded for his efforts in protecting the north Dublin town's coastline.

Wexford Sub Aqua Club has been recognised for its commitment to the environment in an awards ceremony in Dublin last week.

The Wexford People reports that Minister of State Fergus O'Dowd presented the club with An Taisce's Coastguard Initiative of the Year Award for its work in cleaning up the beaches and waters around Kilmore Quay.

The club was one of many organisations and volunteers throughout Ireland recognised by An Taisce's Coastcare Merit Awards.

Among them were the Portmarnock Community Coastcare Group and Malahide resident Philip Lynch, who was rewarded for his efforts in protecting the north Dublin town's coastline.

Published in Coastal Notes
Today's Irish Times looks into the lives of people who've made their homes on or near Dublin's canals.
One resident is Breffnie O'Kelly of Percy Place, whose back garden abuts the banks of the Grand Canal - which has experienced a revival in recent years, with dredging work now completed and a new cycle path on the way.
O'Kelly is also a member of the Friends of the Grand Canal Group, which meets regularly to keep their stretch of the canal clean.
Another voice singing the praises of the canal is author John Banville, who has set much of his crime fiction in the area around Lower Mount Street, where he himself lived for a time.
The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.

Today's Irish Times looks into the lives of people who've made their homes on or near Dublin's canals.

One resident is Breffnie O'Kelly of Percy Place, whose back garden abuts the banks of the Grand Canal - which has experienced a revival in recent years, with dredging work now completed and a new cycle path on the way. 

O'Kelly is also a member of the Friends of the Grand Canal Group, which meets regularly to keep their stretch of the canal clean.

Another voice singing the praises of the canal is author John Banville, who has set much of his crime fiction in the area around Lower Mount Street, where he himself lived for a time.

The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.

Published in Inland Waterways

The Kingstown to Queenstown Yacht Race or 'K2Q', previously the Fastnet 450

The Organising Authority ("OA") are ISORA & SCORA in association with The National Yacht Club & The Royal Cork Yacht Club.

The Kingstown to Queenstown Race (K2Q Race) is a 260-mile offshore race that will start in Dun Laoghaire (formerly Kingstown), around the famous Fastnet Rock and finish in Cork Harbour at Cobh (formerly Queenstown).

The  K2Q race follows from the successful inaugural 'Fastnet 450 Race' that ran in 2020 when Ireland was in the middle of the COVID Pandemic. It was run by the National Yacht Club, and the Royal cork Yacht Club were both celebrating significant anniversaries. The clubs combined forces to mark the 150th anniversary of the National Yacht Club and the 300th (Tricentenary) of the Royal Cork Yacht Club.

Of course, this race has some deeper roots. In 1860 the first-ever ocean yacht race on Irish Waters was held from Kingstown (now Dun Laoghaire) to Queenstown (now Cobh).

It is reported that the winner of the race was paid a prize of £15 at the time, and all competing boats got a bursary of 10/6 each. The first race winner was a Schooner Kingfisher owned by Cooper Penrose Esq. The race was held on July 14th 1860, and had sixteen boats racing.

In 2022, the winning boat will be awarded the first prize of a cheque for €15 mounted and framed and a Trophy provided by the Royal Cork Yacht Club, the oldest yacht club in the world.

The 2022 race will differ from the original course because it will be via the Fastnet Rock, so it is a c. 260m race, a race distance approved by the Royal Cornwall Yacht Club as an AZAB qualifier. 

A link to an Afloat article written by WM Nixon for some history on this original race is here.

The aim is to develop the race similarly to the Dun Laoghaire–Dingle Race that runs in alternate years. 

Fastnet 450 in 2020

The South Coast of Ireland Racing Association, in association with the National Yacht Club on Dublin Bay and the Royal Cork Yacht Club in Cork, staged the first edition of this race from Dun Laoghaire to Cork Harbour via the Fastnet Rock on August 22nd 2020.

The IRC race started in Dun Laoghaire on Saturday, August 22nd 2020. It passed the Muglin, Tuscar, Conningbeg and Fastnet Lighthouses to Starboard before returning to Cork Harbour and passing the Cork Buoy to Port, finishing when Roches's Point bears due East. The course was specifically designed to be of sufficient length to qualify skippers and crew for the RORC Fastnet Race 2021.

At A Glance – K2Q (Kingstown to Queenstown) Race 2024

The third edition of this 260-nautical mile race starts from the National Yacht Club on Dublin Bay on July 12th 2024 finishes in Cork Harbour.

Featured Sailing School

INSS sidebutton

Featured Clubs

dbsc mainbutton
Howth Yacht Club
Kinsale Yacht Club
National Yacht Club
Royal Cork Yacht Club
Royal Irish Yacht club
Royal Saint George Yacht Club

Featured Brokers

leinster sidebutton

Featured Webcams

Featured Associations

ISA sidebutton
ICRA
isora sidebutton

Featured Marinas

dlmarina sidebutton

Featured Chandleries

CHMarine Afloat logo
https://afloat.ie/resources/marine-industry-news/viking-marine

Featured Sailmakers

northsails sidebutton
uksails sidebutton
watson sidebutton

Featured Blogs

W M Nixon - Sailing on Saturday
podcast sidebutton
BSB sidebutton
wavelengths sidebutton
 

Please show your support for Afloat by donating