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.
In recent years we’ve become accustomed to the handsome blue mini-cruise-liner St Bridget plying her day-excursion trade along the coasts around Dublin Bay between Dublin Port, Howth and Dun Laoghaire. She’s now a welcome and integral part of the summer…
The debate about the future form of Dublin Port moved up a gear or two in mid-February with the revelation of the existence of the Docklands Business Forum, and its enthusiasm for moving the working docks elsewhere. With 200 or…
The death of Ken Ryan of Dun Laoghaire at the age of 88 really does mark the end of an era, as he successfully bridged the divide between amateur and professional administrations through his own self-effacing yet untiring voluntary qualities,…
Kilrush Adds St Ayles Skiff to Shannon Estuary’s Growing Traditional Fleet
22nd February 2022 Coastal Rowing
Kilrush may be best known internationally these days as the place where the Dublin Bay 21 fleet - originally from 1902 - is being re-born through the developing skills of the Steve Morris-led boat-building team in the south Clare harbour…
Afloat.ie regrets to record the death on Saturday night in Dublin of Ken Ryan, one of Ireland's leading contributors to global sailing administration. In addition to years of service to club and nationalsailing bodies in this country, he was Vice…
Irish Cruising Club Found Freedom At Sea But Restrictions Ashore During 2021
19th February 2022 W M Nixon
“The Freedom of the Seas” is a grand hifalutin notion altogether, particularly when you try to explain the special joys of cruising to a sailing enthusiast who can only measure pleasure afloat through successful racing results. But as the exchanges…
The death of Peter Gray of Dun Laoghaire at the age of 86 has taken from among us a remarkable and multi-talented man who, in many ways, was the personification of maritime Dun Laoghaire and its interaction with Dublin Bay…
MG Motor Ireland Are New Sponsors Of “Sailing Club of the Year” Title
17th February 2022 Sailing Club of the Year
The Afloat.ie-administered “Sailing Club of the Year” award has been running continuously and successfully since 1979, yet in all its 43 years of honouring outstanding achievement across a wide range of criteria by Ireland’s diverse and nationally-spread yacht and sailing…
The experienced staff running Dublin Port make no secret of the fact that it is difficult running a modern port facility within a developing city, even if the fact of having an active port as an integral part of the…
Busy Pamela Lee of Greystones On Course For Caribbean 600 & Round Ireland Race
14th February 2022 Pamela Lee
When they come to write further histories of the Covid Pandemic and the world’s uneven emergence from it, they should call on the many experiences of long-distance sailor Pamela Lee of Greystones. She has somehow managed to keep the development…
Galway Bay SC’s Busy 2022 Programme Boosted By €140,000 Sports Capital Grant
14th February 2022 Galway Harbour
Galway Bay Sailing Club is emerging from the final constraints of the pandemic with a hyper-busy programme in line for 2022, and the added confidence – announced last week - of a Sports Capital Grant of €140,000. This will provide…
Irish Sailing’s Unhealthy Imbalance With The Olympics Is Exposed In Analysis Of Tokyo Problems
12th February 2022 W M Nixon
Sailing needs the Olympics much more than the Olympics need sailing. And in Ireland in particular, sailing’s inferior position in this uneven relationship is exacerbated by the national obsession with sport in all its forms, and the often cringe-inducing neediness…
If imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then Dublin Bay sailors can walk very tall indeed. Their selections over the years of various One Design concepts have spread worldwide among discerning owners, who appreciated that the Dublin Bay sailors’…
Amazon’s Jeff Bezos Big Boat Bridge Problem In The Netherlands Is A Masterpiece Of Publicity Management
7th February 2022 Superyachts
The story of how the world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos of Amazon, is facing problems with getting his new sailing mega-yacht to the sea from her up-river building yard above Rotterdam in The Netherlands has been exercising the international media…
The Kildare-born Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton becomes more famous with every passing year, particularly in America where his successful saving of the lives of every member of his doomed 1914-1916 expedition with the ice-crushed Endurance is used in top businessschools…
Eve McMahon of Howth Yacht Club, the Golden Girl of the international ILCA Classes, is Afloat.ie “Irish Sailor of the Year” for 2021, deservedly following an honoured track set over many years by Ireland’s legends in the sport. Such elevation…
Howth Castle To Get Biggest Hospitality Shakeup Since Grace O'Malley Came Sailing By In 1580
3rd February 2022 Howth YC
The centuries-old Howth Castle is hoping to get planning permission for the biggest shakeup of its hospitality offering since the Mayo Pirate Queen Grace O'Malley called by in her ship in 1580. Also known as Granuaille, the ruthless female sea…
The bundle of energy once known as Hurricane Harold came whirling by Dublin the other day. His daughter was having a pandemic-delayed graduation at Trinity, and Harold Cudmore’s womenfolk had fitted him into a smart suit for the occasion. It…
The island of Eriskay in the Outer Hebrides is one of the gems to be found in cruising Scotland’s west coast. Large enough to provide an attractive natural harbour, its modest height is such that it doesn’t pull heavy downpours…
Dublin Bay OGA Classics to Take Us Back to the Future on Zoom
25th January 2022 Dublin Bay Old Gaffers
It may well be that Zoom sessions will continue as a significant permanent element in communication within the sailing community. But if the emergence from the pandemic continues reasonably well on course, there are many who hope that traditional human…
