International Moth Lowrider UK National Championships 2026 at Rutland Sailing Club

In terms of modern day sailing dinghy classes, the International Moth Lowriders are a bit of an enigma. Representing the designs of pre-foiling International Moths that were the mainstream of this International class, with a history that stretches back 97 years, the majority of the nineteen boats that arrived at Rutland Water for the 2026 UK Lowrider National Championships were more than 20 years old. Only two were constructed within the last six years, since the renewed enthusiasm for racing these notably difficult and unstable lightweight boats.

The weekend of 19th-21st June was the start of the heatwave that hit the UK, and on the Friday the fleet were greeted with a warm southerly breeze that started out at around 10 knots but gradually built throughout the day, and meant the first 3 races on Friday were held in champagne sailing conditions.

Sam Barker getting Radical in his Skippy - International Moth Lowrider UK Nationals at Rutland - photo © Adam Pettit

With 2025 champion Paul Hignett unable to defend his title due to a shoulder injury, and Ladies Champion Katie Hughes recovering from an operation, it soon became obvious that the main contenders for the 2026 title would be from those sailing the super lightweight Division 1 designs, with Phil Henry in his Prowler, former national champion Martin Harrison and Kevin Hope in their Axeman 7s, and Nigel Williams in another Prowler.

Behind these main contenders were the Hungry Tigers of Russell Wheeler, John Edwards and his son George Edwards.

As usual, the fleet was divided into three divisions on handicap, even though the overall title would be decided on the fastest over the water results.

This year there was only one entry in the wingless Division 3 category, that of Gavin Gulliver-Goodall in a 1970s Imperium scow.

Gavin Gulliver-Goodall in his 1970s Imperium Scow - International Moth Lowrider UK Nationals at Rutland - photo © Adam Pettit

Two other scows were competing in Division 2 for wider designs with wings, along with a sundry assortment of various designs headed up by the usual suspects, Lyndon Beasley and Ian Marshall in their Magnum 6s.

Race 1 got under way in ideal conditions, but the competitors soon found that there were certainly large wind shifts and holes in the breeze that made the upwind legs very tactical, and would soon lead to scary moments and a few capsizes.

First at the windward mark was Martin Harrison with a considerable lead, but the offwind boat speed advantage of Phil Henry became apparent and he gradually reduced Martin's lead, passing him on the final run.

Keeping the leading pair honest were Nigel Williams and Kevin Hope in third and fourth with Russell Wheeler a distant fifth.

Tom Foxall chases the earliest starters - International Moth Lowrider UK Nationals at Rutland - photo © Adam Pettit

In race 2 Martin again established an early lead, but this time Phil got past him on the second lap and was set for a dominant win until a big wind shift, when Martin nearly caught him back up, but Phil held on to win again.

In the battle for third, this time it was Kevin who held the upper hand over Nigel.

The wind strength was gradually building throughout the day and in race three the gusts came in at over 20 knots, when pretty much all the fleet apart from the scows took a dunking or two, but there were also some pretty impressive pitch poles offwind with star performer Russell Wheeler executing the most impressive one.

With his established heavy weather prowess, the third and final race of the day was led from the start by Martin, who cleared off into the distance, with the much lighter Phil attempting to hang onto his coat tails.

Kevin and Nigel were again having their usual battle, but this time Andrew McGaw, revelling in the much stronger conditions in his winged scow, kept gnawing away at their transoms, ready to pounce on any mistakes.

Lyndon Beasley gets a great start - International Moth Lowrider UK Nationals at Rutland - photo © Adam Pettit

Saturday dawned slightly cooler, but with much lighter winds that never rose above 10 knots. With the prospect of even lighter winds on the Sunday, race officer Adam Pettit decided to schedule four races, despite there only being around 6 knots of wind. A change in course configuration was made from Friday's triangles to a shorter trapezoidal one.

