Hadron H2 Open at Chichester Yacht Club

Chichester Hadron H2 Open © CYC

A total of 24 Hadron H2's gathered for the second open meeting of 2026, hosted at Chichester Yacht Club over the weekend of 18th & 19th April. Visitors were warmly welcomed by the 11 local H2s and as always CYC put on a great event both on and off the water.

Saturday saw wall to wall sunshine and a light breeze out of the west which over the course of the day swung as the sea breeze kicked in. This resulted in what could kindly be called a "shifty day with holes" but lead to some very tight racing across the fleet. Local helm and class newcomer Tim Blackmore used his local knowledge and boat speed to win two of the three races but he was chased hard by Tim Garvin who also took a win and by Steph Orton in her fathers H2 who was fast all day due to a mix of skill, local knowledge and lighter weight than the average H2 sailor to great advantage.

Steph Orton enjoyed sailing her father's H2 at the Chichester Hadron H2 Open - photo © CYC

The H2 fleet has evolved significantly over the last few years and a small mistake was punished by loss of places across the fleet. The third race on Saturday saw the strongest and steadiest conditions as the sea breeze was now winning its battle providing conditions that the heavier helms could enjoy and use to chase down the lightweights. The H2 carries a wide range of weights and helms ranged from 60 kg through in excess of 110kg placed in the top three finishers in a number of the races.

We retired to the club to review photos and video taken by Richard Bowers who provided excellent feedback especially on rig set up in the lighter conditions and many of us were frantically scribbling notes and making changes in the boat park as the sun set. As is becoming normal for the fleet we all had dinner together on Saturday night and swapped stories which is a big part of H2 ownership for many of us.

Tim Blackmore wins the Chichester Hadron H2 Open - photo © CYC

Sunday dawned with a threat of even lighter winds out of the North which had put a few off competing for a second day but we managed to get a further two races on Sunday with significant variations in wind strength and direction as the northerly and sea breeze did their dance. Testing conditions for all but the "cream always rises to the top" and in the end the open was won convincingly by Tim Blackmore with Tim Garvin in second and Richard Leftley in third. The class gets back together for its Inland Championship at Queen Mary on 16th & 17th May.

Overall Results: