#VOLVO OCEAN RACE - The official film of the latest edition of the Volvo Ocean Race - which had its finale in Galway last month - has been posted on YouTube.

Originally broadcast in late July on TG4, the documentary takes a look back at the 2011/2012 race as the boats left Alicante last October, sailing around the world and visiting ports and cities such as Cape Town, Abu Dhabi, Sanya, Auckland, Itajaí, Miami, Lisbon, Lorient and Galway. 

Delving into the world’s premier global race and one of the most demanding team sporting events in the world, VOR bosses say the film gets close to the action in the ultimate mix of world class sporting competition and on-the-edge adventure, a unique blend of onshore glamour with offshore drama and endurance.

#VOLVO OCEAN RACE - The next edition of the Volvo Ocean Race will feature an all-woman crew for the first time since 2002, the Galway Advertiser reports.

The first team to declare for the race - which kicks off in Alicante two years from now - is backed by the Sweden-based global paper products company SCA, and will take delivery of the first new one-design boat for the race in 2013.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the new design VOR 65 - priced at €4.5 million, about 20% less expensive than the 70-footer that ended its run in Galway this summer - was developed with the idea of reducing the costs of competing in the gruelling round-the-world yacht race.

Another benefit of the new shorter, lighter design is that it puts less of an emphasis on physical strength, meaning that woman can once again be competitive in the race.

All-female crews in the next edition of the race will be allowed two extra crewmembers under VOR race rules.

"I'm very pleased to see a women's team back in the race," said Volvo Ocean Race CEO Knut Frostad. "The lack of women in the last few editions of the race has meant we haven't been representing half the population of the human race."

According to France24, four all-women teams have taken part in the race since 1973, when it was known as the Whitbread Round the World Race, but the physically demanding VOR 70 introduced in 2005 effectively pushed women out of the contest.

The SCA team is expected to be one of at least eight taking part in the next edition of the race, although it is unlikely that Galway will see its return in the near future.

The Galway Advertiser has more on the story HERE.

An unforgettable experience on a tall ship, Galway and the Volvo Race, the MOD70 European Tour in Dublin, protection for seafarers after 92 years, Wi-Fi and sharks, topics in your TIN this week.

Read on ....

UNFORGETTABLE EXPERIENCE" ON A TALL SHIP

Sailing the Jeanie Johnston

With the Tall Ships Race in Dublin, Captain Michael Coleman has answered my question as to what it is like to command one of these vessels:

"Sailing in good weather on a clear and starry night is an unforgettable experience. The distractions of the land are left far behind and you become at one with nature and the elements."

Captain Coleman of Cobh sailed the Jeanie Johnston in the 2005 Tall Ships Race out of Waterford. "An unforgettable experience never to be repeated," he says and he is right, because at the start of that race Ireland had three tall ships and they led the fleet down the Waterford Estuary to the sea – Asgard, Dunbrody and Jeanie Johnston.

"The distractions of the land are left behind and you become at one with nature and the elements," aboard a tall ship says Capt. Coleman. "No TV or mobile phones or the pressure of modern living, just the ship, the wind and the sea and yourself."

His description is in a new book about the tall ship from Kerry, published by Collins Press of Cork to mark the Tall Ships Race in Dublin. Michael English, who was born in Liverpool and studied art in Cork, then worked in advertising in Dublin, made a photographic record of his voyage aboard the Jeanie Johnston in 2005. This forms the new book: 'Jeanie Johnston – Sailing the Irish Famine Tall Ship.'

The Jeanie Johnston has been berthed for some years as a floating museum on the Liffey in Dublin. As tall ships from around the world gather this week in the capital, while there will be smaller Irish vessels taking part, this island nation does not have an active, sailing tall ship providing training for Irish young people.

 

VOLVO RACE AND GALWAY

Will we see another race village in Galway again?

Applications from ports around the world to stage the next Volvo Race must be lodged with Volvo by next month and the 'Let's Do It Global' group which ran the event in Galway is not, so far, preparing one it seems, despite the great success of twice staging the event there, this year and in 2009.

Raising the money needed is the problem.

900,000 people attended the race festival in Galway this year, the organisers said and there was a major economic spin-off for the city. A study of the 2009 stopover estimated the economic impact at €55.8 million with more than 650,000 visitors.

The €4 million fee for hosting this year's event was paid directly to the Volvo Ocean Race organisation as the price for bringing it to Galway by Fáilte Ireland. The Galway organisers found it difficult to secure sponsorship in the current economic climate. Galway Harbour Company, which closed the port for the nine-day festival and Galway City Council were major backers. The event had huge voluntary effort. A number of State agencies hosted events and provided logistical support.

Galway Chamber of Commerce called on the Government to provide the necessary support to secure a third successful bid for Galway.

John Killeen one of the leading forces in getting the race to Galway has said the event would have to be underwritten by a bigger entity than just a voluntary group.

