NBC IRELAND yacht

The full index of our ship stamp archive
Post Reply
aukepalmhof
Posts: 7771
Joined: Thu Apr 02, 2009 1:28 am

NBC IRELAND yacht

Post by aukepalmhof » Fri Jul 06, 2012 9:20 pm

Built as maxi yacht for the 1898-90 Whitbread a Round the World Race by Bushe & Lipsett, Dublin.
30 November1988 launched as the N.B.C. IRELAND.
Dim 24.99 x 5.94 x 4.5m.
Building cost £4 million.

The Irish Post gives by the issues:

Sail Ireland represents Ireland’s first ever entry in the prestigious Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race which is scheduled to take place from September 1989 to May 1990. Ireland issued a 28p stamp on 31 August 1989 featuring the Sail Ireland yacht NCB IRELAND rounding Cape Horn from a painting by Des Fallon.
The flags encircling the painting denote the words “Sail Ireland”.
The 32,932-mile Whitbread Race which comprises six stages began off Portsmouth on 2 September 1989, with stop-over’s in Punta del Este, Uruguay, Fremantle, Western Australia, Auckland, New Zealand, Punte del Este and Fort Lauderdale, Florida, before returning to Portsmouth in May, is recognized as the world’s most spectacular and demanding long-term sporting event.. This year’s race boasts a record entry of 30 yachts from 14 countries.
NCB IRELAND was designed in Cork by Ron Holland and a team of experts, using computer-aided technology to help provide the optimum design. A computer analysis of the ocean patterns over the past 25 years provided by UCC also played a major role in the yacht design.
NCB IRELAND is the largest yacht ever built in Ireland, measuring 81 x 20 ft. The height from mast top to bottom of keel is 122 ft. With approximately 28 sails, weighing 1.5 tons, the total sail area is 48,000 sq. ft.
Built in Dublin in a custom-built climate-controlled environment, the yacht is made of epoxy composites and the hull reinforced with Kevlar carbon fibre local stiffening and a Nomex core.
The 16 crew members were selected from an original panel of 90 following rigorous physical, medical and physiological tests carried out by a team of experts from the Departments of Psychology and Anatomy of UCD Bellfield.
NCB IRELAND takes her name from the NCB Group, the leading financial services company. The other main sponsors are Aer Lingus, ESB International, Irish Life and Jameson Whiskey. In addition to this several companies have sponsored and contributed to individual aspects of the project. The project is further supported by a network of Sail Ireland Clubs around Ireland and throughout the world.

Took part in the 1989 Whitbread Round the World Race under skipper Joe English. She finished 12th in a time of 139 days, 19 hours, 22 minutes and 38 seconds.

She underwent 4 refits
2006 Sold to a hotel chain for match racing, renamed ATHINA.
2012 Laid up at Trinidad and is for sale asking priceUS$299,000.
Now fitted out with a Yanmar 4 TL auxiliary diesel engine, 110 hp., when fitted in unknown to my.

Ireland 1989 28p sg 732 scott754.

Source: Various websites.
Attachments
93_Athina_6x4.jpg.thb.jpg
tmp14E.jpg

Post Reply