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Displaying items by tag: video

#Capsize - The video above shows the heart-sinking moment when a $10 million yacht capsized during its launch in the United States' Pacific Northwest last month.

NBC News has more on the story of the explorer-type yacht Baden, which was being slowly lowered into the water from a ramp at Anacortes, north of Seattle in Washington state, when it began listing to port before suddenly dropping on its side.

The evidence so far suggests a problem with the dolly being used to launch the yacht, which has six people on board at the time of the incident. No injuries were reported.

Production has meanwhile been suspended by the yacht's builder, New World, which has also laid off its staff of some 50 workers.

Published in News Update
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#Surfing - Looking for somewhere to hit the waves as summer's sunny days loom on the horizon?

IrishCentral has got you covered with some spectacular videos of Ireland's top surfing spots.

From the Causeway Coast to the big wave haunts of Donegal and Sligo and the more hidden surfing hubs of the East Coast, there's a spot for surfers of all skill levels.

Published in Surfing
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#VOR - The latest video update following the construction of the new one-design yacht debuting in next year's Volvo Ocean Race looks at the state-of-the-art technology that will be installed both on board and on shore to make the 12th running of the race the most connected yet.

Three VOR 65s are at Green Marine in Southampton at various stages of completion, awaiting the final detailed fittings before they can take to the water for their first sea trials.

Those fittings include the latest in communications technology that will hopefully combine the sailors' experiences - via self-shot smartphone video and on-deck camera positions - with the raw numbers from their boat's telemetry data to provide the most detailed stories yet.

The on-shore media centre, too, will be fully connected to all the action via specially outfitted workstations that will let journalists write, edit and transmit from the one spot.

Published in Ocean Race
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#WaterSafety - The RNLI has posted the above video outlining what kayakers can do to call for help if they get into difficulty on the water.

Taking a whistle along for the trip is one sensible idea, as is ensuring a means of longer-range communication such as a VHF radio or a mobile phone in a dry case.

Carrying a flare may also prove handy, and there's always that old standby if other water users are within earshot - shouting as loud as you can to attract attention.

Published in Water Safety

#RNLI - A drifting yacht with three people on board was towed to safety by Wicklow RNLI on Friday morning (26 July). SEE VIDEO BELOW

The volunteer lifeboat crew was alerted by pager shortly before 8am after the Irish Coast Guard received a call for assistance from a yacht in difficulties off Wicklow Head.



The lifeboat, under the command of coxswain Nick Keogh, was alongside the yacht 20 minutes after launching.

Crew member Ciaran Doyle was put on board the boat to assist with establishing a tow line. He remained onboard the yacht as it was towed into Wicklow Harbour.

The boat with the three people was secured safely alongside the east pier at 9.20am.



Weather conditions in the area at the time were described as wind south west force two, and the sea state was calm.



Speaking after the incident, Keogh said: "We located the 14-metre yacht drifting five miles south east of Wicklow Head. The yacht had lost engine power and with the light winds they were unable to make any headway." 



The crew on the call out were coxswain Nick Keogh, mechanic Brendan Copeland, Ciaran Doyle, Dave O'Leary, Carol Flahive, Tommy Murphy, Alan Goucher and Peter McCann.

Published in RNLI Lifeboats

#MarineWildlife - Dusty the dolphin has injured yet another swimmer off Doolin Pier in Co Clare in the latest of a recent spate of incidents, as The Irish Times reports.

Last night a woman was hospitalised after being struck by the dolphin's nose in the kidney area, leaving her "badly bruised and shocked by the incident".

It's since emerged that this was the fourth such attack by the bottlenose dolphin in the past month.

The cetacean responsible - a 14-year-old female - has made Doolin her home after many years in the Fanore area, and has apparently been responsible for a number of attacks on swimmers over the last two years.

But visitors continue to swim with the dolphin despite warnings by the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG), which discourages any interference with the protected species.

The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.

Published in Marine Wildlife

#MarineWildlife - An angling kayaker has spoken of his surprise at being "stalked" by a basking shark off Donegal.

The Irish Times yesterday posted video of the close encounter captured by Graham Smith while paddling along the coast.

As Smith told the Irish Independent, he was only hoping to catch a tope shark when he came upon a school of basking sharks off the Inishowen Peninsula.

And when one of them started following him, Smith went into panic mode - but soon realised the shark was more interested in the slipstream of his kayak, which provided a steady source of plankton for the giant filter feeder.

The second biggest fish in the sea after the whale shark, basking sharks are now a regular sight in Irish waters, with protections on the endangered species resulting in a boom in numbers.

