Abersoch Mirror Week 2026 Day 4

by A Long-Lens Spectator 20 Aug 17:57 BST 17-21 August 2026

The Great 11:00 Optimism (Phil vs Reality, Round 7)

The forecast promised strengthening winds, so PRO Phil - armed with hope, a whistle, and the kind of determination usually reserved for people assembling flat-pack furniture - announced that racing would begin at 11:00 sharp.

The Mirror fleet responded with the traditional Abersoch message: "We hear you, Phil... but we're going to do something else."

Three general recalls later, the starting line resembled a Mirror-shaped motorway pile-up.

So out came the black flag, the PRO's equivalent of saying: "Right. Enough. Behave."

It's rarely used in family weeks, but today it was as essential as suncream, snacks, and the ability to pretend you meant to tack there.

Finally, on the fourth attempt, the fleet burst free like a flock of red dinghies escaping captivity.

They delivered a cracking race — the kind sailors will retell during dark winter nights when they need to remember joy, sunshine, and the time they didn't capsize.

Committee Boat Pura Vida: The Floating Office of Excellence

The crew aboard Pura Vida were, as ever, a masterclass in calm professionalism.

They recorded finishers:

• on paper,
• on dictaphone,
• and possibly by psychic intuition.

Their diligence is so impressive that they now know every boat intimately — especially the ones that come very close.

Some Mirrors approach the Committee Boat with the enthusiasm of a Labrador greeting visitors.

Huge thanks to Julian, Julia, Pete, Ed, and PRO Phil, who have spent so much time staring at Mirrors that they may start seeing them in their sleep.

Photography Corner: Pete Hawkins, Sniper With a Camera

Yet again, Pete Hawkins delivered some absolute belters — the kind of photos that make you think:

"Wow, Mirror sailing is actually quite glamorous... until you zoom in and see the facial expressions."

His shots capture everything: the spray, the chaos, the heroism, the moments of "why is the boom doing that," and the occasional sailor who appears to be shouting at the wind itself.

If there were a prize for "Most Consistently Excellent Documentation of Mild Maritime Mayhem," Pete would win it every year.

Gold Fleet

1st — McGovern family in Lightning McQueen
2nd — Charles family in Skittles — NEW ENTRY
3rd — Ted & Ian Dobson in Lightning Storm

And only a few pints behind (a typo, but also... accurate):
4th — Evelyn & Ben McGrane in Anna

Silver Fleet

1st — Lee, Harry & Jake Thomas in Maverick
2nd — Alistair Dickson and crew in Simply Gorgeous
3rd — Christian, Xanthe & Ottille in Elsa

Family Chaos and Rib Envy

Crew swaps continue to be wildly popular. Some say it's for tactical reasons. Others say it's to get a ride on Harvey and Felix's extremely smart rib.

A few whisper that tall Felix is the real attraction — the Mirror Week equivalent of a celebrity cameo.

Tonight: The Disco of Destiny

The legendary Thursday disco kicks off at 6pm. DJ Lionel will be in the house, armed with beats, questionable transitions, and the ability to make adults forget they have knees.

Please:

• dance,
• enjoy yourself,
• show some shapes,
• but absolutely no Dad dancing.

The Safety Team cannot be held responsible for the emotional damage.

Correspondent's Closing Note

Your correspondent was reporting from a slightly more distant vantage point today — binoculars, imagination, and gossip doing most of the heavy lifting.

But fear not: I'll be back on the course side for the finale tomorrow, ready to witness every tack, every recall, every heroic recovery, and every moment of "why is that boat over there."

