Ballington takes the Clive Hand Memorial Trophy at Lincoln

The 2026 Clive Hand Memorial Trophy delivered exactly what has made this meeting such a distinctive fixture in the International One Metre calendar: competitive racing, close friendships and a strong sense of family, all centred on remembering a sailor who refused to allow disability to take him away from the sport he loved.

Hosted annually by Lincoln Radio Sailing Club, the event commemorates Clive Hand, a lifelong sailor who suffered from Spinal Muscular Atrophy. As sailing full-size boats became increasingly difficult, a friend encouraged him to try radio sailing.

Clive took to the International One Metre class and continued racing even after becoming dependent on a wheelchair. He became a familiar competitor at local and national events, remembered at Lincoln as a determined sailor with firm views on what was right and wrong on the racecourse.

His wife Jen supported his sailing and later took over the helm of his radio yacht herself, maintaining the Hand family’s involvement in the sport.

Following Clive’s death in 2013, his family established an annual race at his home club, held in October close to his birthday.

Over the years, the meeting has developed into much more than another IOM open. Competition remains important, but so too does the opportunity for family, friends, sailors and non-sailors to come together and enjoy the occasion in the spirit in which Clive sailed. The event also supports the RNLI.

Recent winners underline the quality of the competition, with John Tushingham winning in 2023, Peter Baldwin in 2024 and Pete Walters taking the trophy in the testing conditions brought by Storm Amy in 2025.

A spectacular start to 2026

This year’s event began with a magnificent sunset the previous evening followed by an equally impressive dawn, although the scenery arrived with one notable omission: wind.

PRO Roger Crates was soon afloat, studying the water and trying to determine where the forecast breeze would eventually establish itself. His decision to set the course from the east bank proved to be the right one.

Shortly after the briefing, the first gentle ripples began appearing across the lake and racing got under way.

The opening seeding races saw Gary Parkin and Chris Harris take the honours, with Tim Hand and Ron Radbourne close behind.

As the morning progressed, the breeze slowly strengthened. It remained shifty and gradually tracked clockwise, creating plenty of tactical opportunities and providing excellent racing under the watchful eye of the race team.

Ballington takes control

It was over the next four races that Darin Ballington stamped his authority on the meeting.

Sailing his Britpop, Ballington recorded a second place followed by three victories to establish himself at the head of the fleet.

Behind him, Tim Hand, Chris Harris, Peter Baldwin, Nigel Barrow and Mick Chamberlain all showed flashes of front-running pace, but none could quite match Ballington’s consistency.

Particularly impressive was his ability to work his way through traffic. Rarely missing an opportunity, he repeatedly found a route through the fleet, combining excellent boatspeed with the advantage of knowing Lincoln’s notoriously tricky water.

As the afternoon developed, the pattern established earlier in the day remained largely intact. Ballington maintained control, while behind him the battle continued between Hand, Barrow, Harris, Baldwin and Chamberlain.

“We’ve all been minted”

There was still room for one of the day’s more memorable moments.

John Tushingham took a race victory sailing his Joysway Mint and, as he lifted the boat from the water, announced to the those around him that they had all been “minted”.

It neatly captured the atmosphere of the meeting: the racing was serious, but never at the expense of enjoying the day.

By the conclusion, Darin Ballington had secured overall victory ahead of Tim Hand, with Nigel Barrow completing the podium in third.

Clive Hand Memorial Trophy

1. Darin Ballington
2. Tim Hand
3. Nigel Barrow

The event also brought the Midland Series to its conclusion.

Midland Series

1. Darin Ballington
2. Tim Hand
3. Chris Harris

Much more than another open meeting

The prize-giving brought together competitors, volunteers and the Hand family, first recognising the Midland Series winners and then presenting the Clive Hand Memorial Trophy.

Days like this are relatively rare in competitive sailing. There was close racing and a determined desire to win, but it was accompanied by camaraderie, humour and the family atmosphere that has always been central to this particular event.

That matters because the story behind the trophy remains every bit as significant as the result.

Clive Hand found a way to continue racing despite considerable physical limitations. More than a decade after his death, sailors still gather at his home club every October to compete, catch up with friends, support the RNLI and celebrate that determination.

Darin Ballington may have taken home the 2026 trophy, but the enduring success of the Clive Hand Memorial is that the personality and spirit behind it remain very much part of the day.

