Event Report

In pursuit of Sailing, fun and the ‘Leisure 17 Class – Two Day Cup’; by all accounts the Leisure 17 BIG WEEKEND 2025 was a great success.

The event over 2 days, saw a variety of conditions, testing all of the competitors.

With 15 boats registered for the L17 BIG WEEKEND, the buzz during the Saturday morning 8am registration was evident. 9am brief atop the slipway gave the competitors an overview of the day’s 3 races on a windward leeward course in Holm Bay

Race 1 – Saturday,  with 18 kts, gusting 25kts north / north westerly, saw a challenging start line and a mix of reefed and non-reefed boats. 1 boat DNC, 5 boats ‘Whiskey flagged’, 9 finishers, with John Patterson – Minstrel taking 1^st, Paul Grattage – Zerda 2^nd and Gareth Hampton – The Goose 3^rd.

Race 2  – Saturday, continued with strengthening winds, 5 Boats DNC, 1 boat retired, Matthew Patterson – Little Boat 1^st, John Patterson – Minstrel 2^nd, Gareth Hampton – The Goose 3^rd.

With racing finished for the day by the Race Officer, and race 3 postponed until Sunday morning, all retreated to the relative shelter of The Dorn. Once moored, helms and crew retreated to the clubhouse and enjoyed the company of one and other, comparing experiences of the day and engaged in social activities well into the night, in the comfort of Holm Bar.

Race 3 – Sunday morning, brought the challenge of little wind, sorting the sailor from the sailing enthusiast. 2 boats DNC, 2 boats Retired, Paul Grattage – Zerda 1^st, John Kelly – Little Bert 2^nd, Gareth Hampton – The Goose 3^rd.  

Race 4 – Sunday, saw a longer race around marks in the wider expanse of Strangford Lough, along with perfect sailing conditions of clear sunny skies and a steady 15kts of wind, making for a glorious day of competitive racing. With greater opportunity for varied approaches to the marks, pladdies and currents, with flukes from the land, the changing and jostling of positions continued throughout. On a finishing run, spinnakered and goose-winged Leisure 17s did battle right to the finish line. 1 Boat DNC, 1 Boat NSC, 1 boat retired, John Patterson – Minstrel 1^st, Gareth Hampton – The Goose 2^nd, Eddie McWatters – Bumble Bee 3^rd

All off the water by 4:30pm, the afternoon sun was enjoyed with refreshments and a splendid vista of the bay, southern Strangford Lough and Portaferry in the distance. The evening saw folks gathered for a dinner buffet followed by an awards ceremony supported by the sponsorship of prizes by:

Kingfisher Country Estate – Templepatrick, Ten Square Hotel – Belfast, Crusader Sails, Ramsey Sails, The Dufferin Inn – Killyleagh and North Down Marine

Overall event results:

John Patterson – Minstrel 1^st

Gareth Hampton – The Goose 2^nd

Paul Grattage – Zerda 3^rd

Eddie & Ruth McWatters – Bumblebee – Best Dressed

John Kelly – Wee Bert – Heart of a Lion

The event also attracted the attention and attendance of members of the German  Leisure 17 community, with sisters Ulrike and Gesa joining us in the capacity of Leisure 17 owners and of freelance journalists. The sisters will be producing various articles for multiple outlets addressing topics of; Sailing is not the reserve of the rich, a sport of inclusivity particularly for women and youth and the story of Leisure 17s and the wider family of Leisure Yachts.

Our thanks to all the volunteers, all the sponsors and all the competitors. We look forward to seeing you for the Leisure 17 BIG WEEKEND in May 2026.

The photos of this event have been placed in a gallery on this club site- view via https://edyc.co.uk/photo-gallery/