Please select your home edition
Edition

30th Broadland Youth Regatta at Horning Sailing Club

by Holly Hancock 1 Sep 21:28 PDT 31 August 2024

In its 30th year of this Broadland event, the Norfolk & Suffolk Boating Association's (NSBA) Broadland Youth Regatta was hosted at Horning Sailing Club (HSC) on the Norfolk Broads on Saturday 31st August 2024.

Held at HSC's base in Horning for the very first time in its history, it attracted 99 young sailors in 88 boats from 8 Broadland clubs, ranging from those in their first few weeks of sailing to those far more experienced, and all aged under 19 years.

HSC is based on a small island on the bend of the River Bure in Horning, and with the number of boats arriving it was going to be a logistical challenge, but it was quite a sight to see every inch of the Island surrounded by dinghies - from Optimists to RS Fevas, Toppers to Lasers and more. Managing racing also took a different format, with the fleets split to participate on both the River and Hoveton Little Broad, which was popular with the young sailors who all experienced both and enjoyed the variety of sailing.

With the forecast for winds to increase during the day, the afternoon was expected to be the most challenging, but it turned out to be the morning, with huge gusts passing through - at one point taking out most of the fleet on the Broad. The more experienced sailors raced on the Broad, mainly in Lasers, RS Fevas, Splashes and faster dinghies, who enjoyed planing up and down, with capsizes a-plenty, forcing several retirements.

Meanwhile, the 33-strong fleet of Toppers and slow handicap fleet of Optimists, RS Teras, a Gull and Mirror dinghy sailed on the river whilst it was quieter from day boats, similarly seeing many capsizes and retirements - both courses keeping the volunteer rescue boats extremely busy, before swapping venues for the afternoon series.

As the day went on, some young sailors counted upwards of 20 capsizes and for all who took part there was a great sense of achievement. Amongst the challenges there were also some comical moments, particularly during the last Laser race, where a boat capsized right on the finish line and inadvertently took the final turning buoy with them, meaning that the Race Officer had to think both creatively and fast to direct the sailors where to turn before it was promptly put back in place!

Amongst the individual results, The Allcomers B Fleet was won by HSC's Hamish Harmer sailing his Splash, with Beccles Amateur Sailing Club (BASC)'s Sam Johnson and Freya Welham second in a Firefly. Third was HSC's Anya Gittins also sailing her Splash. The Allcomers C fleet saw Waveney & Oulton Broad Yacht Club (WOBYC) dominate the results, taking the top 6 places in the fleet - won by Will Keys-Batson, with Isaac Thomas second and Hugh Walker third, all sailing Optimists.

In the Lasers, there was sibling rivalry between Ellie and Tom Thwaites - Ellie sailing for Snowflake Sailing Club (SFSC), and Tom for Norfolk Broads Yacht Club (NBYC). Both with two first places, on countback it was Ellie who won the fleet, with Tom second despite coming back from a spectacular capsize at the start of the third race to win that race, and Henry Weymss of SFSC third.

Due to the high number of entrants, the Toppers sailed in two flights, and overall were won by Jenson Jakob with three wins sailing for SFSC, with Nate Sparrow of WOBYC second and Isobelle Johnson of BASC third.

After four races, taking the highly sought after Centenary Salver for first-placed team, were WOBYC, with SFSC and HSC equal on points - on countback, second place went to SFSC, with host Club HSC third.

The Lady Mayhew Trophy for 'Endeavour, applying the greatest effort in a spirit of sport, determination and fun', was awarded to Chevvy Bulldeath of HSC, sailing his first Regatta in a Topper. The Whelpton Cup for the most successful double-handed boat went to Sam Johnson and Freya Welham of BASC sailing their Firefly.

Overall, it was a challenging but rewarding day for the young sailors, who had the opportunity to try something different, push themselves and have fun - all in the spirit of the event.

Thanks go to all the many volunteers who helped out over the day and many thanks also to our generous sponsors for supporting the event: Norfolk Yacht Agency (NYA), the University of East Anglia (UEA), Jeckells and Son Ltd, BeWILDerwood, Herbert Woods, Onboard, UEA Sailing/Sportspark and Heat Different.

Find full fleet results here and Team results here.

Related Articles

How navigation tech is protecting our seabeds
Seagrass meadows store 10% of the ocean's carbon Just under two years into partnering together and more responsible sailing and seagrass conservation has been put on the map by Clean Sailors, the Ocean Conservation Trust (OCT) and Savvy Navvy. Posted on 21 Nov
The launch of the Two Oceans 870 Power Catamaran
An 87-foot custom designed and built luxury power catamaran Two Oceans Marine Manufacturing proudly announces the successful launch of the Two Oceans 870 Power Catamaran. Posted on 20 Nov
Marine Auctions: November Online Auction
Bidding to Open on Friday 22 November and Close on Thursday, 28 November 2024 at 2pm AEST Bidding to Open on Friday 22 November and Close on Thursday, 28 November 2024 at 2pm AEST. Posted on 19 Nov
Vision Marine partners with a pontoon manufacturer
A new production initiative with Smoker Craft Inc Vision Marine Technologies Inc. (the "Company", "Vision Marine", "we", "us", "our") (Nasdaq: VMAR), a pioneer in electric marine propulsion, is pleased to announce a new production initiative with Smoker Craft Inc., Posted on 19 Nov
Sunreef Yachts unveils interiors of the Ultima 111
36.25m luxury vessel showcases a unique design collaboration with Phathom Studio Sunreef Yachts is thrilled to present a first look at the interiors of its ultramodern catamaran, the ULTIMA 111. Posted on 18 Nov
Benetti launches M/Y Juno's 7, the first Class 44M
Natural settings on four decks which recall the brand's heritage The first unit of Benetti's Class 44M launched from Viareggio, revealing the work of Cassetta Yacht Designers and informal, natural settings on four decks which recall the brand's Heritage. Posted on 16 Nov
Numarine reveals interiors for new Numarine 45XP
There's a lot to be said for ongoing collaborations There's a lot to be said for ongoing collaborations, particularly between shipyard and design studio. It not only speaks to the success of previous projects and the trust that exists between partners Posted on 15 Nov
Pershing unveils the GTX70
The most compact and sporty, in perfect Pershing tradition Pershing unveils Pershing GTX70, the third model in the Sport Utility Yacht range and a perfect combination of the innovations and comfort introduced by the series and the two previous models. Posted on 13 Nov
Advanced Weather Integration for Safer Boating
Savvy Navvy's integration of Meteomatics allows boaters to see precise wind speeds and directions Meteomatics, the global leader in weather intelligence, looks at how their data integration supports digital navigation for boaters. Posted on 12 Nov
Marine Auctions: November Online Auction
Bidding to open on Friday 22 November and close on Thursday 28 November Bidding to open on Friday 22 November and Close on Thursday, 28 November 2024 at 2pm AEST. Posted on 8 Nov
Trinidad and Tobago - Sail Service StayMaritimo 2023 M600 FOOTER