Yare & Bure One Design and Keelboat Opens at the Norfolk Punt Club
by Rachel Clayton 17 Jun 10:55 BST
14-15 June 2025
Yare & Bure Open at the Norfolk Punt Club © Robin Myerscough
Over the last century the Norfolk Broads has been the spawning round for numerous small keelboat classes including the Yare & Bure One Design, Broads One Design, Waveney One Design, Yarmouth One Design, Rebel and Yeoman/Kinsman. Due to many of these classes having similar speeds, it is not uncommon for them to race together on equal terms.
Designed in 1908, the Yare and Bure OD is perhaps the quintessential Norfolk Brods racing class. Equipped with a generous rig to take advantage of the zephyrs prevalent on the tree-lined rivers, and an easily-drive hull, 145 of these elegant craft now grace the eastern river network.
It was thus that the Norfolk Punt Club, based on pontoons in the middle of beautiful Barton Broad, held an event split between the YBODs and Mixed Keelboats.
Saturday was beautiful, breezy and balmy, bringing 6 visitors to complement the 8 home boats. The first race got under way with a close, clean start, the boats working their way up a long beat, almost the length of the broad. Fox (Chris Bunn & Niki Tansley) led from start to finish, with Scarce Copper (Jack Copping's crew Toby Pearce at the helm before Jack returned from work) winning a tussle with Grizzled Skipper (Stephen Driver and family) for 2nd and 3rd respectively. Good tussles also took place for the other positions.
In the Mixed Keelboats, the youngest competitor, 12 year old Henry Drew of the home club, crewed by his father Alastair in their Yeoman Turnstone, fared well in the increasing winds. Despite being the only competing class designed with a spinnaker, Turnstone could not beat Kathy Gill and Simon Learmount in BOD Greenshank on handicap.
Refuelled by lunch there was pressure on the line for race 2, resulting in boats being squeezed out and Meadow Brown (James Dugdale & Thomas Wildman/Charlotte Knight) being OCS. However, taking advantage of the wind shifts in the increasing breeze she was soon through to 3rd. An unfortunate incident between Grizzled Skipper and Small White (Peter Robbins, Caroline Dixey and Chris Pugh) resulted in both boats retiring, Grizzled Skipper with a broken bowsprit, thus ending her racing. By the second round Dingy Skipper (Marty Thompson & Leah Tansley) was pushing hard on the heels of Fox. Despite her earlier recover, it was now the turn of third placed Meadow Brown to retire with rig failure to her bobstay, enabling Scarce Copper to move up to 3rd. In a final attempt to catch Fox, Dingy Skipper tried her luck at taking the last run on the opposite gybe on the opposite side of the broad from Fox, but upon meeting at the final buoy was no closer so finished 2nd. Scarce Copper was a comfortable 3rd.
Meanwhile in the Mixed Keels, Turnstone had enough of a lead on Greenshank (this time helmed by Simon), to hold her handicap.
After the famous Punt Club tea and cakes a diminished fleet took to the line for the final race of the day due to either boat damage, body damage or strength of wind. Local boat Silver Blue (Simon & Fil Daniels) clawed back ground after a less than perfect start, tacking early onto port and then taking the beat up the starboard side, arriving at the first mark in 3rd. Despite later getting up to 2nd, she was overhauled by Scarce Copper. The same point of the first beat and the same gear failure saw Meadow Brown again retiring. After a downwind tussle with Small White, Silver Blue took a gamble and tacked immediately round the downwind buoy, just managing to sneak inside the finish line ahead.
Despite a gallant attempt, Turnstone's light sailors could not make enough headway in the ever-increasing gusts to catch a disappearing Greenshank.
A well-earned rest was called for in the form of beer and burgers at both the local cricket club and on the pontoon.
Sunday's lighter wind was from the south west, enabling two short beats and one long broad reach. With Fox OCS, Dingy Skipper and Peacock had their turns at leading the pack, but early in the first run Fox found a gap to sail above and through the fleet and thereafter held the lead. Meadow Brown and Silver Blue pulled ahead of Dingy Skipper on the second run and an unfortunate choice of tack saw Silver Blue lose her gain. Dingy Skipper resumed 2nd place and Scarce Copper seized her chance to pull through to 3rd.
The Mixed Keelboats were joined by Simon and Eve Jenner in their Great Yarmouth One Design Helen, and with another win by Turnstone it would all be down to the last race to decide between Turnstone and Greenshank.
With 4 unequivocal wins bagging the title for Fox, for the final race a swap of boats with the crew of Silver Blue was a test of boats and crew. In the lighter winds, Scarce Copper took an early lead but, again, Bunn & Tansley in Silver Blue took and extended the lead, demonstrating their skill. Scarce Copper held 2nd and Dingy Skipper 3rd.
Turnstone pulled out a long lead in the Mixed Keelboats, meaning a delighted 12 year old Henry won the trophy which only two years ago had been won by his parents.
Afternoon club racing had to be delayed until the wind direction made up its mind and the dogged sailors then drifted around under a cloudburst. Greenshank won from Small White, now helmed by crew Chris Pugh, and Silver Blue, now crewed by Simon Jenner.
Overall Results:
Consortium Cup for YBODs
1 Fox (Chris Bunn & Niki Tansley)
2 Scarce Copper (Jack Copping & Toby Pearce)
3 Dingy Skipper (Marty Thompson & Leah Tansley)
Whelpton Trophy for 1st placed Norfolk Punt Club Member
Reed Leopard (Matthew Scott & Hermione Scott/Rob Black)
Helios Trophy for Yeomans
Turnstone (Henry & Alastair Drew)
Pleasure Island Trophy for Mixed Keels
Greenshank (Kathy Gill & Simon Learmount)