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.
With the Sydney Hobart Race home favourite Alive safely in port in Hobart and looking better by the hour to retain the overall IRC lead and thereby put another feather in navigator/tactician Adrienne Cahalane's sailing hat, Tasmanian sentiment is probably…
Cahalane's Alive Finishes Sydney-Hobart Race as Overall Leader After Line Honours Slow-Moving Drama
28th December 2023 Sydney to Hobart
Early morning in summer with the sunshine gradually strengthening on the Hobart in Tasmania waterfront, and the Derwent Estuary off it, should be a time for gently wakening into the new day. But Thursday, December 28th 2023 has had bouts…
Sydney Hobart Race 2023 Has Been Reluctant To Provide Idyllic Sailing
27th December 2023 Sydney to Hobart
With the warmth of the new Thursday morning beginning to make its presence felt in Tasmania, the chances are increasing of a favourable breeze to bring the Super-Maxi Andoo Comanche (John Winning) to the line honours victory in this often…
Caro Back In Reckoning In Sydney Hobart Race As Track To East Is Rewarded
27th December 2023 Sydney to Hobart
Max Klink's "Super TP52", the Botin 52 Caro with Gordon Maguire (ex-Howth) and Cian Guilfoyle (Dun Laoghaire) on the strength, and racing for New Zeland where she was built - even though her sail number says Cayman Islands, while her…
Adrienne Cahalane Best of Irish as Sydney-Hobart Race Goes Through First Night
26th December 2023 Sydney to Hobart
We cast the net wide in assessing just who might be thought of as Irish in the hundred crews still contesting the 2023 Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race as it emerges from its first night at sea. So even though navigator/tactician Adrienne…
Cian McCarthy and Sam Hunt of Kinsale, racing the Sun Fast 3300 Cinnamon Girl-Eden Capital, were leading the 628-mile Rolex Sydney Hobart Race's two-handed division of 15 starters after nine hours of racing, and are the top-placed small boat overall,…
Irish in Big Boats Hitting The International Sea Road For Hobart
24th December 2023 Sydney to Hobart
Although the only totally Irish entry in Tuesday's Rolex Sydney Hobart Race 2023 is the Kinsale YC duo of Cian McCarthy and Sam Hunt with the chartered Sun Fast 3300 Cinnamon Girl-Eden Capital, further Irish representation has emerged at the…
Afloat.ie regrets to record the death of Cormac McHenry, for many years a leading figure in the Irish Cruising Club. He also served as a Trustee and was a Life Member of the National Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire. An…
For sure, it’s very easy to make too much of the power of the Irish global diaspora. After all, these days just about everybody in the creative arts – particularly writing, acting and music – will determinedly claim an Irish…
Those intrepid spirits who venture westward on the road from the Most Serene Republic of Howth through Sutton Cross, and on into the wilds of nearby Ireland, always used to look forward to the first glimmering glimpse of Sutton Creek…
A week ago, the Howth Yacht Club Frostbite multi-dinghy racers were pinching themselves to be sure that they really did manage to slip a race in under the radar, despite the rest of the country being battened down in threatened…
Ireland’s Cruising And Voyaging Continues To Develop The Rich Legacy And International Friendship Radiating From Cork
16th December 2023 W M Nixon
In a week’s time, Sailing on Saturday will resume normal service with a preview on December 23rd of the up-coming Cruising Yacht Club of Australia Rolex Sydney-Hobart Race on December 26th, both generally and from an Irish angle, for we…
Arctic Voyager Jarlath Cunnane Wants To Put The Record Straight On Shackleton Achievement
13th December 2023 Cruising
Arctic circumnavigator Jarlath Cunnane of Mayo has a bee in his bonnet about the Ernest Shackleton story. While most of his voyaging has been in the high Arctic, he also has extensive experience in Antarctica. And he feels that the…
Howth Winter-Racing Dinghies Leap Through Weather Window To Clinch A Contest
11th December 2023 Howth YC
One of the advantages of East Coast sailing is that much of the weather and winds come from the west, and thus, Race Officers at Howth trying to slice a brief but real winter contest out of any approaching weather…
The damaging tornado which tore a narrow path through County Leitrim towards lunchtime yesterday (Sunday) may have very conspicuously swept roofs off buildings while flattening many trees. But as conditions settled back into a grey winter's afternoon and the visibility…
SSE Renewables Round Ireland Race 2024 Asserts International Cred And Welcomes Female RORC Commodore
9th December 2023 W M Nixon
We know that the biennial SSE Renewables 700-mile Round Ireland Race from Wicklow is a significant fixture in the international calendar. We know it well, because since its inception through the dedication of the late Michael Jones and his voluntary…
Super-Maxi Law Connect Wins Solas As Sydney’s Sailing Programme Focuses Towards Hobart Race
6th December 2023 Sydney to Hobart
Christian Beck’s super-maxi Law Connect won the famed SOLAS Big Boat Challenge within Sydney Harbour in ideal conditions at the weekend, with the traditional buildup towards the Rolex Sydney Hobart race on December 26th also taking in the Cabbage Tree…
Who Was First In International Weather Handicap Input? Issue Arises Over Pioneering Use Of Weather Routing To Score Major Offshore Handicapped Events
5th December 2023 Offshore
Afloat.ie’s “Brain Test For The Day” story on Sunday about the introduction of weather routing as a new factor in scoring June 2024’s biennial CCA Newport-Bermuda Race was posted in wonderment (and maybe bewilderment) as much as being the airing…
Newport-Bermuda Race 2024 Will be Scored Using a Forecast Time Correction Factor For "Luck"
3rd December 2023 Offshore
The biennial 635-mile Newport RI-Bermuda Race in June is one of the world's offshore classics, and as its route takes the fleet across the wayward Gulf Stream while it is in the process of becoming the North Atlantic Drift, weird…
Let us begin by simply setting out the pillar events of the 2024 season in Ireland, while including the major international happenings which will be of interest to our sailing community. And then we’ll provide a further take on it…
