Northern Ireland Sailing & Boating News
Insect Class Dinghy 'Tarantula' Turns Up in Larne, Co. Antrim and Seeks New Owner
14th July 2023 Historic Boats
The Ballyholme Yacht Club Insect class dinghy number 12 Tarantula has turned up in Larne in Co. Antrim. One of 17 built by French and McDermott in the early 1950s, this 14-foot clinker dinghy was owned by the late Mr…
Leisure 17s 50th Anniversary Celebrations Continue on Strangford Lough
12th July 2023 Northern Ireland Waters
Celebrations of 50 years of Leisure 17s at East Down Yacht Club near Killyleagh on Strangford Lough continued on the first Saturday in July with the second of the series of day sails. This outing proved to be rather more…
Larne Lifeboat Volunteers Rescue Kayaker in Water Near Portmuck Harbour
10th July 2023 RNLI Lifeboats
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…
In line with the Irish Optimist Dinghy Association of Ireland (IODAI) push to have a fun and inclusive fleet, a Team Racing Optimist Nationals will be held on the 16th of August, the day before the Fleet Racing Nationals starts…
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…
Ballyholme Yacht Club’s online Baycam had a very prominent red line on Friday (7 July) with the southerly offshore wind forecast to reach 37 knots in the gusts, putting paid to the first day of the 2023 Topper Nationals. In…
Entries Now Open for Return of RYANI Youth Championships With New Title Sponsor
6th July 2023 RYA Northern Ireland
RYA Northern Ireland has issued the Notice of Race and opened entries for the 2023 edition of the RYANI F10 Marine Youth Championships, which will take place on the weekend of 9-10 September. Following the cancellation of last year’s championships…
Howth Yacht Club's McMahon Siblings are Ulster ILCA Championship Winners at Ballyholme
5th July 2023 Laser
It was a challenging, very windy two days at Ballyholme on Belfast Lough for the ILCA Ulster Championships last weekend. The big fleet in three divisions, ILCA 4, 6 and 7, attracted 47 competitors from as far away as Glandore…
Bangor RNLI volunteer Kyle Marshall is celebrating 40 years of service with the charity. Growing up in Bangor and spending his teenage years working around the harbour, Kyle always had a connection with the RNLI and the local volunteers. On…
New Openings in RYA Northern Ireland Board Sub-Committees to Help ’Navigate the Future’ of Sailing and Boating in NI
2nd July 2023 RYA Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland’s sailing community are being invited to apply to join new roles among the various sub-committees of the board of RYA Northern Ireland. The initiative follows the recent launch of RYANI’s strategic plan, Navigating the Future, which aims to…
Charity Condemns Proposed Policy That Could End Treatment of Wastewater Discharged Into Northern Ireland’s Rivers
30th June 2023 Northern Ireland Waters
A leading environmental charity has condemned a proposed policy that could see untreated wastewater discharged into Northern Ireland’s rivers. The Rivers Trust is raising concerns following a policy proposal in the Department for Infrastructure’s (DfI) equality impact assessment report published…
If you could bottle the energy, enthusiasm and excitement of the 24 ladies who took advantage of East Down Yacht Club’s day set aside for women to learn how to handle a big boat, then a fortune is to be…
A35 Final Call II and J109 Storm Share the Spoils at Royal Ulster's RC35/IRC Weekend
27th June 2023 RC35
The RC35/IRC event at Royal Ulster on Belfast Lough last weekend came about because of a chance suggestion by a club member. Although it attracted a small fleet of eight, it did include the very welcome visitors, Ben Shelley in…
Having spent the weekend racing in the Irish RS Elite Championships at Royal Ulster on Belfast Lough, most of the 14-strong fleet are making their way the 18 miles to the UK Nationals hosted by Strangford Lough Yacht Club at…
Once the International Wayfarer rally ended at East Down Yacht Club on Strangford Lough last weekend, five boats with 13 crew headed west to another, albeit smaller but memorable gathering at Lough Erne Yacht Club in County Fermanagh. They were…
Two RS Elite Championships Back to Back This Week on Northern Ireland Waters
23rd June 2023 RS Sailing
The Northern Ireland RS Elite keelboat class is preparing for two big events this weekend and next week on home waters. The first event is the Irish RS Elite Championships, hosted by Royal Ulster in Bangor Bay; this is a…
