National 12 Open at Salcombe Yacht Club

Torrential shower during the Salcombe National 12 Open © Holly Jacobs

Biblical rain showers, seaweed everywhere, and frequent fleet park-ups = a thoroughly enjoyable bank holiday weekend.

Salcombe is my favourite venue for a variety of reasons (ice cream, mostly), and despite not having picture-perfect weather (two full days of rain), we all agreed that the National 12 class had a fantastic three days on the water.

We started Saturday morning under grey clouds and with a somewhat frightening briefing: three separate named ferries that could crash into you at any time, and a vague reference to a fairway that resulted in instant DSQ. The Salcombe newbies were looking nervous, but after some consultation of harbour maps and Salcombe regulars, they were slightly reassured.

Just prior to launching, the heavens opened and Salcombe felt as though it had completed its annual rainfall in the next ten minutes. The lucky ones found boats to shelter beneath; the unlucky ones were soaked through. Even wearing a wetsuit didn't feel like adequate protection from the downpour.

Race 1 was out to sea. I have only experienced this a handful of times here and was apprehensive... thinking back to times drifting for an hour outside the estuary entrance meant I was sceptical, to say the least.

However, I was very much mistaken and wrong to ever question the expertise of our race officer. The wind outside the estuary was excellent, and we got two proper, consistent beats. The Solos managed to muddle up their course, but the N12s remembered correctly and finished a chilly but exciting race, before heading in for hot showers and shelter. We rounded off Saturday with a delicious yacht club meal in a packed dining room.

Salcombe National 12 Open - photo © Lucy Burn

Sunday was another grey day and a rare (for Salcombe) two-race schedule. The Race Officer opted for estuary sailing, and the wind seemed to be filling in nicely.

The first beat of Race 1 started competitively, with Nick and Rory Bubb sailing into the lead and building a comfortable margin to mark 1, before attempting to round it to starboard, which surprised everybody. After shouts from the fleet, they quickly realised their mistake and had to go about the awkward business of unwinding themselves before re-rounding much further back.

Salcombe National 12 Open - photo © Lucy Burn

As it turned out, the first beat was entirely irrelevant. The wind died across the estuary, creating a car park of RS400s, National 12s, and Yawls - all of which had started ten minutes apart. The fleets drifted together in Mill Bay, trying not to go backwards; John and Katy Meadowcroft (in a Yawl) even managed to drift onto a mooring. Almost every 12 had a turn at leading, but Ed Willett and Sarah found the breeze first and broke away, establishing a comfortable lead through the harbour. Tom and Isobel, along with Antony and Jo, were next to get going as the breeze slowly filtered back in to resume a classic Salcombe race.

We had a speedy lunch on Smalls Beach before the second race. In both races, timing the channel crossing correctly, or sticking close to the East Portlemouth shore, was crucial. Christian and Seb Day executed this best, shooting into a huge lead. The race became very spread out, and although they sailed extremely well, they were eventually hunted down by Tom and Isobel, who went on to win.

Salcombe National 12 Open - photo © Lucy Burn

That afternoon, the sun made its first appearance of the weekend - and I had my first ice cream. We were able to sit out on the yacht club terrace, where we heard the dramatic story of an apprehended shoplifter before heading inside for Fran's N12 supper. It was a great, sociable evening with N12 sailors past, present, and future all in attendance.

Our final day began looking highly unpromising before breaking into bright sunshine, a decent breeze, and a stellar Salcombe day. The race stretched to nearly two hours, but the warmth and unusually consistent wind through the Bag made it enjoyable throughout. It was followed by well-deserved ice cream and an excellent yacht club BBQ while awaiting the prize-giving.

Salcombe National 12 Open - photo © Lucy Burn

Tom and Isobel Stewart won the event, followed by Antony and Jo Gifford, with Jon Ibbotson and Charlotte Stewart in third.

Event Stats:

• Yawl mizzen sails I personally watched fall down - 2
• Ice creams eaten (collectively) - 25+
• Times the windward mark was rounded to starboard - 1
• Estimated weed collected on rudders - 8kg
• Times run aground (fleet total) - 14+
• Fun had - loads

Overall Results: