Norfolk Punt Open at the Norfolk Punt Club

Norfolk Punt first open meeting of 2026 at the Norfolk Punt Club © Em Francis

Norfolk Punt first open meeting of 2026 at the Norfolk Punt Club © Em Francis

The 9th and 10th of May saw the first Norfolk Punt open event of the year. Hosted by the Norfolk Punt Club, the weekend began on the Friday with a filming day for the documentary film being created about the class in the club's centenary year.

The filming day was attended by 14 punts with a range of designs from the class's history including 108-year-old Prawn. Organised by Gavin Smith and choreographed by Andrew Friend, the filming involved a number of race starts, tacks, gybes and spinnaker handling which gave the crews the chance to refresh their skills in perfect conditions ahead of the racing on the Saturday and Sunday.

When the racing began in earnest on Saturday morning, the fleet had swollen to 19 boats, the most at an open meeting for many years and a glowing endorsement of the health of the class. The glorious conditions gave the fleet three pulsating races including a long spinnaker run down the length of the Broad. Max Dixey in the Morrison-designed Jackdaw was able to utilise the long run most effectively and led for most of the race. Jackdaw could not however sufficiently shake off Charlie Stewart's newly-acquired Hardchine Snow Goose who won on handicap with Jackdaw second and Bart Sawyer in Cormorant third.

The second race start saw a big right shift which allowed the boats starting at the starboard end to round the windward mark without tacking. First to the mark was Jack Drew in Pipit but with a such a skinny lay that he was rolled by Jackdaw who led to the finish. Simon Clayton in the Traditional design Decoy was able stay close to enough to the leaders to win on handicap with Snow Goose in second and James Clarke's Wild Duck in third.

The third race saw Jackdaw first home again with a great battle over the water between Snow Goose and Cormorant. Charlie and Tom in Snow Goose sailed superbly again to win the race on handicap with Jackdaw second and Cormorant third. The class was treated to a wonderful and jovial party on the Saturday evening hosted by Rupert Redington and Bridget O'Brien.

Sunday presented a far greater challenge for the crews with 25 knot gusts manifesting as forecast. Norfolk Punts are already very overpowered boats carrying 49er-like sail areas but with narrow hulls and no wings or racks to create greater righting moment. It was hardly any surprise then that the two races on Sunday were littered with capsizes and swims.

Snow Goose again however showed her class to keep upright throughout and took two bullets to give her a perfect record minus the discard. Andrew Friend in Blackbird with fresh crew took second in both races with Jackdaw third in the first race and Wilum Johnston in Shoveller taking an excellent third in the final race after an attritional battle with Pipit.

Congratulations to Charlie Stewart in Snow Goose for winning the Ardea Trophy with Max Dixey in Jackdaw in second and Andrew Friend in Blackbird in third.

Overall Results: