Event report by Jake Bowhay with Photos from Gus Cameron
Thirteen RS100s gathered at Chew Valley Lake Sailing Club for the 2026 edition of the RS100 Inland Championships, 14-15 March, joint with the RS400s and RS700s. This comes after the 2025 Inlands, also at Chew, were thwarted by low water levels. Thankfully, there would be no such issue this time round with areas of the UK recording one of the wettest Januarys on record, meaning the lake was close to 100% capacity (up from a low of 36%).
Day 1
Saturday morning brought brilliant sunshine and glassy waters as the fleet rigged up. By the time the fleet was ready to head out onto the water, a light but unstable breeze had established itself, making even the sail out to the race course somewhat of a challenge, with the breeze seeming to come from a multitude of directions. The fleet was treated to a practice start as a large right shift led to the first race being postponed in the final seconds of the start sequence; a relief for those left looking rather exposed at the committee boat end.
After a short delay, race 1 was underway with a clear start. Conditions were light and shifty, leading to dramatic gains and losses. Initially, it was those on the left who looked strongest; however, a late right shift allowed Bowhay to lead at mark one, followed by Thompson. Showing his relative inexperience in the fleet, Bowhay promptly almost capsized on the first gybe. This right shift held for the remainder of the race, making passing lanes few and far between. Despite this, Gregory and Wakefield showed their class to climb to second and third place respectively by the final mark. Keen to keep the leaders on their toes, the wind gods provided one last twist with a sudden wind shift that turned the final reach into a beat. Despite a near capsize from Bowhay, kites were hastily dropped and the final finishing order was Bowhay, closely followed by Gregory and Wakefield.
Race 2 brought an opportunity for the eagle-eyed race officer to catch a few unfortunate members of the fleet out. Smart and Bowhay both fell victim, having to return to restart the race. Meanwhile, Chew Commodore Jones was less fortunate, failing to realise he too was over the start line, nullifying what would have been his best result. The first beat was especially shifty with those on the right becalmed while those on the left continued to make good progress towards the first mark. In the end, it was Wakefield followed by Gregory at the finish, showing that even in such tricky conditions the cream rises to the top. Smart made a remarkable recovery to finish third, his best of the weekend, despite his earlier false start.
Mercifully, the wind stabilised for races 3 and 4, leading to some great racing to close out the day. Wakefield and Gregory proved untouchable, both collecting a first and second each. Back in the melee of the fleet, Bowhay managed two third places, chased hard by Smart, Jones, and Elmes. After a tough 5 hours on the water, the fleet returned to shore tired and dehydrated.
Day 2
Despite Rickards’ best attempts to deprive the fleet of their Sunday morning lie-in, racing was scheduled to resume at 10:30 on Sunday. The fleet (minus class chair Evans, who was reported to have overslept) arrived at a decidedly windier Chew Valley Lake. With a front bringing strong winds forecast for midday, the plan was to sneak in two races to complete the planned schedule. The forecast was such that words of advice like “don’t let the boat smell fear” and “think heavy thoughts” were heard in the boat park. With such contrasting conditions to the previous day, it remained to be seen if Wakefield and Gregory could retain their stranglehold on the front of the fleet or whether it would be the fleet heavyweights who would claim their retribution for the previous day’s light conditions.
The day’s race course was to be located just to the south of Little Denny, which, combined with south-westerly wind now gusting into the mid-twenties, made for an exhilarating/terrifying reach out to the start-line. Once out on the race course, competitors were greeted by short and steep chop that only added to the adverse conditions. Eager for the first race, many of the fleet headed upwind for a practice beat only to encounter the old adage: “What goes up must come down”. Unfortunately for many, including the author, before one can “come down”, you must first survive the bear away, which in an RS100 in twenty knots and steep chop is easier said than done! It was only Smart who braved hoisting his kite prior to the start, not once, but twice. This feat later led to him claiming to have “won the day” for reasons which will soon become apparent.
With the RS700s starting first, this gave time for some of the wiser members of the fleet (including front-runner Gregory) to return to shore. For those less wise, time to sample the water enjoyed by Bristol Water’s 1.2 million customers and reflect on how abruptly the non-slip ends as one moves to the very aft of the wings. Eventually, the warning signal was raised and a depleted fleet began to line up for a test of who could keep their carbon pointing towards the now grey skies. However, it was not to be as, in one final headache for the race officer Arky, it transpired the committee boat had come adrift and as such the race was postponed. A short battle between the volunteers on the committee boat and the now stuck anchor followed, during which the remaining members of the fleet collectively decided that discretion is the better part of valour and headed for the shore. While most limped home battered and bruised after over an hour of waiting, Smart and Wakefield both opted to put on a show for those watching from the clubhouse and hoisted their kites.
With no prospect of racing, the fleet retired to clubhouse to enjoy lunch and the prize giving. With only three points separating the podium, it was Wakefield who was crowned the worthy champion, closely followed by Gregory, with Chew local Bowhay rounding out the podium. See the full results here.
Of course, thanks must go to the small army of Chew volunteers who made the event run smoothly despite the trying conditions.
The RS100 fleet reconvenes once again at Chew Valley on the 18th April for a day of training. Next up on the Rooster National Tour is the popular fast-turnaround Harken Sprints at Rutland, 25/26 April, followed by POSH 9/10 May.
