WM Nixon
William M Nixon has been writing about sailing in Ireland for many years in print and online, and his work has appeared internationally in magazines and books. His own experience ranges from club sailing to international offshore events, and he has cruised extensively under sail, often in his own boats which have ranged in size from an 11ft dinghy to a 35ft cruiser-racer. He has also been involved in the administration of several sailing organisations.
Irish Sail Boat Tuner Has Secret & Successful Powerboat Racing Life
12th February 2019 Powerboat Racing
Most people on the inside track in cruiser-racer tuning in Ireland will know of Alan Power, who does magic things with the top Half Tonners and other sharp end boats in his fibreglass workshops in Malahide writes W M Nixon.…
“Sailors of the Year” Robert Dickson & Sean Waddilove Have Shown Special Determination From an Early Age
9th February 2019 Sailor of the Year
There is no other event quite like the annual Afloat.ie Volvo Irish Sailing Awards writes W M Nixon. Ireland is small enough for most of the key people in sailing ashore and afloat to know each other personally. So it…
These days we hear so much understandable negativity about the frightening lifespan of plastics that it’s like a breath of fresh air to hear more about someone who has put its longevity to good use writes W M Nixon. Deep…
Richard Colwell – Steady Hand & Visionary Outlook on ICRA’s Helm in Period of Change
2nd February 2019 W M Nixon
When time is spent with Richard Colwell, who was elected as the new Commodore of the Irish Cruiser Racing Association in November, you’re quickly reminded of the saying: “If you want anything done, and done well, then ask a busy…
Jean-Luc van den Heede safely berthed his Rustler 36 Matmut in the Vendee Marina in Les Sables-d’Olonne shortly after 1100 hrs today to confirm him in first place in convincing style in the Golden Jubilee Golden Globe Race writes W M…
With a working life in which sailing, business and friendship are so intertwined that it is difficult if not impossible to tell where one begins and another ends, it will be a sweetly sad bit of news for many folk…
Veteran Van den Heede On Line for Tuesday Morning Golden Globe Race Victory
28th January 2019 Golden Globe Race
France’s stellar senior sailor Jean-Luc van den Heede (73) is such an experienced long-distance racer that the last thing he’d welcome is a premature celebration of his expected victory in the Golden Jubilee Golden Globe Race tomorrow morning writes W…
How Military Principles Helped the Defence Forces Win in Sailing in 2018
25th January 2019 W M Nixon
It was while crossing the Atlantic on the Sail Training Brigantine Asgard II during a celestial navigation module of his Naval Service education in 1999 that Barry Byrne had something of an epiphany writes W M Nixon. He’d been introduced…
The legendary Figaro URGO sailing show will be coming to Ireland and the Irish Sea big time for its Golden Jubilee season in 2019 writes W M Nixon, with a 20th visit to Kinsale being supported by a subsequent second…
Veteran French skipper Jean-Luc van den Heede (73) has been giving a strategic sailing masterclass in the final 1500 miles of the Golden Jubilee Golden Globe Race writes W M Nixon. A week ago, after enduring flukey and unfavourable conditions…
In the Great Halls of Dusseldorf, where the colossal annual Boat Show opens today with its Golden Jubilee providing multiple opportunities for appropriate Wagnerian accompaniment for hyper-glossy boats on the grand scale, a specialised level of interest will focus on…
Tim Magennis of Dun Laoghaire is Honoured By Classic & Traditional Boat Movement
15th January 2019 Dun Laoghaire Harbour News
Tim Magennis, the doyen of the traditional and classic boat movement on Ireland’s east coast, and one of the main movers in many significant historic sailing events in Ireland and the Irish Sea, was acclaimed with elevation to Honorary Life…
We’re all well aware of the difficulty for leisure boats in sourcing diesel on some parts of the Irish coast, but what’s the situation for petrol for large outboards? Can anyone help Afloat.ie powerboat enthusiast Pete with this query? I’m…
The sad death of Owen McNally a few days before Christmas deprived the Dun Laoghaire sailing community of one of its most active and devoted participants, an enthusiast who put even more into our sport than he took from it…
In ancient Greece, the Halcyon Days were a mythological seven day period of calm clear weather at the mid-winter Solstice writes W M Nixon. Down Limerick way, they’ve been making the best of the Halcyon Days, with the blue River…
Howth Yacht Club has become the latest winner of the Mitsubishi Motors “Sailing Club of the Year” Award primarily on the strength of its sailing successes through 2018 - major successes which began in February and continued until well into…
Hobart in Tasmania is a characterful port with a certain style to it, picturesquely located in handsome scenery on the estuary of the River Derwent writes W M Nixon. It’s home to a goodly fleet of sailcraft and motorboats of…
Darryl Hughes’ renowned 43ft ketch Maybird, built by Tyrrell of Arklow in 1937 and superbly restored in substantial works project-managed by the owner himself in 2009-2011, has had – at 81 years old - probably her best year ever for…
What would Christmas be like without sailing? Such a state of deprivation just doesn’t bear thinking about writes W M Nixon. But thanks to the wonders of modern communication - which at other times can be too much of a…
The sailing community’s notable diversity is dependent on how you’re trying to analyse it writes W M Nixon. For many, it’s the community aspect, the shared love of boats and sailing and interacting with sea or lake, which is the…
