Displaying items by tag: West Cork Tourism CoOperative

2nd April 2012

Former Fastnet Ferry to Become Floating Hotel

#FERRY NEWS – The former Fastnet Line ferry Julia (1981 / 22,161grt) is to embark on a new life as a floating dormitory for workers building and servicing offshore wind turbines in the North Sea, according to The Examiner.

The rather ignominious end for the ferry once billed as one of the jewels in Cork tourism industry, marks the final chapter in the short and troubled life of Fastnet Line, which was set up by West Cork Tourism Co-operative.

At over 30 years-old the ship, which had capacity for 1,860 passengers, made its maiden voyage on the Cork-Swansea route in March 2010. She was bedevilled by mechanical problems in the first few days of operation, and in late 2011 the Celtic Sea service was withdrawn due to higher-than-expected fuel prices.

It had been hoped to restart the route this year, but Fastnet Line went into receivership last month. The vessel had been sold, reportedly for €5m, to C-BED, a Dutch-based company which are to rename her Wind Perfection.

For more on this story about the short-lived ferry operation click HERE.

Published in Ferry

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Beneteau 31.7 sailing in Ireland

In Ireland, the Beneteau First 31.7 Ireland One Design Class Association encourages and develop the use of the Beneteau First 31.7 yacht as a one-design keelboat, mainly for racing.

Each year the association stages national championships with boats coming from different sailing across Ireland. The main centre is Dun Laoghaire Harbour where the bulk of the fleet (15 boats) are based at the National Yacht club but are moored at Dun Laoghaire Marina.

The Beneteau 31.7 boat is not new to Dublin Bay, as boats of this size and type have competed in DBSC in the Cruiser 2 class for some years.

However during the 2006 season, due to their increased numbers, DBSC granted the class its own racing start, thereby facilitating one-design racing for this cruiser/racer.

Since then it has become one of the biggest one-design keelboat classes on the Bay.

One-design rules were drawn up to discourage modifications, maintain a level playing field and set a generally ‘Corinthian’ ethos.

To preserve the cruising dimension, the boat races with cushions aboard.

Numbers entered in DBSC have settled down to approx 15-18 boats, and regular Thursday and Saturday attendances over the season are usually of the order of 14 to 16 boats, reflecting good participation by members. Racing is close and competitive.

In addition to scratch results, ECHO results are also posted. This combines the best of both worlds, providing one-design racing which the members like, while also providing an incentive and interest in turning out for those boats who may not always approach podium position on scratch.

At A Glance – Beneteau First 31.7 Specifications

L.O.A 9.61 m
Hull length 9.50 m
L.W.L. 8.80 m
Beam 3.23 m
Draught min (Deep draught keel) Cast iron 1.90 m
Ballast weight (Deep draught keel) 1 025 kg
Air draught (max) 13.90 m
Light displacement (EC) 3 750 kg
Fuel capacity 30 l
Freshwater capacity 160 l
Engine power 21 HP