NEYYSA North Region Youth & Junior Team Racing Championships 2026 at Ripon Sailing Club
by Fiona Spence 30 Sep 13:05 BST
19-20 September 2026
Bottom Hats take the 2026 title after a weekend of close team racing
The annual North East & Yorkshire Youth Sailing Association (NEYYSA) Regional Team Racing Championships returned to Ripon Sailing Club on 19 and 20 September, bringing together young sailors from clubs and schools across the North for a weekend of two-boat team racing in RS Fevas.
The event is designed to provide an opportunity for sailors new to team racing to learn the skills and tactics while giving more experienced teams the chance to test themselves before heading off to some national events in October. With coaching and umpiring support throughout the weekend, the event once again provided plenty of opportunity for sailors to develop their team racing skills, while the shore-based commentary helped spectators follow the action taking place just in front of the club.
The event had 23 teams competing, with sailors aged 8 - 18. Teams came from across the North region including Lancashire Youth Sailing, Windermere School, Waterpark Coniston, South Shields SC, Sunderland YC, Otley SC and the Yorkshire Dales SC.
The event was also supported by Leeds & York University sailing clubs. Leeds ran the galley and put on a fantastic breakfast & lunch offer each day which was appreciated by all, York provided the event coaches as well as one of the umpires. NEYYSA is very proud of their continuing relationship with both universities and looks forward to more collaboration in the future.
Saturday's racing began in a building and gusty wind. With so many teams and only two boats required for each match, the kSail team racing system was used to manage the schedule and scoring. As the day progressed, so did the wind speed and there were quite a lot of capsizes due to the large gusts.
Race officer Jamie Kerslake had an strong team of regional umpires and experienced event team members, supported by parents who took turns in the start and finish boats, beach and on the ferry boats. NEYYSA is committed to upskilling volunteers as well as sailors and the volunteer rota for this event ensured everyone had the chance to see different areas of event management and organisation.
Also on the committee boat was 9-year-old Charlie Webster from Delph SC; Charlie kept the start-boat team organised throughout the weekend after quickly grasping how the start sequence, sound and visual signals and the race schedule all worked. Thanks Charlie!
Keeping with the theme of learning new skills and ensuring the region is populated with event management volunteers, the event had 5 newly qualified young umpires acting as 2nd umpires. All of them went through the on-line umpire training session during the winter and are now earning their umpire stripes.
Saturday results confirmed the pre-event expectation that the battle for the Gold fleet was going to be closely fought. LYS Cadets made the strongest start, winning all seven of their opening races, while mINEOS were also unbeaten from six races. LYS Sentinel, Goofy Goobers and Bottom Hats were also firmly in the hunt at the top of the leaderboard.
For many of the sailors, however, Saturday was about considerably more than simply collecting race wins. Team racing is all about communication, positioning and thinking several moves ahead, and the coaching support available throughout the weekend gave teams the chance to discuss their races and try new tactics as the day progressed and the three coaches on shore were kept busy sharing insights and suggestions.
Several teams were team racing for the first time, including South Shields SC/Sea Scouts and Roker Dolphins who made full use of the coaches. Notable mention to sailor Alex Welfare who had to withdraw his team on the Friday night and stepped in to support Waterpark Coniston when they had a sailor unavailable last minute, Alex is an experienced team racer and coached and supported both Coniston teams to help them deliver their best performance yet at the event.
Many of the older sailors had inexperienced crews onboard, including Ripon's Oscar Trenholme with 9-year-old William Sanders and Derwent Reservoir's Rose Versey who had 9-year-old William Trenell at the front end in his first ever race! Bottom Hats' crews were aged 8 and 10 respectively although they have done quite a bit of team racing now. Dales Dingbats also had inexperienced team racer crews, as did some of the Lancashire Youth Sailing teams.
By the end of Saturday 86 races had been completed and as the boats were brought ashore the teams were split into gold, silver and bronze flights for Sunday's racing. Sailors enjoyed a buffet pizza and salad meal together in the clubhouse and after an enjoyable evening socialising together most headed to bed early after a tiring day.
Sunday saw a sunny but chilly start with another brisk wind. Gold/silver/bronze fleet sailors had separate coach briefings to help focus on skill development. The boats then launched and many parents discovered that team racing is a stressful spectator sport thanks to the seat-of-your-pants racing provided right in front of the clubhouse.
Bottom Hats and Dales Dingbats both finished the seven-race series with five wins apiece and the results being decided on points and/or tie-breaks. mINEOS had a less consistent day winning 3 races although they beat eventual winners Bottom Hats but suffered at the hands of LYS Cadets and LYS Odyssey. Waterpark Coniston 2 enjoyed their day in gold fleet but their lack of experience compared to the other teams showed. Goofy Goobers was a team of ex-crews from last year and sailed well but lack of consistency meant they had 3 wins at the end of the round.
LYS Cadets finished third with four wins, just ahead of LYS Sentinel on the tie-break with LYS Odyssey and Waterpark Coniston 2 completing the Gold fleet.
The Silver fleet was dominated by Windermere Wavebreakers, who produced a remarkable seven wins from seven races to take the fleet victory. Dales Darts were close behind with six wins, while DRSC Wey Aye Cap'n finished third with four. East Coast Orcas and Waterpark Coniston 1 both finished on three wins, with the tie-break placing East Coast Orcas fourth. Windermere Starboard Strikers and Ripon Rotters Red both finished on two wins, while Roker Dolphins completed the Silver fleet.
The Bronze fleet was equally competitive as sailors discovered the euphoric highs and emotional lows of team racing. South Shields A and LYS Vanguard both finished with five wins from six races, with South Shields A taking the flight on the tie-break. Ripon Rotters White finished third with four wins, followed by Otley Red Devils and Ripon Rotters Blue, both on three.
For the less experienced teams; the Bronze fleet provided a valuable opportunity to put the skills developed during the weekend into practice against teams of a similar level, while still providing plenty of competitive racing.
The strength and appeal of this event is not just measured by the final positions. For the more experienced teams it provides high-quality competition and an opportunity to develop sophisticated team racing tactics with the support of coaches, while for newer sailors it provides an accessible introduction to one of sailing's most exciting disciplines. The event also continues to demonstrate the depth of enthusiasm and talent in youth sailing across the North.
NEYYSA's regional team racing programme has developed significantly since the inaugural event at Ripon in 2023, when just seven teams competed. The continued demand for places and the range of clubs and organisations now participating demonstrate the growing interest in team racing across the region and bodes well for continued success and enjoyment in the future.
A huge thank you goes to Ripon Sailing Club and all the volunteers, coaches, umpires and supporters who made the weekend possible, as well as K-Sails' on-going support, wisdom and sage advice along with all the clubs and organisations who continue to support NEYYSA's extensive event programme by providing boats, equipment and expertise.
For more information about NEYYSA and our varied event programme, please check out www.neyysa.org
Results:
1. Bottom Hats
2. Dales Dingbasts
3. LYS Cadets
4. LYS Sentinel
5. Goofy Goobers
6. mINEOS
7. LYS Odyssey
8. Waterpark Coniston 2
9. Windermere Wavebreakers
10. Dales Darts
11. DRSC Wey Aye Cap'n
12. East Coast Orcas
13. Waterpark Coniston 1
14. Windermere Starboard Strikers
15. Ripon Rotters Red
16. Roker Dolphins
17. South Shields A
18. LYS Vanguard
19. Ripon Rotters White
20. Otley Red Devils
21. Ripon Rotters Blue
22. South Shields B
23. Windermere Portside Pioneers