Pyefleet Week 2026 A Resounding Success
Published 15:48 on 6 Aug 2026
Pyefleet Week 2026 proved the be a classic with fabulous weather, superb racing and great shoreside fun. With 117 boats racing daily the entry was up on recent years and it was fantastic to see competitors of all ages participating. It was also great to see so many visitors with crews from Dabchicks, Chipstead, Burghfield, Hickling Broad, Wivenhoe, King George, Weymouth and the North London Sailing Association joining the Brightlingsea Sailing Club and Colne Yacht Club locals. Racing was organised into nine fleets which were split across morning and afternoon sessions from a combination of the committee boat and club start lines.
The 15 strong Asymmetric Handicap included single handers, double handers and cats. After a terrific week long battle victory eventually went to Ben Clegg in his Musto Skiff, who pipped fellow Musto sailor Eddie Bridle for first place by just two points, while third place wend to John Payne and Josh Hunt's Formula 18.
It was fantastic to see the 14 strong Mirror fleet battling it out each day, with a mix of all cadet and adult/child teams the racing was incredibly close throughout the fleet. David and Freya Conlon were the most consistent performers of the week and sailed to a comfortable victory over David and Oliver Herbert, with Sam and Helena Caslin from Dabchicks SC taking third. BSC has a strong tradition of success in the Mirror Class and it is heartwarming to see the current crop of youngsters sailing so confidently and showing such promise for the future.
With seven entries the RS200 fleet was really closely matched. Tom and Isla Taylor-Jones ultimately got the upper hand by just two points. Behind them Emma and Trevor Appleton, and Nic Blower and Fin Appleton (son of Emma and Trevor) could only be separated on count back, with Emma and Trevor taking second and Nic and Fin third.
Todd Grady-Gales from Lancing SC gave the ten strong Solo fleet a run for their money, taking overall victory by two points from Steve Ede with Jarvis Simpson one further point back in third.
With their Centenary celebrations coming up in 2027, the Brightlingsea One Design Fleet numbers were back up this year with 9 boats racing and as always the competition was cutthroat. Pete and Tom Kyne and Stewart Worth were the standout team of the week, winning by an impressive five point margin. David Conlon, Fin Anderson and Jenson White took second, while a final race win gave Jo and Sally Harman and Derrick Gentry third overall.
The Cadet Handicap with 14 boats featured Topper 4.2s, Tera Sports, Topaz Unos, an ILCA4 and an Optimist. The podium places were all filled by visiting teams with the Topper 4.2 of Adam Gillow of Chipstead SC claiming the victor's laurels from King George SC's Sidney Mitchell, also in a Topper 4.2, while Joshua Gillow of Chipstead sailed his Optimist into third.
Burghfield SC's Clive Goodwin in his RS Aero 7 claimed victory by a single point in the 13 boat Fast Handicap, with Mary and Rupert Henderson-White second in their Merlin and the Scorpion of Simon and Fiona Gillow of Chipstead SC third.
The eight boat Parent & Child fleet was an all Mirror affair this year with some of our youngest sailors taking part in their first ever Pyefleet Week. Grandfather and grandaughter Dave Youngs and India Kendell proved to be the cream of the crop, beating Peter and Freddie Williams with Charlotte and Freddie Mumford in third.
The Slow Handicap Fleet was the largest of the week with 27 entrants including ILCA 7s, 6s and 4s, RS Feva XLs, a Tera Sport, Wayfarers and a Topaz Uno all vying for the podium. Steve Williams in an ILCA 7 took a clean sweep of victories to win the class handsomely from Richard Herbert, also in an ILCA 7 with Tom Taylor Jones's ILCA 6 third. This fleet also featured a number of cadet sailors, many of whom were racing from the committee boat for the first time. The work being put in by the sailors and the BSC Cadet coaching teams is really paying off and it was great to see all the young sailors in the fleet racing with confidence and putting in some great results.
The weather gods really shone on Brightlingsea for the week allowing all the scheduled races to be completed, thanks to the hard work and support of the volunteer race committees and RIB crews, without whom the week simply wouldn't be possible. The full results can be found on the pyefleetweek.com
The legendary Big Wednesday Race, which brings all the fleets together for a mass handicap start honouring the late Olympic Gold Medalist and all round Brightlingsea legend Reg White, saw some 45 boats come to the line for a blustery romp round the river. Some five decades ago Paul Aldridge took part in his first Pyefleet Week, and he proved that he's still got what it takes all these years later by claiming the race from fellow Solo Sailor Andy Bines, with Julie Eeles in her Aero 7 third. The first Cadet team to finish, in an impressive sixth overall, were Willow Cross and Katie Bees in a Mirror. The race was followed by the traditional Big Wednesday BBQ, which this year had a Greek theme, and then dancing until late to the Lost Gooseberries.
Ashore the club's volunteer galley and entertainment teams and bar and galley staff did sterling work from early morning breakfasts, through lunch and dinner and late into the evenings with fantastic food, drinks and partying each day. Socially the regatta kicked off with a Welcome Reception, and evenings featured the BOD Boules competition, a terrific talk by Round Britain and TransAtlantic rower Sam Gibbons, the always awesome Pyefleet Week Quiz, and Bollywood Bingo Night, and a fab afternoon of fun for kids of all ages on Wednesday, before it came to a close on Friday evening with a beachside prize giving followed by a superb set by our very own international rock star DJ Rosie!
The event was made possible thanks to the generous sponsorship of DeltaWave, Roofline Cladding & Solutions Ltd, Graham Eeles, Pontoon Provider, The Time Genie and Curtis Signs.
Pyefleet Week 2027 will take place from 1 to 6 August to mark your diaries and join us for the East Coasts best summer club regatta! Further information will be published at pyefleetweek.com in due course.
All images (C) Tim Bees
Last updated 16:10 on 6 August 2026
