Greenwich Yacht Club Raises Over £3,000 for RNLI Lifeboats in Thrilling Thames Race
by Clive Reffell 4 Jun 16:09 BST
1 June 2025
The Sandhopper crew receiving the Thames Race winner's decanter (l-r) Ernie Beavington; Mayor of Royal Greenwich, Linda Bird; Cheryl Beavington; Dave Foster; Neil Woodbridge © Clive Reffell
Greenwich Yacht Club (GYC) successfully raised a total of over £3,000 for RNLI Lifeboats through its annual Tower Lifeboat Station Yacht Race on 1st June, held on the River Thames. Sponsored by Uber Boat by Thames Clippers, the event saw fifteen yachts compete in a challenging race, showcasing skill and strategy.
The race, starting and finishing at Greenwich Yacht Club, required each boat to consider the Thames' tide and wind conditions, and choose their own start time for the journey to Erith and back. Sandhopper, from Thames Estuary Yacht Club, claimed victory with a near-perfect performance, starting second-to-last and finishing second, securing the fastest corrected time under the Byron handicap system.
Through the use of a tracking system, race developments were followed by GYC members in the Clubhouse, at home, while working on their own boats in the yard, and one member was keeping an eye on the race from Brunel University.
The Mayor of Royal Greenwich, Linda Bird, joined GYC's longest-serving member, Stan Payne, to present the winning skipper with an elegant crystal glass ship's decanter. "It will look great in Thames Estuary Yacht Club's trophy cabinet," said Cheryl Beavington of Sandhopper.
Mayor Bird praised GYC for not only organising the event, which supports the vital work of the RNLI's Tower Lifeboat Station at Waterloo, but also for maintaining an inclusive amateur sailing community service which is accessible to all Royal Greenwich residents. Al Kassim, an RNLI crew member at Tower Lifeboat Station, echoed these sentiments, expressing gratitude for the funds raised to support their life-saving operations.
GYC extends heartfelt thanks to Uber Boat by Thames Clippers for their sponsorship and to local Greenwich and River Thames-based businesses for their generous raffle prize donations, which boosted the event's fundraising. The club looks forward to establishing the race as a cherished annual tradition.
An enjoyable and stirring Sea Shanty evening the night before in the Clubhouse Bar was also well supported by GYC members and their guests, and a raffle raised over £300 of the weekend's overall total.