Published in Marine Wildlife

#Rescue - TheJournal.ie reports that 15 members of the Irish Coast Guard's Cliff Rescue Unit were involved in the rescue of a 16-year-old boy trapped on a cliff edge on Howth Head in North Dublin on Saturday evening (6 July).

According to Howth Coast Guard, the teen had tried to climb up from the beach at Whitewater Brook but became stranded halfway up the cliff face.

Coastguard staff received the emergency call around 9.40pm and the rescue unit was on scene within 10 minutes. The teen was quickly recovered to the cliff top with no reported injuries.

Whitewater Brook was recently the scene of a joint cliff rescue training exercise involving the Howth Coast Guard and the Irish Red Cross.

Published in Rescue

#MarineWildlife - Wildlife enthusiast Karl Grabe has posted on YouTube video of newborn seal pups rescued by the Dingle Wildlife and Seal Sanctuary last week.

Named by staff at the sanctuary as Salt, Pepper, Sugar and Cocoa, the four are as cute as buttons - and anyone who visits over the summer can see them or others like them, such as two-week-old Molly who's also featured in the above clip.

Published in Marine Wildlife

#VOR - Team SCA have been posting some record-breaking times in their training runs off Lanzarote as of late, as the official Volvo Ocean Race website reports.

Most recently the all-female team set a new record from Puerto Calero to La Palma Marina last weekend. This achievement followed their victory in the Round Lanzarote Race last month - their first competitive event sailing together as a team.

"It was a fairly big milestone in our preparations and we were lucky to have great conditions, which enabled us to get the race record," said Vendee Glone veteran Sam Davies, who captains a squad of world-class racing women eager to jump into their next challenge - the Rolex Fastnet Race in August.

Meanwhile, the Volvo Ocean Race is currently celebrating its 40th anniversary, and put together the short film above "about the spirit and the people behind sport's ultimate test of character".

The heat is already on for the return of the race in October next year, with the new design VOR 65 coming together nicely.

In the latest video update following the new yacht's construction, VOR's Rick Deppe visits the Gottifredi Maffioli factory in Italy where the ropes are being made:

Published in Ocean Race
Page 4 of 15

About The Middle Sea Race

The Rolex Middle Sea Race is a highly rated offshore classic, often mentioned in the same breath as the Rolex Fastnet, The Rolex Sydney–Hobart and Newport-Bermuda as a 'must do' race. The Royal Malta Yacht Club and the Royal Ocean Racing Club co-founded the race in 1968 and 2007 was the 28th Edition. Save for a break between 1984 and 1995 the event has been run annually attracting 25–30 yachts. In recent years, the number of entries has rissen sharply to 68 boats thanks to a new Organising Committee who managed to bring Rolex on board as title sponsor for the Middle Sea Race.

The race is a true challenge to skippers and crews who have to be at their very best to cope with the often changeable and demanding conditions. Equally, the race is blessed with unsurpassed scenery with its course, taking competitors close to a number of islands, which form marks of the course. Ted Turner described the MSR as "the most beautiful race course in the world".

Apart from Turner, famous competitors have included Eric Tabarly, Cino Ricci, Herbert von Karajan, Jim Dolan, Sir Chay Blyth and Sir Francis Chichester (fresh from his round the world adventure). High profile boats from the world's top designers take part, most in pursuit of line honours and the record – competing yachts include the extreme Open 60s, Riviera di Rimini and Shining; the maxis, Mistress Quickly, Zephyrus IV and Sagamore; and the pocket rockets such as the 41-foot J-125 Strait Dealer and the DK46, Fidessa Fastwave.

In 2006, Mike Sanderson and Seb Josse on board ABN Amro, winner of the Volvo Ocean Race, the super Maxis; Alfa Romeo and Maximus and the 2006 Rolex Middle Sea Race overall winner, Hasso Platner on board his MaxZ86, Morning Glory.

George David on board Rambler (ex-Alfa Romeo) managed a new course record in 2007 and in 2008, Thierry Bouchard on Spirit of Ad Hoc won the Rolex Middle Sea Race on board a Beneteau 40.7

The largest number of entries was 78 established in 2008.

Middle Sea Race History

IN THE BEGINNING

The Middle Sea Race was conceived as the result of sporting rivalry between great friends, Paul and John Ripard and an Englishman residing in Malta called Jimmy White, all members of the Royal Malta Yacht Club. In the early fifties, it was mainly British servicemen stationed in Malta who competitively raced. Even the boats had a military connection, since they were old German training boats captured by the British during the war. At the time, the RMYC only had a few Maltese members, amongst who were Paul and John Ripard.