Our thanks go to PRO Roger Crates and all the volunteers who made the racing possible, and particularly to the Hand family for continuing to support an event that keeps Clive’s memory alive.

More Pictures can be found on the MYA Downwind courtesy of Mr Wallace and Caz Hand and will be added as and when .

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2025 Clive Hand results and pictures

2025 Clive Hand results and pictures

The Picture’s below are from both Andy Wallace and Chris and Lisa more Not sure who’s are which because my filing system is not up to the required standard , sorry .

More to follow , I’m retired and have run out of time .

2024 Clive Hand results and Pictures

Many congratulations to Peter Baldwin from Birkenhead RS&PC

2024 Clive Hand entry list . 30 entries

Scroll down for some pictures of the 2024 Clive Hand from the camera of Caz Hand .

To be Held at Lincoln on the 6th October 2024 29 Entries as at 5th October October 2024 .

Name	Sail number	design
Simon Richardson	32	Alioth	Manor Park
Micky Boy Chamberlain	46	Venti	Lincoln
Mike Willett	44	Brit Pop	Two islands
Simon Fairman	471	Alioth	ROFWAC
Graham Whalley	16	Brit Pop	Manor Park
Steven Venables	09	Brit Pop	Manor Park
Mike Evans	175	Venti	Gosport
Dorian Crease	60	Brit Pop	Datchet
Dave Holyoak	06	V10	Hollowell RSC
Paul Middleton	32	Alternative	Fleetwood
Chris Cook	48	Brit Pop	Bourneville
Derek Priestley	44	SV	Fleetwood
Kevin Everson	34	Venti	Lincoln
Peter Baldwin	63	Brit Pop	Birkenhead
John Tushingham	51	Vision	Weecher
Rob Radbourne	17	T B A	Manor Park
Tim Hand	134	Brit Pop	Lincoln
Darin Ballington	98	Brit Pop	Lincoln
Tracy Ballington	49	Brit Pop	Lincoln
Ben Wallace	71	Rockstar	Huntingdon
Hayden Wallace	73	Rockstar	Huntingdon
Peter Guest (Late entry)	117		Scarborough
Colin Walton	03	Brit Pop	Manor Park
John Smith	43	Brit Pop	Manor Park
Michael Cooper	39	Venti	Lincoln
Tim Cregg	32	Slim Chance	Bridlington
Dennis Walker	00	Alioth	Manor Park
Colin Aldred	114	Brit Pop	Scarborough
Chris Elliott	74	Brit Pop	Lincoln
Ben Harker (late, entry)	122	CO2	Huntingdon

2023 Clive Hand results and pictures below

The Date for this fantastic event is the 8th October 2023 you can enter using the link below, where you will also find the NOR . Time has run out

Events

Get your entry in before Friday to help admin get the fleet board all sorted

28 entries so far

Steve Venables	09 Brit Pop	Manor Park
Gary Box	116 Brit Pop	Manor Park
Tracey Ballington	49 Brit Pop	Lincoln
Graham Whalley	16 Brit Pop	Manor Park
Ben Harker	22 Brit Pop	Norwich
Mike Willett	69 Goth	Two Islands
Rob Radbourne	17 Viper	Manor Park
Simon Richards	32 Viper	Manor Park
David Hope	11 Brit Pop	Norwich
Dave Holyoak	6 V 10	Market Bosworth
Simo Fairman	56 MX 14	ROFWAC
Buzz Coleman	12 Vision	Coalhouse Fort
Mickey Boy Chamberlain	46 Venti	Lincoln
Tim Hand	44 V 10	Lincoln
Martyn Aspinall	95 Shiraz	Rotherham / Lincoln
Peter Baldwin	63 Brit Pop	Birkenhead
Barry Mayer	15 Venti	Birmingham
John Tushingham	51 Vision	Keighley & District MES Ltd
Darin Ballington	98 Brit Pop	Lincoln
Michael Cooper	39 Venti	Lincoln
Dennis Walker	00 Alioth	Manor Park
Nigel Brown	TBA TBA	Gosport
Chris Elliott	74 Brit Pop	Lincoln
Mike Evans	175 Brit Pop	Gosport
Kevin Everson	20 Pikanto	Lincoln
Roger Crates	30 K2	Bridlington / Lincoln
Roger Errington	88 Brit Pop	Killingworth
Colin Eldred	14 Brit Pop	Scarborough

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THE CLIVE HAND MEMORIAL TROPHY 2022

Find out about the trophy– HERE

2022 Event

The Clive Hand 2022 was run on October 9th , The updated NOR and online entry has been published and can be seen on the MYA website.