The pin end was the favoured in Race 4, and Ian Marshall got intimate with it and had to take a penalty turn. The rest of the fleet got away cleanly, but those who held on and went left lost out due to a large windshift. One sailor who tacked off early and benefited from the shift was Gavin in his scow. Kevin also benefited from the shift but it was Phil who got away and built a clear lead which he held to the finish.

Kevin got gobbled up on the downwind legs and was passed by George Edwards in his Hungry Tiger, and then the ever quick Nigel Williams who moved up into second. After his successes the previous day in the heavier wind, the one loser was Martin who found the lighter conditions not to his liking.

Without a major windshift in Race 5, those who again favoured the pin end got to the top mark first and again it was Phil who slipped away from the rest, with newcomer Paul Burgoine making an appearance amongst the usual suspects chasing Phil. Nigel kept Kevin at bay until the final beat, when Kevin tacked away early and took Nigel on the line, with Paul holding onto fourth.

The course was moved up into the southerly fork of the reservoir after lunch to be closer to the clubhouse as the wind was expected to fade. With no major shifts in Races 6 and 7, and a switch back to a smaller triangular course, it was again Phil who romped away, with Kevin and Nigel having their usual tussle behind him. The surprise was the Division 2 Magnum 8 of Graham Hughes, who won a private battle for fourth with Russell Wheeler in his Hungry Tiger.

Nigel Williams checks out where Kevin Hope is - International Moth Lowrider UK Nationals at Rutland - photo © Adam Pettit

In the final race of the day, it was Kevin who upset the usual pecking order, cleanly working the minor shifts, and Phil had his worst result behind Nigel despite leading until the final leg. Phil tacked off early for the finish line and got headed, letting Kevin and Nigel through, and with Nigel having to sail around a lapped and capsized Henry Walker, Kevin got to the line first in an elegant bit of sailing.

To everyone's surprise, with the wind having moved around to the east, Sunday's races weren't held in a drifter but in a solid 10 to 12 knots.

This time, Phil was gunning for a win to seal the championship, and duly obliged in Race 8. Kevin got clear ahead of Nigel and Phil and led for the first lap, but the two Prowlers were hunting him down, and inevitably their superior boat speed told, with Phil leading Nigel home and Kevin having to be satisfied with third.

Russell had another decent race, just pipping a rejuvenated Martin for fourth, whilst further back Tom Foxall managed two impressive capsizes and Paul touched the leeward mark, causing Ian to do a pirouette in attempting to avoid him taking his penalty.

Having secured victory overall, Phil sat out the last race, and Nigel took the opportunity to build a significant lead, with Kevin in hot pursuit. Nigel led to the finish, which proved to be decisive in the overall scheme of things, as when they finished equal on points after a discard, it was this last race win that elevated Nigel to second overall. Russell had another strong race, holding off Martin to get third.

Once the handicaps were applied, always an interesting perspective with so many varied designs, it was clear that Phil Henry had won Division 1, but with Lyndon Beasley and Ian Marshall topping out in Division 2, and Gavin Gulliver-Goodall Division 3. The re-ordered top six were Phil, Kevin, Nigel, Lyndon, Martin and Ian.

Phil Henry, first overall - International Moth Lowrider UK Nationals at Rutland - photo © Tom Foxall

Our thanks must go to Race Officer Adam and his team for giving us excellent and appropriate courses, the safety boat teams who were kept busy on the stronger wind days, and the office staff who had to figure out and produce results for both "over the water" and "handicap applied" categories.

National Champion: Phil Henry
Division 1 Winner: Phil Henry
Division 2 Winner: Lyndon Beasley
Division 3 Winner: Gavin Gulliver-Goodall
Junior Champion: George Edwards
Ladies Champion: [not awarded]

Phil Henry wins overall, in his Prowler - International Moth Lowrider UK Nationals at Rutland - photo © Adam Pettit

Overall Results on the water:

Overall Results after handicap adjustment: