Please select your home edition
Edition
Craftinsure 2023 LEADERBOARD

Broadland Squib Regatta at Waveney & Oulton Broad Yacht Club

by Richard Sullivan 9 Apr 2018 15:53 BST 7-8 April 2018
Broadland Squib Regatta © Matt Harper

Twenty-one boats from as far afield as the Isle of Wight and the south coast converged on Oulton Broad for this year's Broadland Squib Regatta. This event marks the end of the very competitive Oulton Broad Winter Series and also gives an opportunity to the visitors to tune up before returning to their host clubs for the Summer.

The event was preceded by a friendly River Race on the Friday, taking the fleet from Oulton Broad to the Waveney Inn at Burgh St Peter for lunch, via Somerleyton. The River Race was won by Simon Marfleet and Stef Oosthuysen in Firebird, followed closely by Oliver Hunt and Richard Fryer in Crazy Diamond and Iain Jones and Celia Rushton in Aldebaran, who had travelled all the way from Weymouth for the event.

Saturday dawned with overcast conditions and a gentle Force 2 to 3 south-easterly breeze which swung further to the south as the day went on, resulting in shifty conditions. This event is sailed in flights with the top 10 at the end of day one being promoted to the gold fleet for Sunday and the remainder racing for the silver fleet trophy. Past National Champions, Nigel and Jack Grogan immediately showed their form leading from start to finish in their first race and in the second race of the series Bryan and Jenny Riley, also past National Champions, passed Richard Sullivan and Sue Harper on the second beat to record a win.

The Grogans went on to win their two remaining races whilst David Gooch and Gilly Foulds hit top form, winning their second and third races. This left the Grogans leading overnight, followed by Gooch and Foulds, with the Rileys in third place.

Unfortunately, that is how it all ended. On Sunday morning the competitors were met with rain and no wind and at 1130 race officer, Owen Delany, who had travelled all the way from his new home in Devon for the event, flew the abandoned signal, allowing visiting competitors to crane out early for their long journey home.

It was good to see a number of youthful newcomers to the class doing well with particular mentions for Chris Schonhut and Graham Reeve (4th overall), Richard Smith and Andrea Prime (7th overall) and Oliver Hunt (crewed by the evergreen Richard Fryer) finishing 10th overall.

Dave Gentry and Jackie Soards were popular winners of the silver fleet.

Thanks also to Paul Barker, our on the water "rules observer" who was on hand to provide gentle rules advice where necessary.

Full details and results are available on the event website, www.broadlandregatta.co.uk.

Related Articles

Burnham Week 2025 Trophy Day
Slingshot wins the Town Cup while Darren Sewell wins the Dinghy Town Cup Nicholas Plank, Slingshot, wins the 2025 edition of the Town Cup, part of Burnham Week 2025, in perfect sailing conditions. Posted on 31 Aug
Burnham Week 2025 Day 6
Sunshine and strong winds made the fleets muster all their technical skills Sunshine and strong winds made the fleets muster all their technical skills on the 6th day of Burnham Week 2025. Posted on 29 Aug
Burnham Week 2025 Day 5
Charlie Matthews wins the John Torrance Trophy Charlie Matthews, sailing a Blaze, won the 2025 edition of John Torrance Trophy, part of Burnham Week 2025. Posted on 28 Aug
Burnham Week 2025 Day 4
Strong winds and sunshine, with a storm passing through Strong winds and sunshine, with a storm passing through, the 4th day of Burnham Week 2025 saw fresh crews refill the ranks as the premier East Coast regatta goes on. Posted on 27 Aug
Burnham Week 2025 Day 3
Town quay was buzzing with activity, with pirates of all ages prowling the streets In what seems like a repeat of last year's Bank Holiday Monday, the third day of Burnham Week 2025 greeted competitors with champagne sailing conditions, while the town quay was buzzing with activity, with pirates of all ages prowling the streets. Posted on 26 Aug
Burnham Week 2025 Day 2
Sunshine and a fancy dress party going on around the 707 fleet Due to an incident on the water, unrelated to the regatta, AP over 1 has been signalled from the Royal Corinthian Yacht Club racebox, the coordination center for safety matters for Burnham Week, postponing the Pile House line starts by 2 hours. Posted on 25 Aug
Burnham Week 2025 Day 1
Perfect sailing conditions, with more than 120 boats taking part The weather gods smiled upon Burnham-on-Crouch and the 2025 edition of Burnham Week started with perfect sailing conditions, with more than 120 boats taking part in the first day of racing. Posted on 24 Aug
Cowes Week 2025 Delivers Spectacular Racing
199th event completed in fine style The 199th Cowes Week annual regatta was completed in fine style with over 400 boats finishing the last race off the famous Royal Yacht Squadron line under multi coloured spinnakers. Posted on 19 Aug
Cowes Week 2025 overall
Fabulous, flying finish With the spectacle of many of the fleets finishing in the sunshine, downwind under spinnaker, this year's Cowes Week concluded in style. Posted on 8 Aug
Cowes Week 2025 day 6
Breeze and competition ramps up The penultimate day of Cowes Week 2025 delivered great winds with some fruity gusts and choppy seas to challenge competitors as the competition for the top prizes heats up. Posted on 7 Aug