Firefly Open, Saturday 25 April 2026

The sun shone, and there was a little wind. Perfect conditions for the Firefly Junior Cup, but a little on the flukey side for the Elizabeth Cup races. But all four of the planned races were held and the fleet was glorious on the Thames. Jono Pank & Chloe Harding won the Elizabeth Cup with three wins from three, with the remaining podium places hard fought over. Veronica Bickford followed in her brother's footsteps to claim the Junior Cup with an excellent display of helming. It was a terrific day, made all the better by the warm welcome provided by the volunteers on the day. In particular, we'd love to thank Nicky Chavasse and the crew in the kitchen for feeding us wonderfully throughout the day, Carolyne Vines for manning the registration desk, Rob and Peter on the patrol boat, and Tim Ginn in the box. It was a busy day, but the record fleet of 19 Fireflies had a great time.

Thank you Matt Dalton for overseeing the proceedings as race officer and for the summary.

For an amusing write-up, including the impressions of a visitor of sailing at Tamesis, please see Alex Baxter's article in Yachts & Yachting.

Elizabeth Cup top results:

Junior Cup results: