ILCA Open at Solway Yacht Club

Solway Yacht Club ILCA Open 2026 © Stewart Mitchell

Solway Yacht Club's Open Meeting for ILCA dinghies was held over the weekend of 29th and 30th August 2026. On Saturday young sailors from all over Scotland and the north of England joined ten ILCA sailors from SYC to comprise a highly competitive fleet of 26 boats competing in a round of the Lakeland and Borders Grand Prix.

The wind forecasts that morning were not promising with no forecasters predicting any significant wind within 50 miles of the SYC's home at Kippford near the mouth of the River Urr on the Solway coast. Nevertheless, the Committee Boat left the club pontoons as soon as it was afloat and motored out into the tidal estuary while the sailors were held ashore. Shortly before the due time for the race start, a gentle South South Easterly sea breeze developed which seemed to be holding steady at 3-3.5 knots. Messages to the Piermaster saw all the dinghies launched and towed out to the starting area against tide and wind while Race Officer, John Broadbent, and his team set a figure-of-eight course in the Rough Firth. The race start had been delayed around 45 minutes

Beating into the light but steady wind against the still incoming tide made the first leg of the course highly tactical and it was a pleasure to observe these expert young sailors use all their knowledge and boat handling skills in a keenly contested race. With no discard in the two-race Saturday event there was no margin for any major errors.

With the wind holding steady at 3 - 5 knots, a trapezoidal course was set for the second race which started just after high water. Just as the back of the fleet began their second lap the wind appeared to die prompting the Race Officer to shorten the race to finish at one of the turning marks, but fortunately the wind filled in allowing the fleet to close up again and all finished well within the time limit for the race. All were able to run downwind back to the club pontoons against the ebbing tide.

Lakeland and Borders Grand Prix Results: (after two races)

In the evening a wonderful barbecue was available to club members and visitors which was enjoyed by around forty people.

Solway Yacht Club ILCA Open 2026 - photo © Stewart Mitchell

The morning dawned gloomy and overcast but a little more wind was forecast, this time from the South South West and in fact a slightly shifting but steady breeze of 8 -11 knots held over the racing period. Two different trapezoidal courses were set over the two races, each including the truest beats and downwind runs which could be achieved given the bend of the wind around hills. Once again the first beat against the strong tide was highly tactical with the fleet spread to the lay lines on both sides of the course in search of the best route to the windward mark. As it turned out, the best strategy seemed to be short tacks up the centre.

Two laps were sailed in each race, with the lead and lower positions all varying between laps, as sailors applied lessons learned on first lap. All in all racing was highly competitive with some expert skills on display and results were very tight.

Scottish Open Youth Series ILCA Grand Prix Results: (four races, 1 discard)

Solway Yacht Club ILCA Open 2026 - photo © Stewart Mitchell