So it was in the early sixties that Paul and Jimmy, together with a mutual friend, Alan Green (later to become the Race Director of the Royal Ocean Racing Club), set out to map a course designed to offer an exciting race in different conditions to those prevailing in Maltese coastal waters. They also decided the course would be slightly longer than the RORC's longest race, the Fastnet. The resulting course is the same as used today.

Ted Turner, CEO of Turner Communications (CNN) has written that the Middle Sea Race "must be the most beautiful race course in the world. What other event has an active volcano as a mark of the course?"

In all of its editions since it was first run in 1968 – won by Paul Ripard's brother John, the Rolex Middle Sea Race has attracted many prestigious names in yachting. Some of these have gone on to greater things in life and have actually left their imprint on the world at large. Amongst these one finds the late Raul Gardini who won line honours in 1979 on Rumegal, and who spearheaded the 1992 Italian Challenge for the America's Cup with Moro di Venezia.

Another former line honours winner (1971) who has passed away since was Frenchman Eric Tabarly winner of round the world and transatlantic races on Penduik. Before his death, he was in Malta again for the novel Around Europe Open UAP Race involving monohulls, catamarans and trimarans. The guest list for the Middle Sea Race has included VIP's of the likes of Sir Francis Chichester, who in 1966 was the first man to sail around the world single-handedly, making only one stop.

The list of top yachting names includes many Italians. It is, after all a premier race around their largest island. These include Navy Admiral Tino Straulino, Olympic gold medallist in the star class and Cino Ricci, well known yachting TV commentator. And it is also an Italian who in 1999 finally beat the course record set by Mistress Quickly in 1978. Top racing skipper Andrea Scarabelli beat it so resoundingly, he knocked off over six hours from the time that had stood unbeaten for 20 years.

World famous round the world race winners with a Middle Sea Race connection include yachting journalist Sir Robin Knox-Johnston and Les Williams, both from the UK.

The Maxi Class has long had a long and loving relationship with the Middle Sea Race. Right from the early days personalities such as Germany's Herbert Von Karajan, famous orchestra conductor and artistic director of the Berliner Philarmoniker, competing with his maxi Helisara IV. Later came Marvin Greene Jr, CEO of Reeves Communications Corporation and owner of the well known Nirvana (line honours in 1982) and Jim Dolan, CEO of Cablevision, whose Sagamore was back in 1999 to try and emulate the line honours she won in 1997.

THE COURSE RECORD

The course record was held by the San Francisco based, Robert McNeil on board his Maxi Turbo Sled Zephyrus IV when in 2000, he smashed the Course record which now stands at 64 hrs 49 mins 57 secs. Zephyrus IV is a Rechiel-Pugh design. In recent years, various maxis such as Alfa Romeo, Nokia, Maximus and Morning Glory have all tried to break this course record, but the wind Gods have never played along. Even the VOR winner, ABN AMro tried, but all failed in 2006.

However, George David came along on board Rambler in 2007 and demolished the course record established by Zephyrus IV in 2000. This now stands at 1 day, 23 hours, 55 minutes and 3 seconds.

At A Glance - Middle Sea Race 2024

First held: 1968

Organising Authority: Royal Malta Yacht Club

Start

The 45th Rolex Middle Sea Race will start on Saturday, 19 October 2024.

Grand Harbour, Valletta: seven separate starts, at 10-minute intervals, from 11:00 CEST Saturday, 21 October 2024

Start Line: between the Saluting Battery, Upper Barrakka Gardens (Valletta) and Fort St Angelo (Birgu)

Various vantage points all around the Grand Harbour, high up on the bastions or at water level. Harbour access for spectator boats is restricted during the period of the start.

Course

Set in the heart of the Mediterranean and is considered one of the most beautiful in the world. It starts and finishes in Malta, passes two active volcanoes and takes in the deep azure waters surrounding Sicily, and the Aeolian and Egadi Islands, as well as lonelier outposts of Pantelleria and Lampedusa, both closer to the African continent than Europe.

Length: 606 nautical miles (1,122km)

Outright Race Record: 33h 29m 28s, Argo, United States, Jason Carroll

Monohull Race Record: 40h 17m 50s, Comanche, Cayman Is, Mitch Booth

Main Trophies

Rolex Middle Sea Race Trophy – overall race winner under IRC Time Correction

Boccale de Mediterraneo – winner of ORC category

RLR Trophy – winner of monohull line honours

Captain Morgan Trophy – winner of multihull division on corrected time (MOCRA)

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