Noble Marine RS600 National Championship at Eastbourne Sovereign Sailing Club - Overall

Day 4 dawned with beautiful Sussex sunshine over the bay of Eastbourne with barely a breath of wind for the last day of the nationals. With only one race left to complete there were low grumbles of an early pack up (not least from the 300 fleet suffering the ill effects of one too many Boom of Dooms). Eastbourne's commodore, Andy Jeffries, confidently predicted a 'classic' sea breeze would arrive later in the morning and, once again, he proved to know his venue well!

The fleet launched after a short AP, with the national champion already crowned but some scores to be settled throughout the results table. The conditions couldn't have been better for the final race of the event. Sunshine, a building sea breeze and a chop to keep you alert for nose diving. Paul Jenkins, the race officer for the event, continued his run of great form by electing for three laps of a longer course to make the most of the single race day.

The fleet were clearly eager to get stuck into the Eastbourne swell as the majority were caught early at the committee boat and underestimated the tide pushing them over. The second start was under U flag, with two falling foul and one bail-out at the pin end. The majority of the fleet headed out to sea, which had paid for much of the racing the day before.

Andy 'Go right' White continued his strategy of heading to the shore, which had proved successful previously, followed by the Smith stragglers who had failed to get off the line in good shape. As the fleet came back together it became clear that the right had paid handsomely. However, the breeze continued to oscillate and shift, with a big port lift at the top of the course turning the port lay line into a flat-out reach to the windward mark.

The lead of the race changed several times over the near hour long race. Gains could be found on either side of the course through pressure and direction changes. As the race came to a close, George Smith rounded off the event with a win, Richard Smith a well-deserved 2nd and Jamie Mawson completing a victory lap in 3rd.

It has certainly been one of the closest fought RS600 championships in recent memory. Six different race winners over the ten races, and a variety of wind conditions, direction and wave states to keep everyone on their toes. A well-deserved win for Jamie Mawson who was masterfully consistent in conditions that were anything but.

Noble Marine RS600 National Championships day 4 - photo © Ben Daigneault / Send It Media

A massive thank you to Eastbourne Sovereign Sailing Club who really do excel in hosting successful championships. The race management was superb, the club is hugely welcoming and the bay itself is a challenging but excellent race venue. Thanks must also go to the beach team who, as promised, didn't let a single boat scratch against the pebbles and who manned the winches to drag us all back up the beach again. A massive thanks to the bar and galley team who kept us fed, watered and content throughout the four days.

Ben Daigneault (AKA Send it Media) has some great shots from the event available to purchase and will also be releasing event videos over the coming weeks.

A final thanks to our event and tour sponsors for helping to make the event happen and providing great prizes and of course to our RS Class Association reps, without whom we would be eventless.

For those feeling the FOMO we have the Rooster National Tour event at Notts County sailing club at the end of September and the end of seasons' regatta at Rutland in November. We are currently finalising a fantastic calender for 2025 but have a headline venue scheduled for September at Mounts Bay Sailing Club.

Overall Results:

Noble Marine RS600 National Championships day 4 - photo © Ben Daigneault / Send It Media