18 boats arrived in Brancaster for the inaugural “Lester Sutherland Tiller” Open Meeting. The prize is one of the last old-style wishbone tillers to be made for a sharpie by Lester and will hang permanently on the wall at Brancaster Staithe Sailing Club as a fitting tribute to the man who was so closely linked with sharpies over many years.

The format for the event was a series of four races, two per day, with the best three results to count. Racing was at sea where the strong Westerly wind had succeeded in creating very choppy conditions. Though the wind was strong it was steady and therefore quite manageable most of the time.

Saturday saw a testing course laid by Tim How, with each race approaching one hour in length. Richard Mulderij showed impressive speed to win in the first race, and must be hoping for a good breeze when he takes his Championship crew, Oggy, to Holland for the Europeans next month. Paddy Spink and John Ellison came in second, followed by Ben Cracknell and Sally Wynne. These two boats were never far apart throughout the whole series. Chris Gibbs, sailing with Paul Beachell for the first time, won the second race with Martin & Ollie Read in second and Ben & Sally in third. This race was memorable for a fine bit of “showboating” by Martin when he sailed his boat with just the rubbing strake in the water for a while following a rather wild gybe.

Sunday saw more sun and even more wind. The ride out of Brancaster harbour was even bumpier than Saturday causing some boats to take the (sensible?) decision to stay inshore. Both races were won by Chris, now sailing with regular crew Tim. Paddy scored a second and a third, Ben scored a second and a retired (he went for a premature swim – or two!), with Martin securing the last third place.

Overall Chris was first, Paddy second and Ben third.

In a way, the final places do not matter. The weekend was a great success because it brought 18 boats out for a great weekend of sailing in fabulous adrenaline-filled conditions. Those that sailed have sunburn and aching muscles as souvenirs. Those that supported enjoyed a super barbeque at Brancaster SC on Saturday afternoon. Those who repair boats for a living also had a profitable weekend with a broken tabernacle, broken boom, smashed bow, dented sides, and probably lots more damage to discover at a really inappropriate moment in the future!

Thanks to Brancaster for organising the event.