RS200 Cornish Championships 2026 at Restronguet Sailing Club

RS200 Cornish Championships at Restronguet © Clare Hallam

The sun was shining, temperatures were soaring, and the Carrick Roads were glimmering - the stage was set for a perfect weekend of boating in Cornwall!

Fifteen RS200s lined up on the shore in front of Restronguet SC, sails were hoisted, and the delightful smell of bacon sandwiches wafted out across the beach. Competitors had travelled from as far afield as Carsington Water SC to attend the renowned Cornish Championships, now in its fourth time of running. Now, all that was required was a little wind.

With a light breeze forecast, Race Officer Chris White was keen to get under way and make the most of what North-Westerly gradient breeze existed, leading the fleet out toward Messack Point and laying a course nice and true to current breeze. The course presented sailors with a series of choices: to sit in the tide, and claim the greater wind speed, or to slip out of the adverse tide into the lighter breeze.

Pairing Woodworth and Simpson (who was enjoying his first ever weekend of 200 racing) knew the answer, pushing hard to the left of the beat and exiting the tidal channel. Their decisiveness saw them to the windward mark in second place, slipping around just behind other local pairing Hallam and Hallam. Following this, the boats came in and rounded the windward mark thick and fast, everything was to play for and the whole fleet was tied by a piece of string!

But, things were not so simple in this race. The wind rapidly dropped in strength, and boats were taken with the tide, and in a surprising turn of events eventually struggling to make it to the leeward mark.

Hallam and Hallam held onto the lead, followed closely by Woodworth and Simpson, who split at the gate to push back out left to their previously well-performing side of the course. Brother and sister Beverly-Jones pairing were in pursuit, shortly followed by the Webbers, with the rest of the pack hot on their heels in agonisingly slow speed tight-manoeuvre situations!

Then all things changed again. Woodworth and Simpson, who had been looking strong, were now stopped dead in the water. The Webbers had snuck past Hallam and Hallam, managing to sail around the outside of the pair that had reached one of the many, inevitable holes on the race course of that day.

The wind receded, and action paused. What would happen next? Where would the wind come from? Who would get it first? The answer to this question was Tregaskes and Banks, who hoisted their spinnaker on the beat and proceeded to cruise straight up the ladder lines, joining the front pack and taking the temporary lead. One thing was for sure, in this racing, no body was to be counted out, at any moment!

The first race concluded with a tight beat to the finish, with Webber and Webber taking line honours, closely followed by Cramp and Jones and Gurney and Pink, who had all made the most of the whacky changes in wind direction!

RS200 Cornish Championships at Restronguet - photo © Clare Hallam

Now, with a slightly more steady Southerly breeze set in, Race 2 got under way. Quick out the blocks again were Woodworth and Woodworth (yes, the helm was swapped out for race 2)! Woodworth and Woodworth led the fleet out to the left side, with Brown and Strugnell, and Webber and Webber closely following. Also in the mix was the Beverly-Jones pairing, displaying their blistering pace in the gentle conditions, despite taking a path battling the tide more so than those boats who went inshore up the beat!

Position changes in the pack were many and the light breeze on the downwind led to hot and tense moments, willing the boat to find some pace. Woodworth and Woodworth led from start to finish, giving a masterclass of defensive tactics to those who attempted to overhaul them.

Race 3 got under way promptly, with the breeze still in a southerly direction. This time, holes were larger, and the potential for snakes and ladders action was high! Brown and Strugnell were not caught out and left nothing to chance by leading the fleet from a comfortable distance, having win the pin end at the start, and sailing hard left up the beat.

The final race of the day lay ahead, and, with the tide having slackened, there was more opportunity for other paths to the windward mark to pay. This time, the Beverly-Jones paring sailed a masterclass, not only showcasing their superior speed, but also demonstrating their ability control the fleet form the lead position, and to make the most of the shifty winds to extend their lead. No mistakes made, and impeccable technique - not bad for their first ever RS200 event, and first time sailing together!

After a tight day of racing, the fleet returned to the shore, just in the nick of time, with the wind fading out behind them to leave the Carrick roads glassy and idyllic - an image of Cornish Paradise. And, what better welcome back ashore than an enormous cream tea (jam first)!

RS200 Cornish Championships at Restronguet - photo © Clare Hallam

Everything was to play for going into the second day of racing! Points were tight and two more races of snakes and ladders were scheduled.

Again, it was a tricky day to be race officer. Determined the wind would fill in, the fleet headed out to the race area, and, like magic, the wind materialised. Yes, it was patchy, and shifty, but it was wind nonetheless, and enough to race in! There was only one aim for the race: avoid the holes.

Initially, the boats who won the pin and went hard left looked to be in the money. And then they didn't any more, with the boats who started at the committee end looking strong and finding a puff of breeze. Webber and Webber came in at pace from the left milking every last bit of power from the lonely gust they managed to catch a ride on. Tregaskes and Banks then found something from the far right, moving in to join them at the mark in the front pack. Hallam and Hallam had played it safe tacking up the middle, arriving at the mark just ahead of the others.

But... then racing paused. The wind held its breath.

Kites were hoisted, and then dropped. All crews could do was turn their attention to the tide to work out how to maximise their drifting speed. Eventually, at the leeward mark, the wind arrived, and swung, providing a tense beat the finish. With five boats rounding the mark neck-in-neck, the winner of the event would be decided entirely on the final 50 metres of racing. Webber and Webber were not caught out here, arriving at the finish just inches ahead of Woodworth & Simpson. Tregaskes and Banks bagged third place in the race.

With no more wind materialising, the Race Officer called it a day, and the fleet returned to shore.

Webber and Webber were crowned RS200 Cornish National Champions! Woodworth and Woodworth / Simpson finished in second place with impressive displays of helming from both junior helms. The Beverly-Jones pairing finished in third showing everyone that new talent is on the rise from Restronguet! Watch this space.

It was great to see so many junior pairings attending this event. We hope that this will be the first of many for you all! Many thanks to Restronguet SC for hosting, for Chris White and the safety teams for the on-the-water operations, and to Kyle Brown for organising the event.

The next event on the SW Tour is on 19th July at Parkstone YC. We have heard that they have booked wind and sunshine in advance! We look forward to seeing you there.

RS200 Cornish Championships at Restronguet - photo © Clare Hallam

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