Musto Skiffs at the 2026 Skiff Open at Weymouth & Portland National Sailing Academy

Musto Skiff fleet at the WPNSA Skiff Open © Steve Robson

The Musto fleet enjoyed an outstanding weekend of training and racing at WPNSA in conditions ranging from the sublime to the ridiculous, with wind speeds on the racetrack from 4 to over 30 knots.

Race 1

Friday's excellent Noble Marine training session set high expectations. With coach Adam Bowers watching his flock, and his threat of black flag forfeits keeping the fleet honest, Race 1 got away cleanly in 9-10 knots of breeze.

Tight racing ensued, with plenty of new faces holding their own as places changed throughout the fleet. Rob Richardson set the tone for the weekend, taking Race 1 comfortably, followed by 'Richard Smith The Younger' in second and Andy Tarboton in third. It was encouraging to see some pinhead sails among the battles, with William Tarn-Chapman and Tom Goodman certainly laying down the gauntlet as future threats to the front runners.

Race 2

As the breeze clicked up a few knots for Race 2, Weybiza delivered brochure-perfect racing conditions in the warm sunshine. Another tight two-lap race followed. Magpie Rob, his boat stacked with lightweight shiny Allen trinkets, seemed to find an extra gear of boatspeed to take the win. Andy followed in second, while Brian Greensmith narrowly held on to third down the last leg after Tom Goodman performed some community service clearing weed from the harbour.

Race 3

As the wind dropped for Race 3, the private number plate stars and their entourage headed to the normally reliable left. Meanwhile the wily intelligentsia, recalling a similar scenario at the Worlds, went right and into more pressure. As the sides converged, the fleet received a salutary lesson in how vital a boat length or two can be at the windward mark. Richard, William, and Dave Annan led from the right, while the top three from the left just nipped inside the main pack.

This left the remaining port-tack boats reaching for their oxygen masks as they hunted for gaps that even the infamous fleet enforcer wouldn't have risked during Friday's training.

With the pressure now one sided and all on the Portland shore, a few drunken sailors chose to double down and headed out towards the sea walls and oblivion. Rob again escaped for the win, with Tom staying off the weed to hold second over Andy.

Despite a Saturday forecast that had always looked mint, the breeze had missed the memo and swung about before dying away entirely. The race committee, who excelled all weekend, held on until the time limit, but with the windward mark RIB radioing zero knots, the fleet headed back for fish, chips, and extensive rehydration. However, the predicted gale was always lurking in the back of everyone's mind; the question was when the front would arrive and where was everyone's limit actually calibrated.

Post racing fish and chips - Musto Skiff fleet at the WPNSA Skiff Open - photo © Steve Robson

Sunday

On Sunday morning Portland Harbour looked white and wild. The distinctly cold NE wind averaged 28 knots, gusting to 35 and sunscreen was swapped for beanies. After the AP flag draped over the pole the previous day, it was now ragged about for several hours. The fleet enjoyed the warmth and usual craic in the cafe, though a heavy game of psychological warfare was under way.

Everyone attempted to project all-in resolve, but beneath the surface, many were holding decidedly weak hands and praying the race committee, a family call-up or a newly spotted maintenance issue would bail them out. There was a distinct smell of fear about venturing into what promised more winter Cape Horn roundings than the summer Argentinian ones Adam had been coaching us on Friday.

When the wind "moderated" to 20 knots, gusting 23, the AP came down and the bluffing ended. Serega, our very own "Terminator," never wavered. Standing hands-on-hips in a 1mm sleeveless wetsuit, he looked dispassionately at those either huddling in full winter gear or who had sheepishly decided to stay ashore and declared: "I know now why you cry, but it's something I can never do," before pulling up his sail in one arm movement and launching without flinching.

Bouncing out of the harbour, it was clear this would be far from an average day out. Mercifully, the race committee got the fleet away quickly - aided by the fact that most sailors declared Saturday's racing as their pre-start practice rather than risking an early dunking. With everyone hovering near the rescue boats, hoping neither their courage nor their gear would fail, up went the orange flag.

Race 4

Race 4 began in a flurry of spray as the fleet planed upwind toward a mark under the harbour wall. Calling lay lines was tricky in the shifty, gusty conditions, but the flat water made the bear-away and hoist mercifully manageable. The drop in considerably rougher conditions off WPNSA was something to worry about later. Rob rounded first, with Brian, Andy, and Dave in close pursuit. Andy worked the pressure downwind to round second, following Rob out to the left.

Tempting as it was to copy the world's one and two, Brian and Dave spotted an almost imperceptible doppler shift in a lone gull's cry and split right. Making big gains they crossed just behind Rob's transom and congratulated themselves on what was clearly an elite observation and absolutely nothing at all to do with not wanting to do another gybe at the previous gate.

Down the second run, Brian and Andy, doing 20 knots and separated by barely a couple boat lengths, faced the added excitement of persons unnamed (GDPR) attempting to navigate a larger, slower boat between them. Zulu war cries proved highly effective, and everyone survived unscathed. Rob extended his lead to take the win, while Andy executed a twinkle-toed gybe-drop to get back inside Brian as they blasted through the last gate.

Race 5

The wind continued to build, reaching 22 knots gusting 26 for Race 5 and Rob again led the way. The leaders tacked onto the lay line from the right and were immediately headed by 35 degrees, nearly turning the fleet inside out. Fortunately, positions held as everyone screamed downwind to a wisely shortened finish with the same Rob, Andy, Brian in 1,2,3.

Race 6

As the marks were moved for the final race, coach Adam looked unusually concerned and warned of increasing wind now that it had more North in it and to be careful. For most, a more careful setting wasn't available; many boats had already glitched into scared to frightening mode given the wild chop and 30 knot gusts.

Nevertheless, it was a race for the ages. Rob broke away by tacking early, leaving Andy and Brian to duel for second, with Dave and Gareth Davis looming just behind to keep the pressure on. Everyone used their own different upwind modes yet remained incredibly close given the conditions.

Down the last leg, Andy gybed away smoothly, leaving Brian to contemplate the undoubtedly hazardous journey to the other side of his boat while channelling his inner Ron Burgundy regarding the timing. As Dave Poston's excellent video captions would put it, "It's got to feel right," and there wasn't much left to feel with.

With the prospect of grounding on Chesil Beach, making the gybe the least-worst option, Brian closed his eyes and just about survived the turn but was now travelling at warp speed on a direct convergence with Andy into the finish gate. For a second time, the starboard boat's Zulu cries were correctly interpreted. While the earlier incident's translation was apparently something to do with a meeting on Tuesday, this time it was clearly "surrender or die."

Brian blinked, dropped his kite, and followed across the line, more than satisfied to have pushed Andy to the wire in all three races and drafting an invoice for his race practice fees.

The return to the marina felt like traversing Drake's Passage. After surviving standing waves, wild gusts and submarine mode, it was alarming to see white caps now inside the marina and a spectator-lined balcony given the slipway was directly downwind. Yachtmeister Andy appeared to have a new Selden autofurl feature installed on his mast and slipped gently and unruffled onto the shore; sail neatly rolled and foils secure.

Musto Skiff fleet at the WPNSA Skiff Open - photo © Steve Robson

Unfortunately, the rest of the fleet then collectively and comprehensively failed their Level 1 Coming Ashore module right in front of sailing's HQ. Special mention goes to Six-Bullet Rob, who became the first person to charge around the marina with the foot of his sail flying above the head. This required the rescue boat that class rep Dave had drafted in to help drop his own sail to abandon him and save Rob from both himself and the crane dock wall.

Despite a three-point penalty for losing his tally band in all that chaos, Rob was a class apart, winning every race and also the overall Skiff Regatta. Something which was ever more impressive given the range of conditions and competition from the likes of Tom Morris.

With heavy rumours and a craftily handwritten sign suggesting the lovely looking new VX-Air he had put on polished display was the regattas overall prize, it was a huge relief for Rob to win and know that he didn't have to explain its absence to Ovington's the following week.

Congratulations to Rob Richardson for an immaculate performance, with a slick as ever Andy Tarboton in second, and an HSE approved 'one gybe is enough thank you' Brian Greensmith in third. With the Carnac Worlds looming, the competition is ramping up as the Polymarket odds take shape on the Telegram chats.

Overall Results: