2026 Blaze Western Championship at North Devon Yacht Club
by David Shafto 4 May 11:39 PDT
25-26 April 2026
This year, North Devon Yacht Club hosted the BCA Western Championship. NDYC is located in the beautiful seaside village of Instow, where the river Torridge merges with the river Taw before flowing into the Bristol Channel.
Those competitors who arrived on Friday evening were treated to a warm sunny evening and a spectacular sunset behind the picturesque village of Appledore.
Friday night discussions revolved around the nuances of sailing in the estuary where two rivers meet, with rumours of back eddies and a few sandbanks thrown in. Eyes were going to be on the locals for sure.
Day 1
With light winds predicted for the day, our experienced Race Officer Jon Miles declared the sailing area would be close inshore and warned competitors of pushing the line with a tide underneath.
Race 1
A "P" course was set with a beat back up the estuary towards Instow, followed by a port rounding. The "I" flag was set for "Round the Ends" as an incentive to hold back.
Somewhat predictably, Christian is at the front by the top mark, closely followed by David Shafto and class youth newcomer Tom Twist. All 3 pull out a bit of a lead and positions at the front changed on the downwind leg. Christian regained the lead at the leeward mark followed by David who misjudged the rounding and was pinned to the mark by the tide (potential Pink Flamingo award). The chasing pack of Charlie Nunn, Julian Owens, Hugh Kingdom and David Entwistle passed in pursuit of Christian and Tom. Places in the pack swapped but Christian and Tom were gone. First bullet to Christian, followed by Tom.
Race 2
With another "P" course set, the race started cleanly by most but on the way to the windward mark the wind started to die. The hot sun beat down on the overdressed sailors. Summer conditions in April! Christian rounded first followed by David S, Tom and the pack of front runners from the previous race. The front 3 headed down the channel straight to the leeward mark but locals Hugh and Chris jibed off to the shallows. Those behind took the same route. By the windward mark the pack had closed on David S and Tom but Christian had pulled away. Positions within the pack yo-yo'd but Christian cruised to a comfortable win with David S holding on to second place.
Race 3
The Easterly puff had died and the RO postponed, waiting for the sea breeze to kick in before setting a triangle course with a beat inland toward Appledore.
At last, a chance for the lightest to get out on the racks up the beat. Those that kept to the right were gifted a great lift from the shifting wind. Around the windward mark into a full throttle reach on a warm gusty breeze. Fantastic! Christian took up his usual place at the front again followed by another class newcomer Charlie Nunn. A procession of boats followed including David S, Julian and Hugh, with local Chris Dyer now joining the front pack in hot pursuit. With everyone safely jibed round the mark it was time to play the waves down to the next mark. The pack rounded the leeward mark without mishap and set about closing the sizeable gap to the front two boats. With no major blunders, positions remained roughly the same for the remainder of the race with Christian earning another bullet and Charlie in second place.
Race 4
With a decent wind in play the race officer added a fourth race. This was bittersweet as most competitors had emptied their water bottles before the last race. However, who could resist another blast! The course remained as a triangle and adjusted for the permanent wind shift. The race was very much a repeat of the previous race position-wise, with Charlie and Christian sailing each other wide of the downwind mark battling for the top slot. Another win for Christian followed by Charlie. The top six sailors were now showing some consistently good results.
The days scorecard showed Christian leading with four wins, followed by Charlie and David S respectively within a point of each other. Tom followed 4-points behind with Hugh then Julian rounding out the top 6. A big thanks to RO Jon Miles and his assistants Jes Firth and Simon Fleet for adding the fourth race which, in hindsight, turned out to be a master stroke.
David S avoided the Pink flamingo award for parking on the leeward mark, trumped by Hugh for letting his boat drift off down the estuary requiring Paul Tatem to chase with Hugh on board. That's a new one!
With boats back on the soft sandy beach and competitors showered, a group headed to the clubhouse for some very reasonably priced pre-dinner drinks. More joined for a lovely Lasagne supper. Thanks to Laura in the galley.
Day 2
A late start due to tides allowed competitors to congregate and chat in T-shirts and shorts in glorious summer conditions.
Race 5
Reasonable winds were forecast and the Blaze favourite trapezoid course was set further out to sea to provide some wave action. Some of the top contenders were possibly too fired up for the start and had to dip back around the ends. Christian soon took the lead extending it on the planing reach, after rounding the top mark. The downwind leg had some going wide into the shallows and some in a straight line risking the stronger winds over the tide. Notably, the lighter sailors made ground on this leg and it was the usual top sailors that rounded the leeward mark first with Paul Tatem joining the group. The strong-wind sailors managed to pull themselves up to the front of the pursuing pack. However, lightweight Christian bucked the trend and was away. Julian Owens took a well-fought second.
Race 6 - abandoned
With the course remaining a trapezoid, the race started on a reasonable breeze but shifted almost 180 degrees on the downwind leg. Those that went wide into the shallows were suddenly at the back having to tack to what was the leeward mark. The wind then started to die on the second lap leaving competitors stranded in a void. To the relief of those bobbing about, the race was cancelled.
1st - Christian Smart
2nd - Charlie Nunn
3rd - David Shafto (1st GrandMaster)
4th - Julian Owens (1st Master)
5th - Hugh Kindon
Endeavour - Alan Ker
Youth - Tom Twist
John Abbot Midfleet Award - Jon Farr
A big thank you to event organiser and presenter of prizes, Hugh Kingdon.
Glassware prizes presented by NDYC. Prizes also by BCA and with many thanks to Allen Performance Hardware and Battle Brewery.
The youthful newcomers, Charlie Nunn and Tom Twist, demonstrated that they're formidable foes. Ones to watch out for in future events.