International Moth Lowrider Inland Championship at Grafham Water Sailing Club
by John Edwards 3 Dec 07:19 GMT
29-30 November 2025
Sadly, reservoir levels at the end of a dry spring and summer did not allow the Inlands to be held as planned, but, thankfully, the team at Grafham Water Sailing Club were able to accommodate an enthusiastic fleet.
Despite the time of year, it is not unusual for the International Moth Lowriders to attract entrants from far and wide, with the usual stalwarts from the Isle of Wight and Loch Lomond being joined (again) by David Balkwill travelling up from Nantes in France. David brought legal contraband in the form of two boats, a Hungry Tiger, which he sailed before passing it on to Tom Foxall for next season, and a Prowler to join the Edwards "whisper".
The now rising water levels allowed for launching from relatively firm ground, but the need for safety boats to be retrieved before sunset meant for early starts on both days. With windspeeds recorded in the clubhouse in the low teens, gusting to the high teens, PRO Nigel Denchfield set an excellent trapezoid course. Race1 was taken by Kev (Axeman 7), ahead of Uncle Nige and Martin. Even whilst seeing all 14 boats completing Race 1, there were signs that it could be a tough day for some, with there being several swims in the spikier gusts.
Race 2 started with the wind steadily in the high teens, before a squall of biblical proportions flattened the fleet with heavy rain and dramatic loss of visibility as the leaders reached mark 2. From the shelter of the Clubhouse, the needle reached 29 knots on the scale, but it certainly felt like considerably more out on the water. There were pitchpoles and cartwheels galore, but, somehow, Martin, Kev carried on and completed the course, along with Andrew McGaw, of the home club, revelling in his scow. The rest of us found ourselves unable to right capsized boats for 20 minutes or more, before racing was abandoned for the session.
During an unexpectedly early lunch, conditions appeared to have eased from the shelter of the clubhouse. Paul, not racing this weekend, took Russ's Tiger for a stretch, testing the tasty bright yellow and green drysuit gifted by the legendary Colin Newman. After the crash test dummy had crashed several times, and with the clock hands racing round the dial, the consensus was to stay warm and conserve energy for Sunday.
The early finish did allow a highly constructive committee meeting of the International Moth Lowriders Class Association - more about that later. We then retired to The Wheatsheaf for an excellent meal, with Paul clearly demonstrating more energy than the rest of us.
Sunday morning dawned with bright sunshine and ice covered boats - the mercury hovering on 32F. At the same time, the temperature in Perth, Western Australia, was 32C. The wind was a much more manageable 12-15 knots, allowing for 5 races to be completed in good time.
Now John's Hungry Tiger likes to sniff out the pin end, which was barely visible in the reflections of the low sunlight from a starboard tack approach. He has been known to pull off several a port tack flier (albeit with the resulting glory never lasting that long). Had #lowlife's nose been at the buoy at the gun, he could have sneaked through with barely a fag paper between his stern and the ever charging Martin's bow. But, sadly, his timing was out by more than a gnat's crotchet, and the video shows the antidote to perfect pin end starts as he ducked Martin and Kev, squeezing through a gap barely 7'4" wide, with an apologetic doff of his Smurf hat to the laughing Russ. A better sailor would have been able to show that the right side paid, as he came back from there vying for second place, before allowing it all to unravel with a cool off swim at mark 1.
At the front of the fleet, Martin didn't put a foot wrong in his Axeman 7, taking bullets in all five races. Katie is clearly now in tune with the rapid and beautiful Edna (Prowler), with blistering pace off the wind, earning three 2nd places to finish 4th overall. Uncle Nige (Prowler) and Kevin took a 2nd each, with the Axeman taking 2nd overall.
Amongst the four Magnums, Lyndon took the Division 2 prize (narrowly missing the podium overall on handicap), ahead of Ian (also in a Magnum 6). Graham sailed well in his Magnum 8, alongside Martyn. James and Henry showed determination and stamina in finishing all apart from the monstrous second race, and tying on points in the handicap standings. Whilst no Division 3 boats (no wings) took part this time, all competitors were pleased that 15 boats attended, as well as a number of shoreside class supporters.
The efforts of David Balkwill travelling from Nantes were noted at the prize-giving. In addition to boosting the UK fleet with the two boats to bring back to life, he had another motive. In 2028, the Moth Class will celebrate its centenary, and David has persuaded the Musée Maritime La Rochelle to commission an 18 month long exhibition spanning the centenary year, and covering the entire spectrum of the most developed of Development Classes. There is, arguably, no one better qualified or connected worldwide than David, aficionado of Moth transoms and savant, to put this together. Already, he plays a central role in the French "classic" Moth scene, restoring and sailing some of the most curious French designs, some of which challenged the proclaimed dominance of the Australian and United States fleets, prior to the unification of the class by Tony Hibbert in the early 1960's.
David returned across La Manche via Cornwall, where he picked up a 1949 Dorr Willey boat "Southern Scandal", which he will restore carefully for the display. She will join a collection of about 22 Moths representing every decade through the 100 years of history, including several renowned World Championship winning boats, including a very famous early foiler. But there will be more: there will be a multi-Moth (British Moth, Europe, Lowrider, Foiler) event on the water in May 2027, together with conferences and round table discussions with several past World Champions from the 60s through to the present day.
2026 will be a fascinating year, with great opportunities to join the International Moth Lowriders. And there hasn't even been mention of the stunning all carbon Magnum 6, soon to emerge from Ian Ridge's shed, nor the growing European links, let alone that the Ashes will be up for grabs with a group planning to attend the Worlds in Perth in November 2026.