As a host port in this year's event, Galway received an automatic invitation for inclusion in the next race in 2014/2015, with the final decision on port selection to be made by the race organisers in December.

 

EUROPEAN TOUR FOR IRELAND

The MOD70 is coming to Ireland

Ireland continues to gain a reputation as one of the best sailing locations in the world. The new global sailing championship series, the MOD70 European Tour will be in Dun Laoghaire from Wednesday, September 5 to Sunday, September 9, hosted by the National Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Harbour Company. Many of the world's top sailing events have been held in Ireland this year.

The high speed MOD70 class of trimarans are a new innovation in sailing. Each MOD70 is identical, built from the same moulds. That should reflect the skills of the sailing crew in performance and not technological advantage.

The MOD70s coming to Dublin Bay will be - Race For Water, FONCIA, Groupe Edmond de Rothschild, Spindrift Racing and Musandam Oman Sail.

On Friday, September 7 and Saturday, September 8, they will sail the Dublin City Race and Speed Match Races. The trimarans will leave Dun Laoghaire at 3 p.m. on Sunday, September 9, for the start of the second leg of the European Tour from Dun Laoghaire to Cascais.

 

AFTER 92 YEARS – SEAFARERS TO GET WORK PROTECTION

The labour rights of the world's 1.2 million seafarers are to be protected in a new charter – the Maritime Labour Convention. Following its ratification by 30 countries it will go into effect in a year's time – ninety-two years after it was first proposed.

The International Labour Organisation is the United Nations' agency for internationally-recognised labour rights. The Convention was adopted back in 2006 but could not be put into effect until 30 countries adopted it. They represent nearly 60 per cent of the world's shipping tonnage, meaning that seafarers working on more than 50 per cent of the world's international shipping will be covered by the new Convention. Ireland is a member of the ILO but has not yet signed the Convention.

• A safe and secure workplace that complies with safety standards

• Fair terms of employment

• Decent working and living conditions on board ship

• Health protection, medical care, welfare measures and other forms of social protection

 

TRACKING WHITE SHARKS

Marine researchers are using "ocean WiFi hotspots" in their latest attempts to track the movements of white sharks. The species is under threat. Sharks take several years to reach maturity and spawn. An unmanned 'Wave Glider' robot is the latest development in ocean technology. It has been deployed near San Francisco in US waters. The self-propelled solar-powered glider is part of a new network including data receivers on fixed buoys that will pick up signals from acoustic tags on animals passing within 1,000 feet and transmit the data to a research team on-shore at Stanford University Marine Sciences Department. These are the result of 12 years development of fixed and mobile ocean transmitters to follow thousands of species. They increase scientific capacity to observe the oceans and marine populations, improve fisheries management models and monitor animal responses to climate change.

• The tracking can be followed in real time on a smartphone and tablet computer app "Shark Net" available free of charge at the Apple app store.

White shark tracking robot

 

FIRST USA WAVE POWER PLANT

Approval has been given for the building of the first commercial wave-power plant in the USA. The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has issued a 35-year licence to Ocean Power Technologies Inc. to build the plant, intended to produce 1.5-megawatts of power, 2.5 miles off the coast of Reedsport, Oregon.

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#LIFEBOAT - The Galway Advertiser reports that the Galway RNLI lifeboat came to the rescue of a mother and child from a small dinghy near Kinvara in the south-eastern corner of Galway Bay yesterday.

High winds and an offshore breeze caused the dingy to drift onto Mulrooney Island between Kinvara and Parkmore Pier, stranding the Dublin woman and her four-year-old son, who are holidaying in the area.

The lifeboat crew were dispatched to the scene by the Irish Coast Guard after being notified by a canoeist in the area who assisted the family. Both were wearing lifejackets at the time of the incident, and were taken back to shore unharmed.

#VOLVO OCEAN RACE - Organisers of the Volvo Ocean Race stopover in Galway have questioned the will at political level for support of any future hosting of the event, as the Galway Independent reports.

Let’s Do It Global CEO Micheline McNamara said that she has not yet been approached by any local politicians with offers of support for the festival, despite Galway West TD Brian Walsh's comments that the Government would step in to help, and the news that fellow Dáil Deputy Sean Kyne has written to the Minister for Sport to highlight the issue,

While McNamara told the Independent she would not give up hope of Galway tabling a bid, she admitted that "there has been no resources, time or attention placed on the bid from Let’s Do It Global’s perspective".

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Galway's application to host a third stopover of the round-the-world yacht race looks unlikely after Galway City Council announced it would not underwrite the bid, the deadline for which is next month.

Let's Do It Global have said the present not-for-profit structure would have to be changed to something along the lines of the city or state partnerships in other host ports.

The Galway Independent has much more on the story HERE.

#VOLVO OCEAN RACE - Galway's application to host a third stopover of the Volvo Ocean Race now looks "unlikely" after Galway City Council announced it is not in a position to underwrite the bid.

