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Displaying items by tag: Stena HSS Explorer

#HSSreturns - The HSS Stena Explorer re-entered service on Stena Line's Dun Laoghaire-Holyhead route today and will continue to operate throughout the summer until 9 September.

This is the HSS high speed sea service fourth season operating the route on a seasonal only basis and which takes the fast-craft to cross the Irish Sea in just 2hours 20 minutes.

She has capacity for up to 1,500 passengers and 1,100 lane metres, will operate one round trip each day with a 10:30hrs sailing from Holyhead and a 13:30hrs sailing from Dun Laoghaire.

Richard Horswill, Stena Line's Head of Freight UK & Ireland said: "We are pleased to offer increased capacity to our freight customers on the HSS Stena Explorer, this service complements the existing timetable in operation on the Dublin Port to Holyhead route with the Stena Adventurer and Stena Nordica providing greater flexibility and choice of sailing times for freight customers across the Irish Sea".

For further information and details go to www.stenalinefreight.com or call 0870 850 3535.

Published in Ferry

The GP14 is a popular sailing dinghy, with well over 14,000 boats built.

The class is active in the UK, Ireland, Australia, South Africa, Sri Lanka and parts of north-eastern USA, and the GP14 can be used for both racing and cruising. 

Designed by Jack Holt in 1949, with the assistance of the Dovey Yacht Club in Aberdyfi. The idea behind the design was to build a General Purpose (GP) 14-foot dinghy which could be sailed or rowed, capable of also being powered effectively by a small outboard motor, able to be towed behind a small family car and able to be launched and recovered reasonably easily, and stable enough to be able to lie to moorings or anchor when required. Racing soon followed, initially with some degree of opposition from Yachting World, who had commissioned the design, and the boat soon turned out to be an outstanding racing design also.

The boat was initially designed with a main and small jib as a comfortable family dinghy. In a design philosophy that is both practical and highly redolent of social attitudes of the day the intention was that she should accommodate a family comprising parents plus two children, and specifically that the jib should be modest enough for "Mum" or older children to handle, while she should perform well enough to give "Dad" some excitement when not taking the family out. While this rig is still available, and can be useful when using the boat to teach sailing, or for family sailing, and has some popularity for cruising, the boat is more commonly seen with the full modern rig of a mainsail, genoa and spinnaker. Australian boats also routinely use trapezes.

GP14 Ireland Event Dates 2023

  • O'Tiarnaigh (Apr 22-23) Blessington Sailing Club
  • Ulsters (May 20-21) East Antrim Boat Club
  • Munsters (Jun 17-18) Tralee Bay Sailing Club
  • Leinsters (Jul 7-9) Dun Laoghaire Regatta
  • SOYC (Aug 19-20) Rush Sailing Club
  • Nationals (Sep 1-3) Sutton Dinghy Club
  • Hot Toddy (Sep 30-Oct 1) Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club

 

At A Glance – GP14 Dinghy Specifications

Crew 2
Draft 1,200 mm (47 in)
Hull weight 132.9 kg
LOA 4.27 m (14 ft)
Beam 1.54 m
Spinnaker area 8.4 m2
Upwind sail area 12.85 m2

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