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Displaying items by tag: fitness

Big wave surfer Al Mennie talks to the Belfast Telegraph about how he keeps fit and healthy between his challenging surfing experiences.

In a candid Q&A, the Portrush surfer — who features in BBC Two NI show Tide this Sunday 16 June at 9.45pm — reveals the extent of the punishment he’s put his body through to ride the biggest swells.

“[From] surfing I have had broken ribs, have split my head open several times and have been concussed. I often think I’ve been very lucky.”

The “extreme” of this sportsman’s chosen field even extends to his diet — or rather, two diets.

“I eat very well and see myself as an athlete and need to fuel my body, but you will see me in a well-known fast food chain the odd time,” he says.

Perhaps understandably for someone who undertakes such a high-stakes endeavour, Mennie confesses he is “full on all the time”.

“Because I am a surfer, people think I must be chilled out — I am actually really far from being chilled out. At night I'm writing books or working on some sort of plan.”

Mennie’s book Overcome or Succumb was published last year, as previously reported on Afloat.ie. And the Belfast Telegraph has more on his story HERE.

In other surfing news, Dublin Gaelic football forward Ciaran Kilkenny tells the Irish Examiner how riding the waves had become a part of his fitness regimen.

“I generally try to go the day after a game, because you get a bit of a recovery in, too,” he says.

“Even for the head, it’s great to go to a place like Bundoran, or Strandhill or Lahinch, the sea breeze, it’s great to go down and get in the water and up on the board.”

The Irish Examiner has more on the story HERE.

Published in Surfing

#RowFit - The Royal St George Yacht Club has teamed up with former Olympic rower and world record holder Niall O’Toole to offer members and friends a unique fitness experience for the New Year.

Participants in the Crew Class Indoors programme will get ‘RowFit’ as they work 85% of their muscles with every stroke of the rowing machine.

The programme is described as “a fantastic unparalleled exercise to get stronger, leaner, and work your core and learn to row in a fun team environment.”

Classes began this week, with two sessions on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. For more details and how to book a session see the RStGYC website HERE.

Published in RStGYC
19th September 2011

Sports Stars Share Fitness Tips

Leading Irish sports stars are at the National Dairy Council stand each day of this year's National Ploughing Championships. They will share their top tips for training and talk about the role diet can play to help people of all ages, and all levels, interested in sport or keeping fit. There just might be something in it for sailors interested in keeping fit too.

The NDC interest is fuelled by the growing body of scientific research showing that milk can play a very positive role in sports nutrition. Specific areas of focus include hydration and muscle recovery, and the beneficial role of milk in these areas has been attributed to the natural nutritional composition of milk.

Tuesday 20th September

Champion athlete Derval O'Rourke will meet members of the public at the NDC stand from 11.00am – 3.00pm.

Twice during the day, at 11.30am and 1.45pm, there is the chance to hear Derval in a live discussion on the NDC stand with Dr. Catherine Logan, Nutrition Manager at the NDC, about Derval's preparations for the 2012 Olympic Games and top tips. The discussions will finish with a few fun basketball hoops in aid of Focus Ireland.

Wednesday 21st September

Hurling greats Michael Fennelly (Kilkenny's All-Ireland winning team) & Pádraic Maher (Tipperary & All-Ireland Finalist) will meet members of the public at the NDC stand from 11.00am-3.00pm.

Twice during the day, at 11.30am and 1.45pm, there is the chance to hear Michael Fennelly & Pádraic Maher in a live discussion on the NDC stand with Dr. Catherine Logan, Nutrition Manager at the NDC, about their top training and diet tips. The discussions will finish with a few fun basketball hoops in aid of Focus Ireland.

Thursday 22nd September

11.00am-3.00pm is your chance to meet Kieran Donaghy Kerry Gaelic footballer & 2011 All- Ireland finalist at the NDC stand. At 6'5" tall, the multi medal winner is also known for his basketball skills & played with Tralee Tigers.

Kieran Donaghy will have a live discussion with Dr. Catherine Logan at NDC, about his top training tips and tips on sports nutrition at 11.30am; finishing with fun basketball hoops for Focus Ireland.

All Three Days

Throughout the Ploughing festival, a selection of basketball giants will be at the NDC stand every day to help visitors try their shot at Hoops and talk about their experiences, with daily spot prizes.

The NDC interactive 'Photo Booth' returns by popular demand, where you can enter a free competition for the best "Cheesy Smile" which a chance to win a Digital camera each day of the Ploughing. The NDC Butter Queen will give you a taste of the delicious flavour of cooking with Irish butter, with her short-bread biscuits.

 

Published in Sailing Fitness

Royal St. George Yacht Club

The Royal St George Yacht Club was founded in Dun Laoghaire (then Kingstown) Harbour in 1838 by a small number of like-minded individuals who liked to go rowing and sailing together. The club gradually gathered pace and has become, with the passage of time and the unstinting efforts of its Flag Officers, committees and members, a world-class yacht club.

Today, the ‘George’, as it is known by everyone, maybe one of the world’s oldest sailing clubs, but it has a very contemporary friendly outlook that is in touch with the demands of today and offers world-class facilities for all forms of water sports

Royal St. George Yacht Club FAQs

The Royal St George Yacht Club — often abbreviated as RStGYC and affectionately known as ‘the George’ — is one of the world’s oldest sailing clubs, and one of a number that ring Dublin Bay on the East Coast of Ireland.

The Royal St George Yacht Club is based at the harbour of Dun Laoghaire, a suburban coastal town in south Co Dublin around 11km south-east of Dublin city centre and with a population of some 26,000. The Royal St George is one of the four Dun Laoghaire Waterfront Clubs, along with the National Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club (RIYC) and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club (DMYC).

The Royal St George was founded by members of the Pembroke Rowing Club in 1838 and was originally known as Kingstown Boat Club, as Kingstown was what Dun Laoghaire was named at the time. The club obtained royal patronage in 1845 and became known as Royal Kingstown Yacht Club. After 1847 the club took on its current name.

The George is first and foremost an active yacht club with a strong commitment to and involvement with all aspects of the sport of sailing, whether racing your one design on Dublin Bay, to offshore racing in the Mediterranean and Caribbean, to junior sailing, to cruising and all that can loosely be described as “messing about in boats”.

As of November 2020, the Commodore of the Royal St George Yacht Club is Peter Bowring, with Richard O’Connor as Vice-Commodore. The club has two Rear-Commodores, Mark Hennessy for Sailing and Derek Ryan for Social.

As of November 2020, the Royal St George has around 1,900 members.

The Royal St George’s burgee is a red pennant with a white cross which has a crown at its centre. The club’s ensign has a blue field with the Irish tricolour in its top left corner and a crown towards the bottom right corner.

Yes, the club hosts regular weekly racing for dinghies and keelboats as well as a number of national and international sailing events each season. Major annual events include the Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta, hosted in conjunction with the three other Dun Laoghaire Waterfront Clubs.

Yes, the Royal St George has a vibrant junior sailing section that organises training and events throughout the year.

Sail training is a core part of what the George does, and training programmes start with the Sea Squirts aged 5 to 8, continuing through its Irish Sailing Youth Training Scheme for ages 8 to 18, with adult sail training a new feature since 2009. The George runs probably the largest and most comprehensive programme each summer with upwards of 500 children participating. This junior focus continues at competitive level, with coaching programmes run for aspiring young racers from Optimist through to Lasers, 420s and Skiffs.

 

The most popular boats raced at the club are one-design keelboats such as the Dragon, Shipman 28, Ruffian, SB20, Squib and J80; dinghy classes including the Laser, RS200 and RS400; junior classes the 420, Optimist and Laser Radial; and heritage wooden boats including the Water Wags, the oldest one-design dinghy class in the world. The club also has a large group of cruising yachts.

The Royal St George is based in a Victorian-style clubhouse that dates from 1843 and adjoins the harbour’s Watering Pier. The clubhouse was conceived as a miniature classical Palladian Villa, a feature which has been faithfully maintained despite a series of extensions, and a 1919 fire that destroyed all but four rooms. Additionally, the club has a substantial forecourt with space for more than 50 boats dry sailing, as well as its entire dinghy fleet. There is also a dry dock, four cranes (limit 12 tonnes) and a dedicated lift=out facility enabling members keep their boats in ready to race condition at all times. The George also has a floating dock for short stays and can supply fuel, power and water to visitors.

Yes, the Royal St George’s clubhouse offers a full bar and catering service for members, visitors and guests. Currently the bar is closed due to Covid-19 restrictions.

The Royal St George boathouse is open daily from 9.30am to 5.30pm during the winter. The office and reception are open Tuesdays to Fridays from 10am to 5pm. The bar is currently closed due to Covid-19 restrictions. Lunch is served on Wednesdays and Fridays from 12.30pm to 2.30pm, with brunch on Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 3pm.

Yes, the Royal St George regularly hosts weddings and family celebrations from birthdays to christenings, and offers a unique and prestigious location to celebrate your day. The club also hosts corporate meetings, sailing workshops and company celebrations with a choice of rooms. From small private meetings to work parties and celebrations hosting up to 150 guests, the club can professionally and successfully manage your corporate requirements. In addition, team building events can utilise its fleet of club boats and highly trained instructors. For enquiries contact Laura Smart at [email protected] or phone 01 280 1811.

The George is delighted to welcome new members. It may look traditional — and is proud of its heritage — but behind the facade is a lively and friendly club, steeped in history but not stuck in it. It is a strongly held belief that new members bring new ideas, new skills and new contacts on both the sailing and social sides.

No — members can avail of the club’s own fleet of watercraft.

There is currently no joining fee for new members of the Royal St George. The introductory ordinary membership subscription fee is €775 annually for the first two years. A full list of membership categories and related annual subscriptions is available.

Membership subscriptions are renewed on an annual basis

Full contact details for the club and its staff can be found at the top of this page

©Afloat 2020

RStGYC SAILING DATES 2024

  • April 13th Lift In
  • May 18th & 19th Cannonball Trophy
  • May 25th & 26th 'George' Invitational Regatta
  • July 6th RSGYC Regatta
  • August 10th & 11th Irish Waszp National Championships
  • August 22- 25th Dragon Irish National Championships / Grand Prix
  • Aug 31st / Sept 1st Elmo Trophy
  • September 6th End of Season Race
  • September 7th & 8th Squib East Coast Championships
  • September 20th - 22nd SB20 National Championships
  • September 22nd Topper Ireland Traveller Event
  • October 12th Lift Out

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