The Walton and Frinton Yacht Club dinghy sailors braved the cold for the Snowball Race and Winter Series Race 1 this past weekend, a good turnout for both days, especially considering the light winds for the Snowball Race.

Full race report follows.

The 2025 dinghy racing season got off to a somewhat inauspicious start with the rescheduled Snowball pursuit race, originally postponed due to New Year's Day gales, taking place on Saturday. The wind was mostly 0-2 knots with a cheerless grey and overcast sky. Drifting was the order of the day and Tim Brooke did a better job of this than the others, managing to tease his carbon fibre Hadron into the lead early on. Dom Jacobs was second in another Hadron and Lotte Langfeld won the trophy for first helm under 18. 

Sunday saw the first race of the Winter Series and although the wind was still light, it was far less frustrating than the previous day. The conditions seemed to suit the Hadrons again with James Oxley first, Dom Jacobs second and Geoff Parker third. Simon Hipkin was 4th sailing an OK and Lotte Langfeld 5th in her Laser 4.7. It was great to see a good number of Cadets out racing with nearly half the fleet being under 18.
~ Simon Hipkin