The smile says it all ...
With the Foyle Sailability’s volunteers setting off on their round Ireland trip to raise awareness of Sailability Ireland today, Cathaoirleach Cllr. Ciaran Brogan wishes them all the best stating “I am delighted that Donegal County Council through our MalinWaters project is supporting Foyle Sailability in this wonderful initiative. I have highlighted Tourism and supporting people with disabilities as two of my key themes for my year as Cathaoirleach and this initiative encompasses both in a unique and innovative way.”
Greencastle will give Foyle Sailability’s volunteers a festive send off for their departure today Friday June 26. The three yachts which will leave Greencastle to circumnavigate Ireland to raise awareness of sailing for persons with disabilities are, “Kind of Blue” skippered by Gary Crothers, “Dream Machine”, skippered by George McCormick, “Aaraura” skippered by Michael Cavanagh. A fourth yacht, “Ferdia”, skippered by Michael O’Farrell, will join in Warrenpoint.
Foyle Sailability volunteers are taking on this adventure to raise awareness of Sailability Ireland, a national organization aimed at increasing opportunities for people with disabilities to engage in sailing and water-based activities.
The boats will stop at each of the Sailability centres round the island of Ireland where events will take place to mark their arrival. First stop will be at Belfast Lough Sailability centre at Carrickfergus. From there the flotilla will continue to Warrenpoint, Dun Laoghaire, Kinsale, Galway and Killybegs. A total of 45 crew will take part in different legs of the journey, with 10 sailing the complete course. Of these 45, 11 persons have a disability.
‘This is no pleasure cruise’ said skipper Gary Crothers, himself a disabled sailor. ‘The schedule is tight, with quite a few night sailing passages, so we can fit each Sailability centre in the two weeks we have. The longest stretches will be from Kinsale to Galway, and Galway to Killybegs when we will be sailing by some of Ireland’s most dramatic coastlines, so we are hoping for good weather!’
With support from MalinWaters, the Sailability Flotilla will also be promoting the north west maritime region of Ireland in each of the stopovers. Joy Harron of Donegal Tourism said, ‘This unique event provides the perfect platform to spread the message of the marine tourism product in the North West region. We have a wonderful exciting marine product, from surfing to whale watching, and we are delighted to have this opportunity to get that message out to the sailing community throughout the island of Ireland.’
The Loughs Agency EU SDF Programme is providing support for the ‘Greencastle Fun Day on Shore and Water’ which will take place at the new pontoon funded by Donegal County Council and The Loughs Agency. These activities will take place on Friday between 11am and 3pm, after, the action will be in the village to cheer the boats and crew off on their journey.
Click here to see our webmap for the Sailability Round Ireland challenge and click on the route or port icons for more info
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