Overall Results:
| Pos | Div | Sail No | Helm | Club | PY | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | Pts |
|---|
| 1st | 1 | 4043 | Martin Harrison | Royal Victoria yacht club | 980 | ‑3 | ‑1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 2nd | 1 | 5245 | Kevin Hope | Notts county sailing club | 980 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ‑3 | ‑4 | 3 | 3 | 11 |
| 3rd | 1 | 3175 | Nigel Williams | Bartley | 980 | 2 | (RET) | 5 | 4 | 3 | 2 | (RET) | 16 |
| 4th | 1 | 3112 | Katie Hughes | Loch Lomond | 980 | 7 | (RET) | ‑8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 17 |
| 5th | 1 | 4040 | John Edwards | Abersoch SC / Burton SC | 980 | ‑9 | (RET) | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 26 |
| 6th | 2 | 3909 | Lyndon Beasley | Greensforge | 1080 | 4 | (RET) | 4 | 7 | 7 | 7 | (RET) | 29 |
| 7th | 2 | 5258 | Andrew McGaw | GWSC | 1080 | ‑12 | 3 | ‑11 | 9 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 32 |
| 8th | 2 | K3887 | Ian Marshall | Bowmoor SC | 1080 | 6 | (RET) | 10 | 10 | 8 | 10 | (RET) | 44 |
| 9th | 1 | 4039 | Henry Walker | Nantwich&border sailing | 980 | ‑11 | (RET) | 9 | 11 | 10 | 9 | 6 | 45 |
| 10th | 2 | 3891 | Graham Hughes | Hayling Island | 1060 | 8 | (RET) | 6 | 8 | 6 | (DNC) | DNC | 46 |
| 11th | 1 | 4046 | Russell Wheeler | Isle of Sheppey Sailing Club | 980 | 5 | (RET) | 3 | 6 | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | 50 |
| 12th | 2 | 3613 | James Clancy | Desborough | 1080 | ‑13 | (RET) | 13 | 12 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 51 |
| 13th | 2 | 3941 | Martyn Denchfield | GWSC | 1060 | 10 | (RET) | 12 | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | 76 |
| 14th | 1 | FRA2022 | David Balkwill | SNO Nantes | 980 | 14 | (RET) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 86 |
| 15th | 1 | 3175 | Paul Hignett | Loch Lomond sailing club | 980 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 90 |
| 15th | 2 | GBR4688 | John Butler | Notts County SC | 1080 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 90 |
| 15th | 1 | 40 | Phil Henry | Draycote | 980 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 90 |
Handicap Results:
| Pos | Div | Sail No | Helm | Club | PY | R1 | R2 | R3 | R4 | R5 | R6 | R7 | Pts |
|---|
| 1st | 1 | 4043 | Martin Harrison | Royal Victoria yacht club | 980 | ‑5 | ‑1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| 2nd | 1 | 5245 | Kevin Hope | Notts county sailing club | 980 | 3 | 3 | 3 | ‑4 | ‑4 | 3 | 4 | 16 |
| 3rd | 1 | 3112 | Katie Hughes | Loch Lomond | 980 | 7 | (RET) | ‑9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 17 |
| 4th | 2 | 3909 | Lyndon Beasley | Greensforge | 1080 | 1 | (RET) | 2 | 3 | 5 | 7 | (RET) | 18 |
| 5th | 1 | 3175 | Nigel Williams | Bartley | 980 | 4 | (RET) | 6 | 5 | 3 | 2 | (RET) | 20 |
| 6th | 2 | 5258 | Andrew McGaw | GWSC | 1080 | ‑9 | 2 | ‑10 | 9 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 27 |
| 7th | 1 | 4040 | John Edwards | Abersoch SC / Burton SC | 980 | ‑10 | (RET) | 8 | 7 | 9 | 6 | 5 | 35 |
| 8th | 2 | K3887 | Ian Marshall | Bowmoor SC | 1080 | 2 | (RET) | 7 | 10 | 7 | 10 | (RET) | 36 |
| 9th | 2 | 3891 | Graham Hughes | Hayling Island | 1060 | 6 | (RET) | 5 | 6 | 6 | (RET) | RET | 41 |
| 10th | 1 | 4039 | Henry Walker | Nantwich&border sailing | 980 | 11 | (RET) | 11 | ‑12 | 11 | 9 | 6 | 48 |
| 11th | 2 | 3613 | James Clancy | Desborough | 1080 | 12 | (RET) | ‑13 | 11 | 10 | 8 | 7 | 48 |
| 12th | 1 | 4046 | Russell Wheeler | Isle of Sheppey Sailing Club | 980 | (DNC) | (DNC) | 4 | 8 | DNC | DNC | DNC | 66 |
| 13th | 2 | 3941 | Martyn Denchfield | GWSC | 1060 | 8 | (RET) | 12 | (RET) | DNC | DNC | DNC | 74 |
| 14th | 1 | FRA2022 | David Balkwill | SNO Nantes | 980 | 13 | (RET) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 85 |
| 15th | 1 | 3175 | Paul Hignett | Loch Lomond sailing club | 980 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 90 |
| 15th | 2 | GBR4688 | John Butler | Notts County SC | 1080 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 90 |
| 15th | 1 | 40 | Phil Henry | Draycote | 980 | (DNC) | (DNC) | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | DNC | 90 |