Scroll down for write up and some pictures . and of course the results

Below is a list of entries to date , 34 on Friday 7th October 22

If you don’t see your name here and you have entered , let the organisers know , ASAP

Clive Hand 2022 report and some Pictures

Wow, what a day of radio racing.  

Quiet and still at 7.30am, Scotland Farm was looking its best. The freshly mown grass and Mediterranean blue water welcomed 34 skippers who had entered the 2022 Clive Hand Memorial Trophy. The only sound heard was Chef Mick and Jan and their bacon buttie’s sizzling away in the club house and the occasional camper stirring from their slumbers. 

By 8.00am the race team had started their preparations and the 1^st of the travelling competitors were parking up. There was still little breeze and the boat crew struggled to lay a course with the southerly breeze shifting 45 degrees as the wind fought to settle in strength and direction, eventually the crew decided to lay two courses, allowing racing to start just after the scheduled time. 

Chef Mick (Chamberlain) welcomed all the skippers to Lincoln Radio Sailing Club before handing them over to Peter Cogill who would run the day’s racing. 

The two seeding races were sailed from the South bank, with Rob Wilson and Nigel Brown being victorious in tight racing, race 2 was equally tight, something that would continue throughout the day, Rob took this race as well before a settling wind and slight change of direction allowed the race team to change the course and switch to the East bank. The course, starting with a slightly port biased line to a starboard rounded windward mark and spreader then led the fleet to a gate that was set further away from the bank to give a decent length and direction to the beat which was repeated before finishing between the windward and spreader marks. This course gave plenty of opportunities for “snakes and ladders” in the gusts and many changes of place were seen on both beats and runs throughout the day. 

This course would continue for the rest of the day despite a breeze with constant shifts during the races. Consistency was difficult for most skippers, although Darin Ballington managed to judge the breeze and manage the traffic best to take 5 wins over the day. Other race winners were John Tushingham, and David Hope, but as usual with the Clive Hand Memorial event it was not all about the winners. Within the entry list it was fantastic to see local and travelling skippers enjoying themselves, particularly pleasing was the number of new skippers tempted to sail, the reputation of the event and its friendly competitive racing must be spreading! 9 skippers from the host club were joined by sailors from North, East, South and West. The furthest travelled was tied between Tim Long (Abersoch) and Ken Binks (Eastbourne) with many from the midlands setting their alarms early for the day, amongst these were our three lady skippers, Jen, Tracey, and Penelope. 

After nine completed races, Peter called an end to racing and the skippers came together to congratulate the winners and thank the volunteers and helpers.  

Clive’s’ wife, and fellow skipper Jen presented the prizes, watched by his sons and family members. 

The top five skippers were: 

Darin Ballington- 11pts 

John Tushingham – 20pts 

Rob Wilson – 26pts 

Chris Elliott – 31pts 

Nigel Brown – 36pts 

Not everyone can be a winner, but everyone can have fun and enjoyment, something that LRSC offer in abundance and hopefully the Clive Hand Memorial Trophy is now a “must” for the skippers and we hope that they will return (with their friends) in 2023 for the next running of the event. 

A special thank you to all those helpers who have not been mentioned in this report, without you the skippers could not have gone racing and the event would not have happened.  

Note: 

Racing occurs every weekend at Scotland Farm, and visitors are welcome, please see our website for more information. www.lincolnradiosailing.com  

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Clive Hand has been won for 2021

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The 2021 Clive Hand has been scheduled for 3rd October 2021

Online Entry and NOR can be found on the MYA website, dont miss the boat with your entry.