Find out more at www.scyc.co.uk/event/mirror-week-2026

Results after Day 4:

Pos	Sail No	Boat Name	Helm	Crew	Club	Fleet	Rig	R1	R2	R3	R4	R5	R6	R7	R8	Pts
1st	70920	Lightening McQueen	Matthew McGovern	Albie / Bodhi McGovern	SSSC	Gold	bermuda	9	1	5	[11]	4	2	4	5	30
2nd	70961	Skittles	Nicholas Charles	Seb Charles	Netley	Gold	bermuda	[12]	9	7	7	7	3	3	1	37
3rd	71053	Lightning Storm	Ted Dobson	Ian Dobson	HISC	Gold	bermuda	6	5	[24]	14	11	1	1	2	40
4th	71038	Anna	Evelyn McGrane	Ben McGrane	Netley SC	Gold	bermuda	2	[26]	10	10	3	9	5	7	46
5th	70493	Pocket Rocket	Paul Hayden	Evangeline / Adrian Hayden	Lymington Town Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	1	12	2	1	[13]	12	8	11	47
6th	70719	Fireflash	Ross Kearney	Freddie / Elliott Kearney	RNIYC	Gold	bermuda	[14]	6	1	12	5	8	14	8	54
7th	7072	Squirt	Ally Potts	Nicole Potts	Netley SC / Burghfield SC	Gold	bermuda	18	2	[19]	5	2	4	16	19	66
8th	71059	Ariel	Jonny McGovern	Milo / Nell / Betsy McGovern	Port Dinorwic	Gold	bermuda	[19]	10	3	8	8	15	19	3	66
9th	70936	Moana	Paul Davies	Samuel	RHYC	Gold	bermuda	17	4	6	[18]	10	11	2	18	68
10th	70922	Wave Catcher Too	Toby Wincer	Hedley Wincer	Hayling Island SC	Gold	bermuda	3	[28]	12	17	9	7	13	10	71
11th	71078	Stitch	Simon Potts	Hayley Potts	Netley / Burghfield	Gold	bermuda	7	15	9	9	14	5	12	[24]	71
12th	70721	Ruby Papa	JP Marks	Clara / Ellie Marks	Dalgety Bay	Gold	bermuda	[24]	14	23	3	6	14	7	6	73
13th	70639	Whistler	Neil Baker	Fionn / Rory Baker	Derwent Reservoir Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	5	3	14	4	12	[74 (UFD)]	21	16	75
14th	71072	Zog	Tom Halhead	Sam Halhead	Llandegfedd SC	Gold	bermuda	[21]	13	8	6	17	13	6	14	77
15th	71045	Amazon	David Steed	Alex Steed	Netley SC	Gold	bermuda	20	34	13	2	1	6	15	[74 (DNC)]	91
16th	71042	Marmalade	Adam McGovern	Betsy McGovern	Hollingworth Lake SC	Gold	bermuda	10	8	18	13	23	[25]	20	15	107
17th	70667	Instant Custard	Joe Adams	William Adams	Oxford Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	13	20	4	21	21	[30]	10	22	111
18th	71065		Chris Martin		Burghfield sailing club	Gold	bermuda	4	30	16	22	16	[74 (UFD)]	9	20	117
19th	71081	'‑	Tim Freeman	Joshua Freeman	Netley Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	8	7	26	24	26	22	[37]	30	143
20th	70806	Cheetah	Tom Crompton	Theo / Ralph Crompton	Scyc	Gold	bermuda	28	11	25	25	28	[31]	22	12	151
21st	70224	Little Wing	Chris Massey	Annabelle Massey	Hollingworth Lake Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	[36]	31	32	19	29	18	11	13	153
22nd	70072	Poseidon	Nikki Noble	Ernie / Abel Noble	Spinnaker yacht club	Gold	bermuda	16	16	15	[34]	25	20	32	31	155
23rd	71060	Snowdrop	Keira McGrane	Roz McGrane	Netley SC	Gold	bermuda	15	[32]	31	16	27	19	26	32	166
24th	70834	Sugar 'n' Spice	Summer Greenland	Katie Archer	HISC / RTYC	Gold	bermuda	29	33	11	35	[39]	10	25	27	170
25th	71069	Scribble	James Eastbury	Felix / Jemima Eastbury	Gresford SC	Gold	bermuda	23	44	37	28	24	[74 (RET)]	18	4	178
26th	69746	Flash Bang Wallop	Hannah Blore	Hester Bonner	Gresford Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	32	17	20	27	32	[34]	27	26	181
