V20 powerboat makes a splash

Kinsale is home to the country’s first wheelchair accessible V20 powerboat which will offer children and adults a new and inclusive experience.

The new boat, a Coulam Wheelyboat V20, provided by the Wheelyboat Trust, is specially designed for disabled users.

Although there are nine Wheelyboats already across Ireland, this is the first and only V20 model, making it one of a kind.

The new powerboat, named ‘Saoirse’ (freedom) was officially named and launched recently by the CE of Cork Education and Training Board Denis Leamy, the Mayor of County Cork Councillor Christopher O’Sullivan, and the Director of Kinsale Outdoor Education Centre, Jon Hynes.

The launch took place ahead of the Watersports Inclusion Games, which saw more than 500 people descend on Kinsale for a water-fuelled weekend of fun.

Designed by Andrew Wolstenholme and developed by the Wheelyboat Trust and JM Coulam Boatbuilders, the powerboat is 20 feet long and 7.5 feet wide. It has an open, spacious and level cockpit, with roll-on, roll-off access via a watertight bow door that lowers to form a ramp, allowing easy access for wheelchair users.

Its drive-from-wheelchair console also enables people with the severest of disabilities to drive the boat themselves.

Director of Kinsale Outdoor Education Centre, Jon Hynes, said: “Inclusion and accessibility are words synonymous with Kinsale Outdoor Education Centre and what we offer to users. We aim to ensure all our programmes and activities are open to all, and this year, a new chapter is unfolding.

“We’re thrilled that we can now offer our disabled users the chance to powerboat for the first time. We hope that Saoirse will continue to be a positive spirit after the Watersports Inclusion Games, spreading our mission and aim to make the waters around Kinsale accessible to all.”