Please select your home edition
Edition
Doyle_SailWorld_728X90px_SY TOP

RS400 Nationals Warmup at East Lothian Yacht Club Regatta

by Neil McLellan 9 Jun 2022 01:14 PDT 4-5 June 2022
RS400s at the East Lothian Regatta © Mike Willis

A small and select grouping of RS400s attended the annual East Lothian Yacht Club regatta on the weekend of 4/5 June to get some pre-match practice in at the venue for this year's Noble Marine Rooster National Championships.

They were treated to two days of champagne sailing conditions on "Scotland's Riviera" coastline, fantastic hospitality by the ELYC club members on the shore and in the clubhouse, and tight racing on six efficient and perfectly laid windward/leeward courses set by Robbie Lawson the PRO for the event (also getting in some pre-Nationals practice).

It was smiles all round after the weekend so if you haven't entered the Nationals, or were wavering, rest assured it will be an awesome week if it's anything like this weekend!

The forecast was for two days of gentle easterlies, which on the Saturday was boosted by wall to wall sunshine (yes this was in Scotland!) and the corresponding sea breeze which gave rise to a nice chop, planing conditions with smiles galore and sore legs to match on the sail in.

The racing couldn't possibly have been any tighter with all boats very evenly matched on boat speed and boat craft, meaning it was all down to tactics and the occasional stroke of luck here and there. Everyone had their moment in the limelight....and similarly all boats had moments scratching their heads thinking they hadn't done much wrong, but had been pipped at marks or the finish line by a only a boat length or two.

Despite the closeness, new/old boys in the fleet Jamie and Keith seemed to have the edge upwind on the Saturday and won all three races with impressive hiking skills and nailing of the tough lay lines in the tidal conditions being the difference, with John and Andy showing fast downhill speed (perhaps the new mast since the last event making the difference?) and pipping Neil and Hannah at the finish more than once.

Keith may have made his only tactical mistake of the day by heading home for the evening leaving Jamie at the hands of the Musto Skiff fleet for an evening in North Berwick's bars.....

Day two dawned with more cloud and an earlier start time meant the wind stayed light. Neil and Hannah managed to sneak ahead of Jon and Amanda to win the first race and then were pipped by John and Andy on the line (again!) in the second. John and Andy consolidated their downwind speed advantage to take the final race of the day bringing them equal on total points with Jamie and Keith, who won the event on countback.

After the racing all four boats agreed it had been an absolutely perfect training weekend. Tight racing, spot on race management and great preparation for the forthcoming nationals. Well done and thanks again to all at ELYC for a fantastic weekend... please just hit the repeat button for the Nationals on 8-12 August !

Next up for the Scottish RS400 Stewart Brewing Circuit Event is Royal Tay 18/19th June as the Nationals preparation programmes continue.

Overall Results:

PosSail NoHelmCrewClubR1R2R3R4R5R6Pts
1st1449Jamie CalderKeith BedboroughDalgety Bay111‑4339
2nd1522John MacKenzieAndy BoxDalgety Bay2‑423119
3rd1523Neil MclellanHannah RobertsonDalgety Bay33312‑412
4th1491Jon GayAmanda HendersonLochaber‑42424214

Related Articles

RS400s at Tynemouth
Scottish Tour and Northern Tour The forecast and the locals promised wall-to-wall sunshine and a pristine Force 3-4 for Saturday, with a touch more on Sunday. Little did the fleet know quite what weather they would actually get... Posted on 27 Jun
RS400 Southern Championship at Warsash
The principal race officer's briefing brought mixed reactions For anyone in the 27 boat fleet who had looked at the weather forecast ahead of the RS400 Summer Championship hosted by Warsash Sailing Club, the principal race officer's briefing brought mixed reactions. Posted on 23 Jun
RS400 Trident UK Northern Tour at Carsington
A delightful report in the form of a poem! The first day brought an inconstant breeze— It whispered, vanished, teased the seas. Shifty winds played cat and mouse, each helm alert from stern to house. Posted on 12 Jun
RS400 Eurocup early bird entry closes soon
Enter before 20th June 5pm to save The Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club, in association with Mercedes-Benz Belfast, is reminding all RS400 sailors that early bird entry for the RS400 Eurocup and UK & Irish National Championships closes in just ten days! Posted on 10 Jun
RS Sailing Store partners with RS Nationals
Official chandlery partner for the noughty and RS Vareo class Nationals 2025 The RS Class Association is thrilled to announce that RS Sailing Store will be the official chandlery partner for the noughty and RS Vareo class National Championships 2025. Posted on 5 Jun
Sailing Chandlery RS400 Southern Tour at Parkstone
10-20 knot South Westerly breezes and sunshine greeted the sailors A super forecast of a 10-20 knot South Westerly breezes and sunshine greeted the sailors for the combined RS400 Southern Tour sponsored by Sailing Chandlery and the South West Ugly Tour RS200 Open Meeting. Posted on 4 Jun
RS400s at Harken RS Sprints Regatta
Starting with very light shifty winds and a lot of eager racers The 2025 Rutland Harken RS Sprints kicked off with very light shifty winds and a lot of eager racers. All the races were very competitive with not much distance between the boats. Posted on 29 May
Poole Week Revitalised For 2025
New race teams and new courses for the summer's big event How do you make a great sailing week even better, without losing the elements that have always made it a great sailing week? Posted on 24 May
RS Northern Championships at Strangford Lough
Tight racing across the RS Aero, RS200 and RS400 classes The RS Northern Championships came to Strangford Lough Yacht Club in County Down, producing some tight racing across the RS Aero, RS200 and RS400 classes. Posted on 19 May
15% Off New Sails with Early Bird Entry
For RS sailors who going to any UK National Championships RS Sailing Store is proud to support the UK RS Class Associations and their events in 2025. RS Sailors gearing up for their 2025 UK season can take advantage of an exclusive offer to help them hit the start line with fresh sails. Posted on 17 May
Armstrong 728x90 - HA Foil Range - BOTTOMPalm Beach Motor YachtsAllen Dynamic 40 Footer