27th	71074	Dory	Julia West	Hazel West	Leigh and Lowton SC	Gold	bermuda	31	21	[36]	26	19	29	28	28	182
28th	71027	Maverick	Lee Thomas	Harry / Jake Thomas	Southport	Silver	bermuda	[42]	36	38	36	18	16	17	29	190
29th	70525	Warhorse	Scott Bonner	Erin Bonner	Homeless	Gold	bermuda	35	22	22	29	41	21	31	[74 (DNC)]	201
30th	71083	Tangfastic	Rupert Searle	Richard Searle	Netley / Hamble River	Gold	bermuda	26	37	27	23	37	35	[39]	23	208
31st	69912	Simply Gergeous	Alistair Dickson		RAYC	Silver	bermuda	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	21	40	22	17	24	17	215
32nd	71084	Wilder Lawless	Lucy Searle	Rosy Searle	Netley / Hamble River	Gold	bermuda	27	39	29	32	38	37	35	[74 (DNC)]	237
33rd	70987	Elsa	Christian Humphrey	Xanthe / Ottilie Humphrey	Netley Sailing Club	Silver	bermuda	[74 (DNS)]	NC)	28	20	15	24	NC)	9	244
34th	71073	NoLo	Dave Kent	Lowenna Lowry‑Kent	Hooe Point Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	30	[48]	30	39	48	39	36	25	247
35th	71062	PAUL	Kirsty Mitchell	Harry / Louie Mitchell	Leigh and Lowton Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	38	27	17	30	30	36	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	252
36th	71079	Panther	Ben Crompton	Isla / Raf / Luca	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	33	25	34	[74 (DNC)]	34	27	29	NC)	256
37th	70703	CrackerJack	Guy Jackson	Bella Jackson	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	11	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	NC)	33	23	23	21	259
38th	71070	Pougleizer	Sam Smith	Freddie Nelson & Harriet	Blessington Sailing Club	Silver	bermuda	[46]	45	40	38	31	40	30	36	260
39th	70557		Ryan Coulter	Caroline Coulter	Sligo Yacht Club	Silver	bermuda	43	38	[47]	37	40	38	33	35	264
40th	70513	Honeychu	Jewels Vass		Reading SC	Silver	bermuda	[52]	18	45	42	43	45	44	37	274
41st	70810	Smarties	Edith Charles	Juliet Charles	Netley	Gold	bermuda	51	24	33	33	35	28	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	278
42nd	70737	Swallow	Louise Steed	Daniel Steed	Netley Sailing Club	Gold	bermuda	34	47	35	31	42	44	45	[74 (DNC)]	278
43rd	71063	Viper	Chris Robinson	Alex Robinson	Royal Windermere YC	Silver	bermuda	[74 (OCS)]	42	39	15	20	26	ET)	ET)	290
44th	70724	Captain Underpants	Steve Chatten	Max / Kit Chatten	Netley SC	Gold	bermuda	37	19	43	41	52	[74 (DNC)]	42	NC)	308
45th	NED 7	Rumble Fish	Georgina / Matt Bromley	Sebastian Bromley	Budworth SC	Silver	bermuda	41	41	41	43	36	33	[74 (BFD)]	ET)	309
46th	57235	Jaffa cake	Awel & Kate Williams	Awel / Efa Williams	Clwb Hwylio Y Felinheli	Silver	bermuda	45	35	42	[74 (DNC)]	44	32	38	NC)	310
47th	70837	NA	Lucy Coulter	Dara Coulter	Sligo Yacht Club	Silver	bermuda	49	40	46	44	49	49	34	[74 (DNC)]	311
48th	70899	Maverick	Edward Hodgetts	William / Henry Hodgetts	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	44	29	51	52	51	[55]	48	41	316
49th	69513	Bluebelle	Molly Nelson	Hannah O'Meara	Blessington Sailing CLub	Silver	bermuda	61.5	62.5	44	45	46	43	[74 (DNC)]	33	335
