Sailors from Bristol Corinthian Yacht Club on Cheddar Reservoir celebrated the 60th anniversary of the Enterprise dinghy.

Sailors from Bristol Corinthian Yacht Club on Cheddar Reservoir celebrated the 60th anniversary of one of the best-loved boats sailed at the club.

The Enterprise dinghy, easily spotted thanks to its distinctive light blue sails, is one of the largest fleets of boats sailed at Cheddar.

To celebrate, the club held a special anniversary race, and took a photo of the 27 Enterprises lined up at the club, which will be submitted into a national photo competition organised by the Enterprise Association to mark its 60 years.

The event was won by Alice Allen, crewed by 12-year-old Abigail Campbell, who took victory by winning both races giving them the distinction of being first lady helm, first helm over 40, and first junior crew.

Bristol Corinthian boasts one of the largest Enterprise fleets in the country and is renowned for its excellent sailing facilities. The Enterprise boat remains one of the most competitive classes to sail in, with challenging and highly tactical racing.

Competitors from all over the country, including an entry representing a team from Sri Lanka, were amongst the 50 boats taking part in the Enterprise Class Inland National Championships held at Cheddar Reservoir, Axbridge.

Arriving to less than perfect conditions of no wind and light rain, the race official in charge, Axbridge-based Arky Wainwright postponed racing for an hour and a half while the wind filled in, enabling the afternoon’s five races to be completed.

The overnight leader was Cheddar sailor Phil Ford, crewed by Jane Humpage, just taking the lead from Tim Sadler and Richard Sault from Yorkshire Dales Sailing Club.

The sailors, friends and families celebrated the Enterprise class’ 60th anniversary with a cocktail party and black tie dinner on Saturday night at the club, with local catering provided by Axbridge-based The Party Shop.

The following day brought sun and lots of wind, creating exciting and challenging conditions for the sailors.

Former Cheddar sailor Nigel Bird, now based in Surrey, showed the fleet the way to go, with the teams from Plymouth also enjoying the heavy weather.

The event’s only all-girl race team of Cheddar sailors Alice Allen and 12-year old Abi Campbell, making her debut in the class, had mixed results due to a couple of capsizes.

After the full race series was completed, it was Yorkshire-based Tim Sadler and Richard Sault who won overall to take the Inland National Champions title.

The next main event to take place at BCYC is the Push the Boat Out open day. If you want to come and have a go and see if sailing is for you - Bristol Corinthinan Yacht Club’s open day is on May 21 between 10am and 4pm. Please pre-book to get out on the water by emailing communications@bcyc.org.uk