History

History of the Heritage Regatta

Working trawler races have been sailed off Brixham since the early 1800's. The racing was always fiercely competitive, with the boats being driven extremely hard. In one strong wind race in 1927 the winning trawler, the 'Valerian', averaged over 12 knots around the course!

In 1919 Sunny Isle was the first winner of the King George V Perpetual Challenge Trophy, presented by the King in 1914. Lord Churston presided over the earlier events and in his letter to King George V, he sent the good wishes of the fishermen of Brixham and personal reassurance that 'the gift will ever be held as a link between the Port of Brixham and the Throne'

Following this auspicious approval by Royalty, the local trawlers competed each year until 1939, when war broke out. Valerian (of which there is a model in Brixham Yacht Club) was particularly successful with Vigilance (winner 1933) and Torbay Lass, now Kenya Jacaranda (winner 1936) also successful in this racing event.

During the heyday in the 1920s and 30s, the racing was an incredible spectacle, with not only a large fleet of big ketches, but also a fleet of the great classic yachts, including King Goerge's yacht 'Britannia' and several of the famous J-Class

After the war, racing lapsed and as sailing trawlers became commercially outdated the fleet disappeared. However, through the efforts of local skipper Toni Knights, and with the involvement of Devon Gaffers and several local restoration projects (in particular the Trinity Sailing Foundation, Pilgrim Trust and Vigilance Preservation Society), the Brixham trawler fleet re-emerged in 1997 to race again for the King George V trophy.

The modern heritage regatta is sailed in five classes to allow competition between traditional vessels of all types and sizes. As in the past, the sailing trawlers of over 40 tons compete for the King's Cup, racing to win first-across-the-line. The smaller classes race on handicap. This format has been used since 1997, and has seen the event grow each year.