50th	66918	Spidey	Jemima Fildes	Bertie / Charlie Fildes	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	25	54	50	47	53	62	49	[74 (UFD)]	340
51st	70972	Surfs Up	Ron Vass		Reading SC	Silver	bermuda	50	23	61	46	63	51	51	[74 (DNC)]	345
52nd	70816	Racing Demon	Tom Leach	Neil / Arthur Leach	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	48	51	49	49	54	42	55	[74 (DNC)]	348
53rd	58625	Topaz	George Edwards	Teddy Allison	SCYC	Silver	gaff	59	52	58	53	[60]	52	40	38	352
54th	64050	Scamp	Kaye Evans	Freya / Elijah Evans	WLYC	Silver	gaff	56	43	59	48	57	48	43	[74 (DNC)]	354
55th	23109	Globbits	George Coop	Nathaniel Pritchard Jones	SCYC	Silver	gaff	61.5	46	62	50	47	47	41	[74 (DNC)]	354.5
56th	56985	Chickaletta	Malcolm Marsden	Joshua Robinson / Charlotte/Oliver Kirby	Royal Windermere YC	Silver	gaff	60	49	52	51	45	41	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	372
57th	AUS 70274	Polar Bear	Paul Traill	Saoirse Traill	HISC	Silver	bermuda	57	55	[67]	60	67	58	47	34	378
58th	70562	A Close Shave	Reuben Nelson	Lena O'Meara	Blessington Sailing Club	Silver	bermuda	55	64	48	54	55	53	50	[74 (DNC)]	379
59th	70967	Little ‘L’	Cooke Family	Harry / Lucy / James / Felicity Cooke	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	39	53	54	56	56	50	[74 (RET)]	NC)	382
60th	708061	YoYo	Ben/Clare Smith	Florence Smith	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	64	50	53	[74 (DNC)]	50	46	46	NC)	383
61st	69357	Thetis	Charlie Merrick	Oscar / Louie Merrick	Budworth	Silver	gaff	54	61	60	58	[64]	61	53	45	392
62nd	70339	kamikaze	Caoimhe Schofield	Caitlin Schofield	BLSC	Silver	bermuda	47	66	57	59	[68]	63	58	43	393
63rd	71018	Irene III	Wilfred Chantler	Callum / Ottilia / Hugo Chantler	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	[68]	65	66	62	58	54	56	39	400
64th	70002	Crazy Cat	Henry and Jack Lucas	Poppy Lucas	SCYC	Silver	gaff	66	58	[69]	57	66	57	52	46	402
65th	44372	Pink Rainbow	Leo Mitton	George Haines		Silver	gaff	[67]	57	65	64	65	60	54	42	407
66th	55947	Hei Hei	Megan Turner	Isobelle / Thomas Langsdale	SCYC	Silver	gaff	69	62.5	64	61	61	56	[74 (DNC)]	40	413.5
67th	70240	Tango	Charles HInton	Alexander Hinton	SCYC	Silver	gaff	65	67	[68]	63	62	59	57	44	417
68th	70861	Dee 1	Paul Anderson	Leah Anderson	Dee Sailing Club	Silver	bermuda	40	60	55	55	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	NC)	NC)	432
69th	7105	Blue Belle	Nick Hawkins	Edward / Jessica Hawkins	N/A	Silver	bermuda	63	56	56	[74 (RET)]	59	NC)	NC)	NC)	456
70th	54453	Elsa	Matt Mee	Annabel / Ben / Oliver	Burghfield / Red Wharf Bay	Silver	bermuda	22	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	NC)	ET)	NC)	NC)	NC)	466
71st	70862	Dee 2	Duncan swinson	Oliver	Dee sailing club	Silver	bermuda	58	59	63	[74 (RET)]	NC)	NC)	NC)	NC)	476
72nd	70691	Squid	Jamie Uren	Alice Uren	SCYC	Silver	bermuda	53	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	NC)	ET)	NC)	NC)	NC)	497
73rd	70989	Dead Red	Mark Richmond	Frank Richmond	Trearddur Bay Sailing Club	Silver	bermuda	[74 (DNC)]	NC)	NC)	NC)	NC)	NC)	NC)	NC)	518