Entry list as at 30th September 2021

1. Jen Hand 69
2. Colin Walton 3
3. Chris Moore 9
4. Graham Whalley 16
5. Rob Radbourne 17
6. Paul Stockdale 59
7. Tim Hand 44
8. Dave Rigby 57
9. Derek Priestley 67
10. Dorian Crease 79
11. Gary Parkin 95
12. David Darwell 157
13. Mike Williams 162
14. Peter Cogill 110
15. John Smith 43
16. Mick Cooper 39
17. Geoff Farrar 87
18. Martyin Aspinwall 195
19. Greg Codling 21
20. Chris Graves 11

OOD Keith Holmes , Mick Chamberlain

A fantastic day dawned for the 19 skippers who turned out for this great event,

Despite the gloom of Covid 19, despite the gloom of the no fuel scare mongering , and despite the gloom of the weather forecasters, who it seems do not know what button to press to guess at the weather, the event was a huge success for the skippers with great racing conditions, great camaraderie, a bit of rivalry, and a result the family could only have wished for .

Fast out of the blocks was John Smith from Manor Park with his Brit Pop and he won in style, from Tim Hand 2nd V 10 and Dorian Crease, Cheinze. Racing was conducted on the East bank all day and started light 5 to 7 knots but grqadually increased as the day wore on , as did the sunshine ( Mr weatherman ) . Skippers has come from far and wide to enter the event which was held at Scotland farm home of the Lincoln club, and if somebody were to say the conditions and with wind speed and direction were perfect they would not be far wrong.

It was not untill race 5 that Tim H got his first bullitt, from Derek Priestly from Fleetwood in 2nd and Colin Walton from the Manor Park club in 3rd. A welcome lunch break followed and all skippers had changed down to B rig with the wind anything from 12 to 20 knots and gusting , the following race was to be the end of Dereks day and he had to retire with electrical problems. Dorian Crease from Two Islands in Milton Keynes was putting in some great results with his Cheinze, and secured his second bullitt in race 7 with Tim again chalking up a second place, before getting another bullitt in race 8, what happened in race 9 no one knows but Tim ended up 20th. a race that David Darwell gained his only first place,

Mick Cooper a local lad ( 75 years old ) 6 weeks out of having a new knee was determined to race with his new Venti and did very well and must be very pleased with his performance ending up tenth and I am sure the best is yet to come. Greg Codling another local was sailing in his first regatta and had some rig issues which he will learn from, Seven skippers from the Lincoln club sailed in the event, but the winner by a good margin and some great sailing was Tim Hand, who finished the job off with two fine wins at the end.

It is even more fitting as Tim is the son of the late Clive Hand, who this memorial trophy is raced for each year, and it was quite emotional at the prize giving at the end, very well done Tim.

Dorian Crease was 2nd and David Rigby 3rd in what was a great day of racing, I forgot to mention the weather gods had their way, as at the prize giving the heavens opened and most got very wet before the drive home, A big thanks you to all the helpers for this event, scorers / starters / finishers / and OOD,s and those in the background, we all know who you are so many thanks , we look forward to welcoming you all back to the club next year .

Just one last thing the event raises money for the RNLI and this year with all your kind generosity we raised a whopping £ 180.00 for this great cause .

2021 event above all picture many thanks to Geoff Streeter and Caz Hand

Helpers TBA

There was no Clive Hand in 2020 due to Covid 19 , Scroll down the page for previous years racing of this prestigeous event .

The 2019 Clive Hand Memorial trophy for I.O.M                                        

The winner of the Clive Hand for 2019 is Nigel brown from Gosport.

Many congratulations and we hope to see you next year . Many thanks also to all competitors and the race team for a great event.

The 2020 Clive hand has been scheduled for 4th October 2020

2018 Clive Hand

   Venue Scotland Farm and it was 8am and not a breath of wind, as the Lincoln team arrived to get the boiler going for tea and coffee,  and more importantly the club house cooker for the now legendary Lincoln Sausage burgers. Competitors arrived in drips and drabs the flags were put up and showed no signs of life, The motor home campers stirred into life after a chilly night and having having driven a very long way from the south coast of England, but hey enough of all that nonsense what about the racing.

The V9 of David Alston and the Brit Pop of Darin Ballington won the seeding races after a short delay ( the only delay in the whole day) and then David won the first A fleet race before his day turned a kinda pear shape ( sorry Dave )  We then get to race 4 and Derek Priestley got moving winning the next two races with his slightly older boat and Nigel Brown our eventual winner was getting to grips with his nearly new Sedici, gaining a fifth place, battles were going on all across both fleets with some great racing, and I have to say, good course setting by OOD Peter Cogill, The Breeze got better by Lunch time  probably around 6/8 knots and the beat was no easy task but playing the shifts paid dividends as it does in any race, getting to know them was a little tricky. Races 6 and 7 were won by Nigel when the scores were neck and neck with Derek, at the end it was 20 points apiece, and Nigel edged it on count back with Darin Ballington taking third spot. All in all a good day at Lincoln steady breeze and warm sunshine great hospitality by all the helpers tasty cakes in the afternoon all calorie free I was told.

