Bosham Sailing Club Junior Regatta
by Mike Storey 2 Jun 23:24 PDT
31 May 2025
Bosham Sailing Club Junior Regatta © Richard Kershaw
A gob-smacking 90+ entries for the Bosham Sailing Club Junior Regatta, aligned with a late high tide and a wedding marquee on the meadow normally used for rigging and de-rigging created a unique challenge for the club to celebrate its newly acquired RYA Pathway Club status.
Needless to say the club responded to the demands of dealing with over 140 cadets with two race briefings for three race courses two nautical miles apart with incredible staff and parent volunteers hauling trolleys, getting wet, driving and crewing patrol boats, manning race teams, serving drinks and making sure there was food and ice creams for sailors who spent up to four hours on the water.
As to the racing, those out in the Chichester Channel had a very slow beat in 8kts against the tide to reach the race course. Much towing was required and then the wind dropped. The racing started and many of the more inexperienced sailors could not make against the tide. Lessons were learned about sailing in Chichester Harbour. As always the cream rose to the top and the best sailors made it look easy.
Thankfully the wind built and two more races were completed with exhilarating sailing by the end as the wind hit the top end of force 4 and the tide turned.
Itchenor Sailing Club ran the racing for the 420s as part of their Revision Regatta and thanks to them for removing three starts from the potentially 15-start main fleet.
The 30-odd Optimists had it easy... After a rigging and racing skills briefing they launched once the wind was in and went racing in the Bosham gem that is the Cutmill high tide pool.
After racing, getting 90 boats arriving from two directions landed onto one slipway in force 4 at high tide was challenging. Patrol teams were kept busy holding back sailors keen to get ashore. If sailors had known that free ice-creams were awaiting goodness knows what carnage would have ensued. Tally was done and everyone returned safely.
And thence to the results... undoubtedly the most stressful job of a regatta with queries, disputes, missing entries and the prize-giving clock ticking. At least the bar was open and Bosham Hogs were flat out feeding starving kids.
At the end there were many exhausted parents, kids, volunteers and staff leaving the club after a day well spent on the water. The wedding party just partied on. Attention now turns to the highlight of the season for Bosham cadets (and parents) that is Bosham Junior Week 10-16 Aug, with entries closing Friday 6th June and 140 boats expected.
1st 420 - Zac Shepherd & Daisy Timberlake
1st ILCA 6 - Matthew Board
1st RS Feva - Thomas Knight & Sam Machell
1st Topper - Jake Petevinos
1st Mirror - Zoey Bradshaw & Enfys Horner
1st Optimist Gold - Felix Gladman
1st Optimist Silver - Nico Morgan
Full results at www.boshamsailingclub.com/results