Barton Regatta 2025 at the Norfolk Punt Club

A near-empty broad on Friday quickly turned into a floating village as boats of all shapes and sizes congregated on Barton Broad for the last big Norfolk regatta of the season: the Norfolk Punt Club's Barton Regatta.

Saturday dawned bright, with a light breeze from the North. Racing was kicked off by Norfolk Punts, the region's foremost development class. Over a hundred years of development has turned them into the ultimate craft for flat water, with masthead asymmetrics, carbon rigs and square-top sails, set on 22-foot-long double-ended hulls, ranging from brand new to over a century-old works of art.

Norfolk Punts 'Greylag' and 'Goosander' - Barton Regatta - photo © Rose Pickard

Next to race were the keelboats, with class starts for YBODs and BODs, both local gaff rigged One Design keelboats designed in the 1900s, still going strong over 115 years later, albeit with newer boats using fibreglass hulls, still sailing fairly against their ancient wooden counterparts.

At lunchtime the River Cruisers transformed from sleeping quarters to sailing yachts. These are yachts up to 45 feet long designed purposely for sailing on the Broads and Rivers of Norfolk and Suffolk, and vary widely in hull and rig design.

The latest addition to the class, the home-built pocket rocket no.433 "Shark", turned everyone's heads with its futuristic design and carbon rig, while the older 'Classic' boats, some over 120 years of age, sailed gracefully around the course in the wake of the earlier 'Racer' Cruisers' start.

Classic River Cruiser fleet - Barton Regatta - photo © Trish Barnes

After more Punt, keel, dinghy and Cruiser races in the afternoon, over 320 sailors headed to Barton Turf for a hog roast and dancing to a funk band in Cox's boatshed, surrounded by beautiful wooden boats in boat hospital for a spruce up.

Sunday's programme was much the same as the previous day's, thanks to Barton Regatta Committee's work in simplifying the racing schedule, so it no longer required a Phd in data analysis to work out which combination of craft you will be able to race in - I sailed four different classes of boat over the long weekend!

The first race of the day, with an earlier start than Saturday, was exclusively for those that don't usually hold the steering stick. For people that could pull themselves out of bed, I'm told this was a thoroughly enjoyable and hotly contested series, from which both boats and helms survived unscathed.

Norfolk Punts post-start - Barton Regatta - photo © Robin Myerscough

The Southerly wind looked promising, until the afternoon's sea breeze (Barton Broad being only a few miles from the coast) arrived from the North and cancelled it out, giving the Cruisers and then Norfolk Punts a frustrating drifter in the early afternoon. At least it was sunny and warm...

By the late afternoon once the sea breeze effect had dropped, a gentle wind returned from the South for the annual pursuit race. 48 boats took part, everything from lugsail tenders to towering River Cruisers to Norfolk Punts. Some take this race less seriously than others. Kate Dulieu, last year's NPC commodore, won. Not the race, but the trophy for best dressed boat, by covering her lugsail's rig in turbulence-inducing bunting. Many of the larger boats were filled with excess crew, speakers and Stella, yet still sailed surprisingly speedily. The first few boats after an hour were Norfolk Punts, relishing the light but steady wind that they sail best in.

The sailors retired to the clubhouse, a floating pontoon with a tea hut for a bring-your-own-burgers barbecue expertly cooked by Jamie Oliver... not really, but he does own a boat on the "absolutely beautiful" Norfolk Broads.

Dinghy fleet start - Barton Regatta - photo © Trish Barnes

Monday started with fresher wind, again from the South, and bright sunshine. Over the course of the morning the wind built, giving the Norfolk Punts a fully-powered-up final race at lunchtime. For the last race of the Regatta the wind increased even further, with a fresh breeze blasting the River Cruisers, none of whom reefed, around the Broad in bright sunshine, making for picturesque sailing and a spectacular end to this spectacular regatta.

In the strong wind the giant rafts of support boats began dragging their mudweights (anchors) and started drifting towards the reed beds lining the Broad, resulting in emergency breakups and hurried re-setting of weights. Once disaster had been averted, the sailors returned to the NPC pontoon for rowing races and prize-giving, before heading off on their boats leaving the Broad empty for another year.

142 boats raced over the course of the weekend, with 638 cumulative race starters, the highest on record. None of this would be possible without the hard work of the Barton Regatta Committee and all the volunteers so thank you all, it's a highlight of my and many other competitors' years.

Next year is the Norfolk Punt Club's 100th anniversary, so hopefully the regatta is just as vibrant and fun next year, and continues in the same vein for a hundred years into the future.

YBODs pre-start - Barton Regatta - photo © Robin Myerscough

Trophy Winners:

Norfolk Punt 'Jackdaw' threading the needle between BODs - Barton Regatta - photo © Trish Barnes