P&B Cadet UK National Championships 2025 at Brixham Yacht Club - The Brixham Blitz

Hot on the heels of the biggest and most successful Cadet Nationals in over a decade — and with the World Team and promotional fleet heading off to Lipno for the World Championships — you'd be forgiven for thinking things might quieten down. Not a chance!

On Thursday 31st July, 32 eager boats gathered again in Brixham, still hungry for more action, for what became the inaugural Brixham Blitz. And what a day it was!

The format? Fast and furious: five sprint races, each around 25 minutes long, with prizes up for grabs in both the main fleet and regatta fleet. The wind didn't disappoint either, ranging from 11 to 18 knots, and Arky and his team delivered an absolute masterclass in race management — spot-on with timings all day.

Both fleets started together, which gave our less experienced sailors a brilliant (and sometimes steep!) learning curve. But they rose to the challenge, proving they could mix it with the best. The racing was thrilling — with frequent changes in position, smart upwind tactics, and plenty of close calls all the way to the finish.

Cadets at the Brixham Blitz - photo © Nick Jones

Main Fleet Highlights:

• Hettie Thorogood and Clementine Denny-Pickess, who qualified as the first GBR World Team boat but sadly couldn't travel to Lipno, showed their class by winning three out of five races and taking the overall win.
• Sam English and Minnie Palmer (FPSC, Racing Stripes 9982) nabbed 2nd place in Race 3 and 2nd overall.
• Hugh Voysey and Harry Flood (FPSC, Flirting with Danger 8855) took 1st in Race 2 and finished 5th overall.
• Benjy Bullock and Antoni Durlak (SCSC, Hydrosphere 8447) placed well in Races 2 and 4, finishing 3rd overall.
• Gregory Boddy and Joe Flood were 2nd in Race 1.
• Maddy Sherwood and Eliza Gregory (FPSC, Aurora 10076) consistently performed in Races 1 and 2, finishing 4th overall.
• Charlie Jones and George Koffman (FPSC, Hypnosis 7335) stormed to victory in Race 5, finishing 6th overall.
• Bruce Ward and Alexander Harker (SCSC, Di Maggio 8513) also had a strong showing throughout the day.

Regatta Fleet Highlights:

Not to be outdone, the Regatta Fleet put on a spectacular show of their own!

• Georgina Loader and Araminta Denny-Pickess (WSC, 10001), in their first outing in a new boat, grabbed an impressive win in Race 1.
• Primrose Denny-Pickess and Penelope Reid (WSC, Two Can 9985) were the model of consistency, with two 1sts, a 2nd, and a 3rd, taking home the overall win.

It was brilliant to see so many older wooden-hulled Cadets out on the water at both the Nationals and the Blitz — and some of them are even making the journey to Lipno!

With all this growth, the class is in urgent need of more boats. We now have more enthusiastic sailors than boats available! So, if you've got a Cadet tucked away in your garage, shed, or boat park, and would love to see it back on the water and raced by a new generation, please get in touch — we'd love to hear from you.

What a Blitz! Let's do it all again next year... See you in Pwllheli 15th-21st August 2026

Hettie Thorogood and Clementine Denny-Pickess win the Brixham Blitz - photo © Trish Shepherd

Main Fleet Results:

Primrose Denny-Pickess and Penelope Reid win the Regatta fleet at the Brixham Blitz - photo © Trish Shepherd

Regatta Fleet Results: