Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

After a difficult two years when sailing activities were restricted by the Covid pandemic, the Commodore of Kinsale Yacht Club on the southern coastline of County Cork, Matthias Hellstern, says the ”main focus this year is club racing and getting…

Kinsale Yacht Club has launched its Under 25 Team’s J24 and named it ‘Kinsailor.’ The boat is the last J24 to have been built by Jeremy Rogers, who also built Contessas, on the Isle of Wight. “At 31 years old…

An exhibition about the Naval Service has opened at the Passage West Maritime Museum, recounting how the Cork Harbour village has been a strong provider of Navy personnel. Intriguingly, it includes a detailed account of 21 years’ service by local…

I’m encouraged by the opening of the Under 25 support programme for the season ahead. It is a further positive step towards bridging the gap through which young sailors were lost to the sport. That was when they wanted to…

Where will marine protected areas and marine conservation zones be located in Irish coastal waters and what effects will they have on sailing, watersports generally, angling, commercial fishing, shipping? The Marine Environment Section in the Water Division of the Department…

Baltimore Sailing Club in West Cork is, predominantly, a ‘summer club’ that is very busy when seasonal visitors arrive in the village from Cork City, Dublin and other locations. That does not limit its ambitions to develop the sport as…

The annual report of the Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) for last year came a bit late this year to make as much impact as it could. It arrived in my email at the start of the month, a time…

Many of my memories from fifty years of journalism in all sectors of the media, from local weekly newspapers, to national dailies, radio and television, involve lifeboat stations. In tragedy and celebration that has been the focus of coastal communities,…

There is no doubt that youth involvement is key to the future of sailing. So it is wise for clubs to devote attention to developing youth sailing leading, hopefully, to onward transition into adult boats and classes and cruiser racing.…

John O’Mahony, Chairman of the first representative association for Coast Guard volunteers, says that “Personnel issues are the worst failing in the Coast Guard. It’s like a blind spot.” He was Deputy Officer-in-Charge of the Toe Head Unit, originally the…

More clubs around the country are developing cruiser racing opportunities for young sailors. It is, increasingly, being seen as vital to ensure that clubs themselves have a future. The biggest loss to sailing has been when young sailors leave dinghies…

Disappointment is always hard to take, but Peter Lawless is determined, even though he has, this time, failed in his ambition to become the first Irishman to sail around the world non-stop. The Kerry solo sailor left Kilrush Marina in…

Monkstown Bay Sailing Club is based in the inner part of Cork Harbour and is buzzing with the start of its October League and, says Club Commodore, Sandy Rimmington, a revival of the 5O5 fleet and a plan to expand…

It was discussed in the Seanad on Wednesday the fifth of March in 2003….. Senator Joe O'Toole, a teacher by profession was an Independent Senator, served as General Secretary of the National Teachers Organisation and President of the Congress of…

"We have a lot of quick boats entered, and it's going to be a very competitive and hotly-contested league," predicts the Royal Cork's Rear Admiral for Keelboats, Daragh Connolly, as he assembles fleet arrangements for the Autumn League, which begins…

The Chief Executive of Water Safety Ireland has suggested that it may be time to introduce mandatory enforcement of wearing lifejackets. "Perhaps it is time now to prioritise water safety in Ireland even more than ever and do as was…