As Galway Bay FM reports, event organisers Let's Do It Global said the present not-for-profit structure would have to be changed, noting the success of city or state partnerships in other host ports.

Let's Do It Global CEO Micheline McNamara said the group was still collecting a "significant amount" of outstanding funding from sponsorship for the event, for which the €4 million hosting fee was paid by Fáilte Ireland.

Organisers had difficulty attracting private sponsorship for the stopover, blaming the unfavourable economic climate, and the event relied heavily on voluntary support.

As previously reported on Afloat.ie, the group's president John Killeen said stronger backing from both the city and State as well as a "different mechanism" of support would be required for any future bid.

The Irish Times reports that an economic impact study on this year's race finale is currently being prepared.

Meanwhile, Dáil Deputy Brian Walsh commented that the festival organisers - most of whom are volunteers - have shouldered enough responsibility and that the Government would step in to help, according to the Galway Independent.

The Fine Gael TD for Galway West has pledged to work with Let's Do It Global to ensure the city tables a big for the next edition of the race in 2014-2015.

The Irish Times has much more on the story HERE.

#SEAFOOD BUSINESS - Galway Bay Seafood's ready-to-eat seafood range has received a boost with a number of its products getting gold stars in the UK's Great Taste awards.

The Galway Independent reports that the Galway-based fishmongers' barbecued salmon, barbecued and peppered smoked mackerel were awarded one gold star each, while smoked mackerel received the honour of two gold stars.

The locally produced fish will now carry the coveted Great Taste 2012 logo, described by proprietor Noel Holland as a "fantastic achievement" for the company and its staff.

"It is heartening to see all our work paying off and boosts the morale of everyone involved here," he told the Independent. "This boost will motivate us to keep striving to continually improve our business.”

Galway Bay Seafood's products were judged by a panel that included restaurateur and Masterchef winner Mat Follas - a chef whose seafood main helped him clinch that coveted title.

#TITANIC - Nine Galwegians who travelled on the ill-fated Titanic are being commemorated throughout August by a replica of the ocean liner, as the Galway Advertiser reports.

The 1:10 scale model is on display overlooking Galway Bay at the Atlantaquaria on Salthill promenade, on loan from the village of Addergoole in Mayo which lost 11 of the tragic 'Addergoole Fourteen' in the disaster a century ago.

Six of the nine Galway residents on the ship lost their lives. But among the survivors was a Eugene Patrick Daly, who provided key testimony that painted a fuller picture of what happened on the night of 15 April 1912, and led to the passing of stricter lifeboat laws for passenger vessels.

#MARINE WILDLIFE - An algal bloom off the west coast of Ireland is responsible for significant fish and shellfish kills from Galway to Donegal, according to the Marine Institute.

As The Irish Times reports, as much as 80% of stocks have been affected on Donegal oyster farms, and the bloom is also impacting negatively on angling tourism in the west and northwest.

The algae responsible, karenia mikimotai, occurs naturally in Ireland's coastal waters during the summer months and his harmless to humans, but contains a "toxic irritant" that damages the gills of fish, shellfish and other marine species.

Low-level samples were first detected in May but in the last two weeks it has grown into a dense bloom from Donegal to Mayo, with high levels now being recorded in Galway Bay, according to the Marine Institute's Joe Silke.

"In Donegal the bloom was so dense that there were many reports of discoloured red or brown water in some areas and several areas have reported dead marine life washing up on the shoreline, requiring local authorities to close certain beaches,” he said.

"The bloom affects species that live on or near the sea bed so we are seeing flatfish, lugworms and some shellfish getting washed up on the beaches."

The image evokes memories of the notorious 'red tide' that killed wild fish and shellfish along the west coast in 2005.

Meanwhile, the Marine Insitute said there are "some indications" that the bloom may be moving back out to sea, as observed in the latest satellite images and modelling data.

"However, cell counts of samples analysed in the Marine Institute... show that the bloom is still of the same density in the Donegal and Sligo regions as it was last week."

#VOLVO OCEAN RACE - Sailing runs in the blood of Dun Laoghaire native Pierce Purcell, following a family tradition that goes back for generations.

The new director of the Irish Sailing Association (ISA) has called Galway his home since leaving school in 1970, and has been involved with the Galway Bay Sailing Club (GBSC) since the beginning, as he told the Galway Independent recently.

Purcell is also the proprietor of Purcell Marine in Clarenbridge, a family-run business that began as a sailing school in 1973 before branching out into selling boats and sailing accessories.

“We supply all kinds of chandlery equipment; boats, trailers, and engines, whatever people need," he says.

More recently, Purcell established the Galway Afloat programme to organise rallies and events for owners of smaller boats in the region.

His efforts more than paid off in his organising of the Parade of Sail in Galway Bay ahead of the arrival of the Volvo Ocean Race fleet, which attracted more than 150 boats for the largest event of its kind in the City of the Tribes.

The Galway Independent has more on the story HERE.