The 2018 Scottish Traditional Boat Festival and PCRC Regatta was held on the weekend of 30th June and 1st July.
We decided to limit the number of skiffs, due to safety reasons and logistics in and around the harbour. Skiffs and teams from around the country (and abroad!) took part in what we were told was our best regatta yet! Sunshine for 2 days, no doubt contributed to the day, tho' Portsoy would not be Portsoy without a bit of swell curtailing some of the racing! Anstruther won the Championship again, with Woudrichem, Port Seton and Portsoy in close contention for 2nd and 3rd places.
A big thank you to all the clubs who entered:
1) Portsoy
2) Port Seton and Cockenzie (Boatie Blest)
3) St Ayles, Anstruther
4) Dunbar
5) Collieston
6) Burghead
7) Lossie (a newly formed club who only launched their skiff in the months preceding our event!)
8) Golspie
9) Woudrichem (The Netherlands)
10) Cullen Sea School
11) Deveron
12) Findhorn
13) Avoch
14) Strangford
Unfortunately with the dates of the Boat Festival just 2 weeks before SkiffieWorlds, we did not hold our regatta at the Boat Festival in 2019. We did do a small demonstration coxing event with a couple of our close neighbours, then held our first stand alone regatta later in the year, on 31st August and 1st September.
History
The Scottish Traditional Boat Festival (STBF) has been held annually in Portsoy since the tercentenary of its Old Harbour in 1993. In 2011, 2012 & 2013 the STBF held a StAyles Skiff regatta as part of the festival, and up until the Worlds at Ullapool in 2013 had consistently seen the biggest ever gatherings of St Ayles Skiffs.
With the formation of The Portsoy Coastal Rowing Club (PCRC) incorporating the Skiffettes and the Skiffers, in September 2013 we took over responsibility for organising the St Ayles Skiff Regattas at the 2014 Scottish Traditional Boat Festivals.
The Portsoy Regatta is renowned in the Skiffie world as a place of big seas and challenging conditions! At the 2014 regatta, due to severe winds we had to scrap the planned races on the Saturday but had great fun with a boat handling skills challenge in the New Harbour instead, which was enjoyed by participants and spectators alike. On the Sunday we still could not do the 2K races due to strong northerly winds, so had 600m sprints instead, in very lively water, very entertaining.
In 2015, there was a full day's racing on the Saturday, but after the first race on Sunday, conditions were deemed too extreme. Boatie Blest however managed to raise the overall championship trophy for the 5th year in a row.
2016 was a good year! 15 boats completed all 14 race categories, both 2k races with the notorious 'single buoy turns' and sprints with Anstruther narrowly beating Eastern (2nd) and Avoch coming in 3rd.
2017 conditions deteriorated steadily throughout the Saturday and were unrowable on Sunday. Anstruther again retained the trophy, with Avoch in 2nd place and Portsoy thrilled to be placed 3rd. Surely this year we are due to be blessed with flat calm seas and blue skies? But would we find it boring??!!
