Finn Inland Championship 2025 at Rutland Sailing Club
by Richard Smith, Rutland SC 30 Sep 2025 09:00 BST
27-28 September 2025
The anticipation mounted, we checked the forecast days before with a heavy heart, knowing what the foreboding likelihood would be. The inevitable light winds looked to be jeopardizing the weekend with initial forecast showing 4-6 knots on the Saturday and, worse still, 1-3 knots on Sunday.
I called Adam Petit, our race officer, who remained ever optimistic, and with a number of different forecasts at his disposal, the glass remained very much half full and not half empty. Thursday night revealed a more favourable forecast for Saturday with Sunday still looking questionable. It was 'game on!'.
On Saturday morning Rutland Sailing Club welcomed the Finn Fleet to its shores despite the water being considerably lower than some might have remembered from when they last visited. There was plenty of water available in one of the UKs largest manmade reservoirs to put on a showcase for the club. 22 sailors had come from far and wide, from the south coast, to sailors from the north. Rutland's central location made it an ideal venue to host the inlands.
The usual scenes were on show, polishing of hulls and foils to find those marginal gains on the water. Tape measures and leech gauges are the weapon of choice for the Finn sailor and closely guarded tension numbers. A walk around the boat park to welcome the sailors, eyeing up the range of different Finns on show. I was taken back by Martin Hughes 1970's Finn, a beautiful boat with original rig, restored to its original glory. A prompt briefing started proceedings with the promise of 5 races, maybe even more!
The first race had a slight port bias, and most of the fleet went for the favorable end. A successful start, no OCS's, the inlands had started! This was a talented fleet with some exceptional sailors and very close racing! A southerly wind direction enabled a windward, leeward course with a spreader mark for the run, approximately 8 knots. No pumping was permitted for the run with some tactical decisions to be made about navigating the water tower in the middle of the downwind leg. The race was won by Allen Burrell, Soeren Vonslid secured second and Nick Craig coming in third.
The second race was very similar and if anything, the wind had dropped. Nick Craig secured the victory, Allen Burrell second and John Greenwood third. I'm sure at this point many of the sailors were hoping for the forecasted wind increase to arrive.
Race 3, the gods heard our prayers, we went from floating to hiking! The wind now at 15 - 20 knots. The Oscar flag was up and pumping was green for go. After a general recall the majority of the fleet went for the left-hand side of the beat, however Simon Percival, followed by small group of sailors made good progress on the right with a nice lift towards the windward mark. Nick Craig secured first, Simon Percival second and Matthew Webb third.
Race 4, quick refuel and hydration by the sailors with some red faces as a result of the last pumping session from race 3. There were some notable sailors who did this with ease and managed to show us how it's done. Nick Craig secured his third victory, with Kristian Sjoberg securing his best result in second and Allen Burrell being consistent and securing third.
The final race, race 5. The wind remained constant for the first two laps, during which time it maxed at 23 knots. Russ Ward pointed out in the evening that there was less than a minute from the leaders around the windward mark to the sailors at the rear of the fleet, with 22 boats racing we did all seem to converge at once. Pumping down wind on the first 2 legs was permitted but not on the third as the wind dropped. Nick secured his fourth bullet, John Greenwood securing his best result in second and remember that 1970's Finn I spotted in the boat park? Yes, Martin Hughes pulling a blinder, finishing in third.
After a long beat back to the club house, some tired bodies were ready for their evening meal and refreshments, including a free drink on behalf of the sailing club's Finn fleet. Thank you to the Club's catering team, a well-received and appreciated lasagna followed by a chocolate tart. Just the ticket!
Sunday morning started with the majority of sailors opting for a full English breakfast, unfortunately a misty and patchy scene was presented to the sailors over the club's balcony. It was decided that the racing conditions were not good enough to complete the Sunday's original racing schedule. Prize giving proceeded with trophies designed and made by Richard Smith. The Northern Travellers Series Trophy was presented to John Greenwood and presented by Simon Percival. Many thanks to Sailing Chandlery for their donations, including vouchers to spend on their website and some funky red sunglasses!
- First overall and Grand Master: Nick Craig
- First Senior: Alex Farrall
- First Master: Shaun Pickersgill
- First Grand Grand Master: Allen Burrell
- First Legend: Richard Phillips
- Classic Finn: Martin Hughes
Overall Results:
| Pos | Helm | Boat Name | Sail No | Category | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | Pts |
|---|
| 1 | Nick Craig | | 65 | Grand Master | -3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 2 | Allen Burrell | Thanks Liz | 2 | GGM | 1 | 2 | -5 | 3 | 4 | 10 |
| 3 | John Greenwood | Sybil | 5 | GGM | 4 | 3 | -8 | 5 | 2 | 14 |
| 4 | Simon Percival | Finn | 635 | Grand Master | -7 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 16 |
| 5 | Tim Carver | | 8 | GGM | 6 | 6 | 4 | 6 | -7 | 22 |
| 6 | Alex Farrall | Finn | 705 | Senior | 5 | 5 | -13 | 11 | 5 | 26 |
| 7 | Soeren Vonsild | | 35 | GGM | 2 | 8 | 11 | 8 | (UFD) | 29 |
| 8 | Kristian Sjoberg | | 201 | GGM | -14 | 9 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 29 |
| 9 | Mathew Webb | | 82 | Grand Master | 11 | -17 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 34 |
| 10 | Tim Tavinor | Basil | 9 | GGM | 10 | -12 | 6 | 9 | 9 | 34 |
| 11 | Shaun Pickersgill | Finn | 654 | 43 | 9 | 7 | -16 | 13 | 15 | 44 |
| 12 | RUSSELL NEW | Newsflash | 40 | Master | 8 | -18 | 18 | 7 | 13 | 46 |
| 13 | Rob Smith | | 673 | GGM | -17 | 13 | 7 | 15 | 11 | 46 |
| 14 | Paul Carrington | | 124 | Grand Master | 12 | 10 | -14 | 12 | 12 | 46 |
| 15 | Martin Hughes | Mainstream | 192 | GGM | 13 | 15 | 17 | -18 | 3 | 48 |
| 16 | Rich Smith | | 722 | Grand Master | 16 | 11 | 9 | 16 | -17 | 52 |
| 17 | Russ Ward | | 4 | GGM | 15 | -16 | 15 | 14 | 14 | 58 |
| 18 | Guy Cokill | Finn | 761 | Grand Master | 20 | -22 | 12 | 17 | 16 | 65 |
| 19 | Richard Philips | | 42 | Legend | 19 | 14 | -20 | 19 | 18 | 70 |
| 20 | Richard Beswick-Calvert | Finn Lizzy | 72 | GGM | 18 | 19 | 19 | -20 | 19 | 75 |
| 21 | Patrick Keen | | 564 | | 21 | 20 | -22 | 22 | 20 | 83 |
| 22 | Richard Cranes | | 685 | GGM | (DNC) | 21 | 21 | 21 | 21 | 84 |
| 23 | Tom Gissane | Finn | 59 | master | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 96 |