Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

French sailors continued to shine in Marseille on an action-packed Tuesday at the Paris 2024 Test Event, which saw all ten classes in action and Ireland's Finn Lynch in fifth place overall in the ILCA 7 men's dinghy class. Michael Beckett…

Irish 49er duo Robert Dickson and Sean Waddilove scored a race victory in the opening races of the Paris 2024 Olympic Sailing Test Event. Mihovil and Sime Fantela (CRO) also enjoyed a strong start on the opening day of the…

A black flag for Eve McMahon (19) in race five of the Paris 2024 Olympic Test event in Marseille has been a setback for the Howth sailor, who lies in the top one-third of her ILCA 6 38-boat fleet. McMahon…

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 volunteer crew of Aran Islands RNLI were requested to launch their all-weather Severn class lifeboat at 6.05pm on Monday (10 July) to attend a person on Inis Mór who was experiencing a health issue and indeed of further medical…

It was worth waiting for. Belfast Lough having suffered the same fate as the first day of the Dun Laoghaire Regatta, the Irish Topper Nationals got underway a day late at Ballyholme on the north Down coast last Saturday afternoon…

RNLI volunteers across the island of Ireland took to the pitch during Sunday’s (9 July) All-Ireland senior hurling championship semi-final at Croke Park, to promote the charity’s water safety partnership with the GAA. Before the throw-in at the Clare vs…

WOW! What an event! Fair play to Regatta Director Paddy Boyd and the amazing VDLR team for putting on an amazing show. It was the breeziest event I remember in Ireland for a long time. There were many, many tired…

In relative terms, Sunday’s conclusion to the Volvo Dun Laoghaire regatta in the Flying Fifteen class was probably the best day on the water – the wind had abated somewhat, after some initial rain, the sun came out, a single race…

At Cove Sailing Club, Rankin dinghies continue to dominate the fleet, holding the top three positions. Maurice and Francis Kidney lead on 39 points in R12, one ahead of David and Richard Marshall on 40 in R30. Owen O’Connell’s R61…

The Mulloy Trophy Race on Saturday at Schull Harbour Sailing Club in West Cork was won by Tony O’Brien’s J109 Tighey Boy, with Tadgh Dwyer’s Brazen Huzie second and John McGowan’s Mackey G third. SHSC is now in the final…

Monkstown Bay Sailing Club (MBSC) will hold their ‘At Home’ annual regatta on Saturday with dinghy racing for National 18s, RS Fevas, Optimists and two classes for mixed dinghies offered in Monkstown Bay. The First Gun for dinghies is at…

The Squib South Coast Championships are scheduled for this weekend at Kinsale Yacht Club, where the class has strong support. Racing is planned for Saturday and Sunday, with the rules requiring that boats be kept afloat during the event, no…

Operator P&O Ferries has confirmed its long term commitment to its North Sea routes by extending the charter agreement with Bore Ltd of two ro-ro freight vessels, boosting the flow of trade between Belgium and the UK. According to MultiModal,…

Malahide Yacht Club has announced that both its Cruiser Regatta (on July 22nd) and Dinghy Regatta (on October 15th) will be sponsored by Ballymore, the developer currently marketing the Seamount Rise development in Malahide. MYC Commodore Ciaran O’Reilly welcomed the…

In recognition of the long career of RNLI coxswain John O’Donnell and the close relationship with the Aran Islands RNLI, last week the Galway RNLI crew presented a framed picture of the lifeboats from both stations to O’Donnell to mark…

Checkmate XX won in the offshore class in Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta on Sunday (9 July), making it a double of offshore wins in the Sovereign and VDLR this season. Prior to the event, Afloat.ie asked co-skipper Nigel Biggs about…

Larne RNLI were requested to launch on Friday afternoon (7 July) to reports of a kayaker in the water at Portmuck. Both of Larne’s lifeboats launched after pagers sounded at 5.24pm and made their way towards the casualty’s last reported…

The 2023 Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta attracted 25 GP14s. On Day 1, with big winds forecast, a 24-boat fleet made their way out to the Salthill racecourse with some trepidation. The fact they got three races completed says much for…

A fin whale found stranded near Ballinskelligs, Co Kerry at the weekend will not be subject to a post-mortem examination to determine its cause of death, the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group (IWDG) has said. The whale was visited by…