AFTER a COVID-enforced absence of four years, a fleet of old wooden-built fishing boats has made a successful return to its spiritual home in Looe.

Entries may have been slightly down for the Cornish Lugger Association’s latest regatta, partly due to the event being held earlier in the sailing season than usual (because of the tides), but the visiting skippers seemed delighted to have their biennial reunion back on the calendar.

Regatta chairman Jeff Penhaligon thanked race officer Brian Bowdler for setting two days of testing courses in light winds and his wife, Karen, who provided the competitors’ buffet suppers.

Looe Sailing Club members manned the licensed bar and there were three nights of live entertainment at the West Looe Quayside Centre, known locally as Mally’s Shed after the late Looe Harbour Commissioner who instigated its development.

Mr Penhaligon thanked Looe Harbour Commissioners and their staff for all their help in staging the event. In the run-up to the scheduled 2021 regatta (subsequently cancelled by Covid), when founder figures Paul Greenwood and Mike Darlington had announced their retirement, there was real anxiety that the show might not go on.

It was the Harbourmaster and chief executive Tina Hicks who steadied the rolling ship. ‘The Lugger Regatta is a fantastic event for Looe and it would be a huge shame if it went under,’ she declared more than two years ago. ‘We’ve got to try to keep it happening and, personally, I will do everything I can to help.’

Tina was good to her word and more. Nothing was too much trouble for her staff, especially deputy harbourmaster Dave Jackman, and the Commissioners themselves, led by chairman David Bond, so when the winners of the Barnabas Trophy for the ‘Spirit of the Regatta’ was announced as the Harbour it came as little surprise that the appreciative crowd gave their own ringing endorsement.

But, as the regatta chairman was keen to point out, the weekend had been a real team effort. Cash donations from West Looe Town Trust, Mike and Sharon Cotton, David Barrett’s Quayside Fresh, Mike and Sue Darlington and their family, laid the foundations for what is becoming an ever-expensive event to stage.

Looe mayor Cllr Tony Smith presented the visiting skippers with commemorative plaques and three nights of live music was funded by Looe’s Andrew Rowe and his Plymouth-based company APR Marine Fabricators and the Darlington family. With a mixture of Celtic punk rock, blues and sea shanties, the musicians from The Wreckers, an offshoot of the world famous Polperro Fisherman’s Choir; Black Friday; Smokey’s King Shufflers and Tom Saddler’s All Stars had competitors and guests dancing the nights away.

Behind the scenes many more people contributed to the event’s success, including Dave Peat Waste Ltd, East Looe Town Trust, Jewsons Builders Merchants, Cornwall councillors Edwina Hannaford and Armand Toms, photographer Dave Tuckett (greydogimages.co.uk), Peter Friend’s www.welcometolooe.com website and Joe Bussell and Harry Southern’s Looe Model Boat Club.

Regatta founder Paul Greenwood, who stood down after the 30th anniversary event in 1999, attended each night of the 2023 edition with his wife Maggie, and presented the trophies.

He recalled how the regatta had grown from the first rather modest meeting of 35 years ago when, with founder vice-chairman Mike Darlington’s help, the duo endeavoured to shine a light on the Cornish Luggers, their role in the fishing industry and their heritage.

Once there were hundreds of these wooden boats, fishing under lug sails out of Cornish ports, but by 1989 only the Guide Me and Barnabas remained.

With Paul and Mike at the helm, encouraging and advising, a number of old dilapidated luggers were brought back to life and modern-day replicas built, and with French interest growing, the revival was well under way, often aided by the skilled hands of shipwright Chris Rees at Millbrook, who was behind the majestic 63-ft three-master Greyhound and Pete Goss’ Spirit of Mystery that sailed from Cornwall to Australia in a re-enactment of the Mount’s Bay lugger, Mystery, which made the same voyage in 1854.

“I’ve loved this regatta weekend,” said Cawsand’s Graham Butler.

“It’s been fantastic,” said Gweek’s Jon Brickhill.

“We’ve had so much fun,” added Hampshire skipper Nick Gates, and the Guide Me’s Judy Brickhill said: “It’s just great to be back.”

2023 Cornish Lugger Association