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.
Former RORC Commodore Michael Boyd of the Royal Irish Yacht Club is one of the commentary team on the RORC's live Youtube broadcast on Saturday (July 22nd)'s Rolex Fastnet Race 2023 start, with transmission beginningat 12:30 hrs. A very experienced…
A relatively brief but extremely strong period of southwest winds forecast as increasingly likely for Saturday afternoon and evening along the south coast of England will have the RORC's Fastnet Race Team contemplating a day's postponement as one of their…
Boat Of New Zealand's National Hopes Becomes Embarrassing Environmental Hazard
18th July 2023 America's Cup
Thirty-one years ago, she carried the hopes of a nation, and no care and expense were too much for New Zealand's 1992 America's Cup Challenger. But the highly-specialised boats which were developed at that time to fit in with the…
When the first Fastnet Race was sailed in 1925 amidst controversy over the foolhardiness of bringing “reckless competition” into ocean voyaging, the last thing on the organisers’ mind was the crazy thought that by 2023, with the 50th Fastnet getting…
Gus Henry: He Will Be Memorialised By Up-Coming Mirror Worlds At His Beloved Sligo Yacht Club
17th July 2023 GP14
The death of Gus Henry of Sligo has taken from among us a pillar of sailing in the northwest whose energies and enthusiasm were such that they had beneficial effects nationally and internationally. A member of Sligo Yacht Club for…
50th Fastnet Race on Saturday July 22nd 2023 Will Remind Us Of Vintage Racer Brynoth’s Unique Success In Golden Jubilee Race
15th July 2023 W M Nixon
It is arguably the greatest on-water fleet organisation in world sailing. In a week’s time, the 450 or so boats in the 50th staging of the 695-mile Rolex Fastnet Race will be sent on their way from Cowes in a…
Conor O’Brien Two Year Saoirse Circumnavigation Centenary Celebration Now Well Under Way
11th July 2023 Conor O'Brien
A hundred years ago on this day, Conor O’Brien of Limerick’s 42ft own-designed ketch - newly-built by Tom Moynihan of Baltimore with some of the West Cork shipwright’s small but very effective hull shape improvements - was well into a…
The Elan marque maintained a primary placing to the end, with Johnny Philips Elan 33 Playtime (NYC) making a thing of it in Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta Non-Spinnaker 1 with nothing but firsts after taking his discard on his single…
Southworth Has It Hung, Drawn, And Quarter-Tonned in Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta Cruisers 3
9th July 2023 DL Regatta: Cr 3
Quarter Tonning is up in lights these days, and Dublin Bay had an illuminating intro to it in its hottest form with the Hamble River’s Ian Southworth in Protis happily discarding a 9th from the harsh first race of Volvo Dun…
Royal Irish's Rockabill VI Has Closure On Class 0 Title at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta 2023
9th July 2023 DL Regatta: Cr 0
The final two-race day of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta 2023 went through with increasing speed as slowly brightening skies were matched by a steadily rising southerly - a sou’easter to seaward of the harbour, but distinct overtones of a sou’wester…
Royal Cork's Swuzzlebubble Has It Almost Entirely Her Own Way In Cruisers 2 of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta
9th July 2023 DL Regatta: Cr 2
The ultra-veteran Farr Classic Half-Tonner Swuzzlebubble from Crosshaven (James Dwyer, Royal Cork YC) had the turbo boost of Olympian and World Dragon Champion Andy Beadsworth in the cockpit to help continue a string of firsts into the final day of…
With thirty offshore miles to race and the finishers ranging in size from 30ft to 50ft, it was no surprise that the finish times between the Dun Laoghaire pierheads for the Offshore Class were spread over an hour in Saturday's Volvo…
Cruisers 1 Cools Down After Red-Hot Racing at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta 2023
9th July 2023 Volvo Regatta
With its formidable lineup of J/109s inter-mingled with the RC35 group, this IRC 1 Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta class was Hotstown-plus. Yet the John Minnis team with the super-souped A35 Final Call II (RUYC) emerged out of sight ahead, on…
Vintage boats of the Elan marque have been making themselves so comfortable at the front of Non-Spinnaker IRC1 of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta that they had seemed to be taking an "After you" approach to the leading places, but this…
The Dwyers Of Crosshaven Just Keep Bubbling Along In IRC2 of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta
8th July 2023 DL Regatta: Cr 2
The quirky Classic Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble (James Dwyer, RCYC) may have found the ferocity of the winds in Friday's early races not quite to her taste, but with Olympian Andy Beadsworth on the mainsheet, she was flying today, winning everything…
Cruisers Zero Set The Pace For Super Saturday at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta
8th July 2023 DL Regatta: Cr 0
It was Super Saturday on Dublin Bay for VDLR23 Day 3, with brisk but very manageable sailing conditions matched by a brisk throughput of three races by the Race Teams, setting up everything nicely on track for two intense races…
Some decidedly rugged racing yesterday (Friday), though with rapidly improving conditions, managed brilliantly to pull the wind-battered VDLR-23 back into line. But there’s no doubting the fact that it is all being achieved with weather that is a little bit…
Gran Senor Tops Offshore Fleet in Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta's First Race
7th July 2023 DL Regatta: Coastal
Scotland's leading offshore skipper Jonathan Anderson seems to have gone native in Dun Laoghaire, as he registers himself and his J/122 El Gran Senor as racing for the Royal Irish YC in the crack Offshore Class of the 2023 Volvo…
Royal Irish's Rockabill VI is Rocking It In Class 0 of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta
7th July 2023 DL Regatta: Cr 0
You'll sometimes hear complaints that the impressive JPK range from France are marginally under-canvassed boats, but what's not to like about that when racing on Friday's slowly easing rough and tumble? Paul O'Higgin's well-proven JPK 10.80 Rockabill VI (RIYC) took…
Royal Cork Half Tonner Swuzzlebubble Finds Mojo in IRC Two of Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta
7th July 2023 DL Regatta: Cr 2
The tough first race of IRC Two at Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta saw the rugged veteran X-302 Dux (Gore-Grimes family, HYC) loving it, but as things settled down a bit, Olympian Andy Beadsworth in James Dwyer's legendary Half Tonner c (Royal…
