Jono Leads Around The Cans

Gunfleet Sailing Club members took part in the race for the John Venables Trophy on Sunday 2 August 2026 with seventeen dinghies taking to the water.  The course for this race required the competitors to circumnavigate all the Club buoys whist returning to the AWS mark between each one, resulting in a fan-like sail in a clockwise direction.  Conditions proved to be ideal with a force 4 north-easterly wind, a gentle sea, and unbroken sunshine.

On a tight start line there was a dominance of starboard tacking craft as the fleet headed towards the shore on the beat up the coast to the Kingscliff buoy; Tim Dye in a Laser, and Ken Potts in his RS Aero, leading the way, with Potts the windward boat.  Just behind them was Ella Langfeldt in her RS Aero.  With the tide flooding it clearly paid dividends to stay close in and it was Potts that rounded the windward mark first, followed by Jono Dunnett in his Laser, and then Dye; John Tappenden and Robert Gutteridge just behind them in their RS Aeros.  It was then a run to AWS before a second beat, this time to the Lilley Farm buoy, with the top three positions remaining the same although further back places were switching; Lotte Langfeldt taking her RS Aero past he sister Ella, and Finley Taylor, in his new Laser, having got ahead of Gary Hollis in his Laser and starting to challenge Yvonne Gough’s Laser.  In amongst these was Chris Maloney in his Comet whilst Paul Stanton and Dave Ingle were battling it out in their RS Aeros.  After returning back to AWS it was a reach to Seaward and back before a broad reach to the Lilley Farm buoy.  Arlo Atkins was now well up the pecking order in his Laser and holding off Brian Allen in his RS Aero as the boats beat back to AWS before running to the Eastcliff buoy, back down the coast on a long run to the St. Michael’s mark, and finally an equally long beat back to the line.  On this last leg the helms worked really hard to gain the advantage as they groyne-hopped back to the Club.  Try as he might, Dye could not overtake Dunnett and once the handicaps had been applied it was Dunnett that claimed victory.

The John Venables Trophy:
1.    Laser – Jono Dunnett
2.    Laser – Tim Dye
3.    RS Aero – John Tappenden