Many many thanks to all the helpers and competitors for making it a special day and you will be pleased to know that  £ 100 plus was raised for the R.N.L.I so thanks for your generosity.

We hope to see you all again soon and especially for the same event next year. One or two pics below and well done Nigel Brown from the Gosport club .

THE CLIVE HAND MEMORIAL TROPHY 2017

Congratulations to John Tushingham who is now a two times winner of the trophy , and a cheque for £ 10.000, “it is in the post”

some randon pictures below .

 

A  very calm lake greeted the first arrivals at the lake with not a breath of wind as the first of the bacon butties got served up. 23 skippers with a variety of design came out to play some from as far afield as Norwich , West Cornwall and Fleetwood, many probably wishing they had not botherd. But by 10 am there was a faint wisp of wind and after a thirty minute delay a course was set along the south bank and the first of the seeding races got underway. Frustrating was a word used by many not just because the wind was light and fluky but there was also a little green stuff that attacked when you least expected it some suffered more than there fair share but it was annoying. Stephen Haywood and Peter Cropper won the two seding races, and racing proper started soon after, ( the bacon butties were going down very well at £ 150.00 each and with free tea or coffee all day the galley was busy. Nine skippers from Lincoln took part, and all in all it was quite good racing and if I may say so seem to improve as the day wore on. Soup and French bread for lunch Leek and Potatoe with many returning for seconds. After lunch the breeze probably increased to around 6 knots so things were really hotting up, good banter on the bank and i dont think I heard a raised voice all day. The very last race was increased to two laps , and sods law had it that on the final run the wind deserted the lake and we waited an age for a small puff to take the fleet to the finish. As many of you saw we had a man with a couple of drones doing some filming his name is Phil , we had hoped for more breeze to make it interestin but I am sure in the weeks to come we shall see the edited footage and it will be splendid. many thanks to all the helpers for the day race team and galley staff it is allways appreciated the effort you all put in and we could not do it with out you. also many thanks to all the skippers who made it such an enjoyable day. we hope you were not put off by the green stuff and ther is talk of making the event a few weeks later for next year to allow it to clear completely .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 2016  Clive Hand Memorial Trophy

results pictures below

 

 

Date should I believe read 2016 on the results

 

 

 

A report by the Lincolnshire Echo written by Caroline Wilson with photo’s by John Jenkins

 

The Clive Hand Memorial Trophy 2015

A fine day greeted the 26 competitors for the 2015 Clive Hand Memorial Trophy , not to much breeze maybe 5to 10 knots by the sky was clear and although a hint of a shower, we all stayed dry. Bacon Butties were the order of the day from 8am, along with Normans tea and coffee stand doing brisk business. Phil Harpham was Race Officer and did a superb job when you consider it was his first time, he was assisted by son Joe and two young ladies Jackie and Jill did the finishing line and scoring, so a massive thanks to all of them ,, so on to the racing, there was always enough breeze to keep the boats moving and the beat was very tricky with some quite big shifts that lay in wait for the inexperienced and experienced alike, It wasn’t the only thing that caught skippers out,, but we will not go into that as it seemed to even itself out throughout the fleet, frustrating as it was . The two seeding races were won by Don Charlesworth and Nigel Brown ( Britpop and V9 ) Last years winner John Tushingham unfortunately had a multitude of problems in the first three/four races with Radio and green stuff and so was always playing catchup, It was interesting that the top three only had one win each. also interesting was that the Lincoln club had 6 members in the top ten. At the end of the day Dave Thomas 41 sailing his new secondhand V9 for the first time was the most consistent to take the Trophy from Graham Allen and John Tushingham full results below , and pictures will be updated on this post as they come in. We also believe a large amount was raised for the R.N.L.I from competitors and visitors so thank you all so much. We also hope you had a pleasant days racing and look forward to seeing you all again soon. Congratulations to Dave Thomas .

 

Date should i believe read 2015