RS300 Harken Sprints 2026 at Rutland Sailing Club

RS300 winners in the Harken Sprints 2026 at Rutland © Laurie Callaghan

Saturday morning dawned and optimistic 300 sailors descended on Rutland Water hoping for some wind. The thermostat had been turned up to comfortable levels and glorious sunshine meant it really felt like summer for a change.

Sadly, the wind was as forecast and after a few postponements, the decision was made to cancel the six races scheduled for Saturday. Some of the fleet went off to do boat maintenance ready for Garda in May, others took a nap or set up the tent ready for later. Reconvening on the club balcony at 5PM for a cheeky beer, the fleet were just in time to watch the perfect 18 knot breeze fill in across the water.

Sunday was slightly more overcast but most importantly had 8 knots of breeze across the course. There was a lot of confusion about the course and starting sequence, so having the 600 and 400's leading the way was a blessing! Race 1 got under way with Tom, Will, Harry and Neal vying for the top spot, with the middle to left side of the beat paying. During the second beat the positions settled into Tom, Harry and then Sparky with Neal being pushed back into 5th by local sailor Josh.

Race 2 saw the wind drop slightly with some holes starting to appear. Once again, the fleet generally went mid to left up the beat. The exception was Sparky who took a hard right, came out laughing and sailed off into the distance. After a short tussle, Harry took second, Tom third, closely followed by Will, Neal, Rob, Josh and Ed.

A slight wind shift created pin end bias and a cluster of boats piled in. Josh clearly shouted, "Don't tack in there Rob," who promptly took it as permission to tack "in there". With the fleet now knowing the left-hand bias, everyone jostled for permission all coming to the top mark in close formation. A tactical run meant a few position changes, with Harry narrowly leading the pack at the leeward mark. Following the known formula, the fleet went left up the final beat, except Sparky who took a hard right (for reasons even he doesn't know). This turned out to be a genius move as the wind shifted, allowing him to climb from 8th to 1st. Harry managed to hold on to second, Neal was further right than most of the fleet and snuck in to claim third.

The wind dropped further for race 4 making it a game of snakes and ladders where a single shift or wind hole could totally reverse the order. Neal got the best of the fleet taking a comfortable win, Harry bagged another second and Tom third. Josh managed to catch Will on the run and they were closely followed by Sparky, Rob and Ed.

And with that, the wind gave up, shortly followed by the sailors who had a slow drift back with further racing abandoned.

Well done to Harry for taking the win and Sparky for bagging second on countback leaving Tom in third.

Thank you to John Fothergill, the PRO, and this team of volunteers from Rutland Sailing Club and to our sponsors Rooster and Harken.

Overall Results: