Coniston Sailing Club 2026 Open Regatta
by Cy Oldham 29 May 07:50 PDT
23-24 May 2026
Coniston Sailing Club 2026 Open Regatta © Diana Marshall-Kay /
www.diskay.co.uk
The racing gods graced us with glorious sunshine for our Coniston Sailing Club Open Regatta this year and, unusually, Coniston delivered one of those rare weekends where everything seemed to line up perfectly.
Instead of the usual South Westerlies that dance around the lake, we were treated to a proper consistent southerly breeze - stronger than the forecast would have had you believe - making for fantastic racing conditions on both days.
Coniston Water is always an interesting place to sail. Surrounded by Lake District fells, the wind can do unpredictable things as it funnels between the mountains. Add in navigating around Steam Yacht Gondola, the two Coniston Launches, and the lake's regular tourist traffic - electric boats, paddle boarders and the rest - and there's always something to keep you on your toes. The sunshine brought the crowds out too, with plenty of spectators lining the shore at the sailing club to watch the racing, along with campers from the neighbouring site keen to get in on the action - sometimes a little too close for comfort.
We had 78 boats on the start line with a record-breaking 46 Coniston SC entries, racing in 5 fleets: Ospreys, Fast Fleet, Double Handers, Single Handers and Slow/Junior. This meant 15-20 boats per fleet start, keeping the start line busy but manageable. The two days consisted of 3 races per day, totalling 6 races with 1 discard. Saturday evening's hog roast and live music was a fantastic night and the perfect way to break up the racing.
Overall Results:
Osprey
1st - Rob Shaw (Kielder)
2nd - Alex Willis (Hayling Island SC)
3rd - Alec Mamwell (Coniston SC)
Fast Fleet
1st - James Nield, Blaze (Royal Windermere YC)
2nd - Paul Jones, Flying Fifteen (Coniston SC)
3rd - David Davies, Contender (Loch Ryan SC)
Double Handers
1st - Stewart Murdoch, Kestrel (Royal Tay YC)
2nd - Mike Lennon, Scorpion (Hayling Island SC)
3rd - Ben Swyer, RS200 (Bough Beech SC)
Single Handers
1st - George Swyer, ILCA 7 (Coniston SC)
2nd - Philip Hind, Supernova (Ogston SC)
3rd - Dana Church, Supernova (Notts County SC)
Slow/Junior Fleet
1st - Mary-Anne Beacock, ILCA 6 (Coniston SC)
2nd - Macey Jones, ILCA 6 (Coniston SC)
3rd - Jenny Chuen, Comet Xtra (Notts County SC)
A huge thank you to everyone who made the weekend possible - our Race Officers, safety boat drivers and crew, land crew, caterers, and all the volunteers who kept things running smoothly on and off the water. Thanks also to our sponsors: Lakesloos and Event Support, The Coppermines & Lakes Cottages, Toplex Lancashire, PHG Contracting, Maiden Marine, and Juicy Media Ltd - without their support events like this don't happen. And of course thanks to everyone who made the trip to Coniston for such a great turnout. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did, and we look forward to seeing you all back on the lake next year as Coniston Sailing Club celebrates its 60th year.