Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Displaying items by tag: Bannow Bay

Fethard RNLI launched its inshore lifeboat on Wednesday evening last (29 June) to assist the crew of a 25-foot yacht which had broken down in Bannow Bay.

The volunteer crew was requested to launch their inshore lifeboat by the Irish Coast Guard just after 9.15 pm. The crew proceeded to Fethard Dock, launched the lifeboat, and made their way to an area Northeast of The Windy Gap. Weather conditions at the time were good with a light force 2 north-westerly breeze, calm sea conditions and good visibility.

The crew arrived at the broken-down vessel at 9.40 pm where it was at anchor. The lifeboat crew assessed the situation, and decided to establish a tow line, retract the keel, and tow the vessel to the safe water of Bannow, north of the Cockle strand.

This launch also marked the first shout for volunteer crew member Mick Cooper, as well as the first launch as Helm for Mick Roche.

Speaking after the call out, volunteer Helm Mick Roche said ‘the crew of the yacht did everything right. They were well equipped with life jackets, navigation tools, means of communication and great local knowledge but were unfortunate to have engine difficulties. The crew did the right thing by alerting the Irish Coast Guard at the earliest opportunity to get help on its way'. Mick continued by saying ‘This call also highlights the importance of always carrying a means of communication when involved in any water activities in or by the sea.’

Published in RNLI Lifeboats
Tagged under

About Match Racing

A match race is a race between two competitors, going head-to-head.

In yacht racing, it is differentiated from a fleet race, which almost always involves three or more competitors competing against each other, and team racing where teams consisting of 2, 3 or 4 boats compete together in a team race, with their results being combined.

A match race consists of two identical boats racing against each other. With effective boat handling and clever use of wind and currents, a trailing boat can escape the grasp of the leader and pass. The leader uses blocking techniques to hold the other boat back. This one-on-one duel is a game of strategy and tactics.

About the World Match Racing Tour

Founded in 2000, the World Match Racing Tour (WMRT) promotes the sport of match racing around the world and is the longest running global professional series in the sport of sailing. The WMRT is awarded ‘Special Event’ status by the sport’s world governing body – World Sailing – and the winner of the WMRT each year is crowned World Sailing Match Racing World Champion. Previous champions include Sir Ben Ainslie (GBR), Taylor Canfield (USA), Peter Gilmour (AUS), Magnus Holmberg (SWE), Peter Holmberg (ISV), Adam Minoprio (NZL), Torvar Mirsky (AUS), Bertrand Pace (FRA), Jesper Radich (DEN), Phil Robertson (NZL) and Ian Williams (GBR). Since 2000, the World Match Racing Tour and its events have awarded over USD23million in prize money to sailors which has helped to contribute to the career pathway of many of today’s professional sailors