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Displaying items by tag: unregulated

18th June 2011

Basic Safety On the Water

Even the most experienced people with the best equipment can run into danger on the water, according to the RNLI's Irish sea safety officer.
Kevin Rahill told The Irish Times that standards are improving in terms of safety awareness, but many basic procedures are still being ignored.
"Leisure craft are unregulated, so a big part of what we do is to try to get people to increase their safety on a voluntary basis: wear a lifejacket, understand weather conditions, undertake training," he said.
Des Kearney of Deep Blue Sea kayaking highlighted that many novices will be tempted out to the water to see the dolphin pod that has recently taken residence in Dalkey.
"“My main concern is that people recognise the dangers," he said. "Once you get outside the harbour wall the winds can be very strong, and an inexperienced paddler could be swept away."
The Irish Times has more on the story, including a safety checklist, HERE.

Even the most experienced people with the best equipment can run into danger on the water, according to the RNLI's Irish sea safety officer.

Kevin Rahill told The Irish Times that standards are improving in terms of safety awareness, but many basic procedures are still being ignored.

"Leisure craft are unregulated, so a big part of what we do is to try to get people to increase their safety on a voluntary basis: wear a lifejacket, understand weather conditions, undertake training," he said.

Des Kearney of Deep Blue Sea kayaking highlighted that many novices will be tempted out to the water to see the dolphin pod that has recently taken residence in Dalkey.

"“My main concern is that people recognise the dangers," he said. "Once you get outside the harbour wall the winds can be very strong, and an inexperienced paddler could be swept away."

The Irish Times has more on the story, including a safety checklist, HERE.

Published in Water Safety

About the 29er Skiff Dinghy

The 29er is a one-design double-handed, single trapeze skiff for youth sailors.

There is an active class in Ireland, just one of the 38-countries from across all continents now racing the high-performance skiff.

The 29er is one of the latest dinghy classes to arrive in Ireland and has a 50/50 split between boys and girls.

The class like to describe the boat as "The most popular skiff for sailors who want to go fast!".

Derived from the Olympic class 49er class and designed by Julian Bethwaite the 29er was first produced in 1998.

Two sailors sail the 29er, one on trapeze.

The class is targeted at youth sailors aiming at sailing the larger 49er which is an Olympic class.


The 6.25-metre high rig features a fractional asymmetrical spinnaker; a self-tacking jib decreases the workload of the crew, making manoeuvres more efficient and freeing the crew to take the mainsheet upwind and on two-sail reaches.

The 15.00 m2 spinnaker rigging set-up challenges crews to be fit and coordinated, and manoeuvres in the boat require athleticism due to its lack of inherent stability and the high speed with which the fully battened mainsail and jib power up.

The 74kg weight hull is constructed of fibreglass-reinforced polyester in a foam sandwich layout.

The fully battened mainsail and jib are made from a transparent Mylar laminate with orange or red Dacron trimming, while the spinnaker is manufactured from ripstop Nylon.

The mast is in three parts - an aluminium bottom and middle section, with a polyester-fibreglass composite tip to increase mast bend and decrease both overall weights, and the capsizing moment a heavy mast tip can generate. Foils are aluminium or fibreglass.

About the ILCA/Laser Dinghy

The ILCA, formerly known as the Laser, is the most produced boat in the world, with 220,000 units built since 1971.

It's easy to see why the single-handed dinghy has won the title of the most widely distributed boat of all time.

The Laser is a one-design dinghy, the hulls being identical but three rigs that can be used according to the size and weight of the sailor.

The class is international, with sailors from 120 countries. The boat has also been an Olympic class since 1996, being both the men's and women's singlehanded dinghy.

Three rigs are recognised by the International Laser Class Association (ILCA):

  • ILCA 4: sail of 4.70m2
  • ILCA 6: sail of 5.76 m2
  • ILCA 7: sail of 7.06 m2

29er skiff technical specs

  • Hull weight 74kg (163lb)
  • LOA 4.45m (14.4ft)
  • Beam 1.77m (5ft 7in)
  • Crew 2 (single trapeze) 
  • Spinnaker area 15.00 m2 (181.2sq.ft)
  • Upwind sail area 12.5 m2 (142.0 sq.ft)
  • Mast length 6.25m (20.5ft)

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