A Donegal man has succeeded in surfing the notorious Tory Sound off the Donegal coast in just over 20 minutes, thus setting a first-time record.
North Western Health Board employee Mr Brendan Hone, from Falcarragh, is the first man to windsurf the 10-mile stretch from the mainland at Magheraroarty to Tory Island non-stop.
Brendan and his supporting boat team departed Magheraroarty not knowing what to expect once out at sea. Much to everyone's amazement, he flew across the notorious Tory Sound in a record 21 minutes and 20 seconds.
A westerly wind was blowing up to force seven and he met with seven-metre swells but still stayed on his surfboard despite all the challenging elements.
Event co-ordinator Ms Anne Marie Ward, who swam the Tory Sound last year, said it is a great achievement for Brendan and everyone involved.
"The westerly wind was blowing up to force seven and the three support ribs had to use all their power to keep pace with the magnificent man on his flying machine." she said.
"Brendan made an extremely difficult task look easy and his tremendous strength, technical skill and dexterity resulted in a clean run with no falls. This was made even more difficult with huge seven-metre swells and a storm moving in from the west.
"However, he is a very experienced windsurfer and handled all with ease," she added.
Brendan is west Donegal training services manager with the North Western Health Board and used the event to raise money for the trainee social fund in the board's Tobar Training Centre in nearby Gweedore.