Three sailing clubs are most closely associated with the Thames A-Rater class, each playing a unique role in its history:
Thames Sailing Club (TSC) – Founded 1870 at Surbiton, TSC lays claim as the “home” of the Thames A-Ratersail-world.com. Indeed, it was members of TSC who were instrumental in creating the class and the SBA rules in the 1880s. TSC’s stretch of river (a straight reach above Kingston) was famously chosen for its ideal winds – a prevailing southwesterly blows right up the course, making it perfect for racing these tall-masted boatssail-world.com sail-world.com. Over the decades, TSC has usually harbored the largest contingent of Raters, and it continues to support the class vigorously. The club’s boathouse has been the winter refuge for many of the wooden boats (sometimes to its own detriment – at one point in the 2010s redevelopment plans threatened to evict the aging hulls, putting pressure on owners to restore or remove them)raterassociation.co.uk raterassociation.co.uk. TSC hosts its own annual A-Rater open event for the China Bowl, a trophy dating to 1903raterassociation.co.uk. It also shares hosting of events like the Three Rivers Race (an adventure race in Norfolk where Raters occasionally participate). The club’s commitment was evident when, in 2011, TSC led a campaign against a proposed riverside marina development that would have encroached on their race area. They argued that this “historic racing course” at Surbiton is as important to sailing as Silverstone is to motor racingsail-world.com sail-world.com. Thanks to such advocacy, the A-Rater fleet still zips past the Kingston riverfront on Tuesday nights and weekends, delighting onlookers and nurturing new sailing talent in the class.
Upper Thames Sailing Club (UTSC) – Founded 1884 and based since the late 19th century at Bourne End (between Cookham and Marlow), UTSC is the spiritual home of Bourne End Week. Initially, Bourne End Week rotated among clubs, but UTSC eventually became its permanent organizer, and to this day BEW is UTSC’s flagship eventraterassociation.co.uk. UTSC’s reach of river is wider and more open than TSC’s, providing a superb arena for the A-Raters’ annual showdown. The Queen’s Cup, awarded on the final day of BEW, remains the class’s most coveted prize – and UTSC takes great pride in being its custodian. (The Queen’s Cup, first contested in 1893, is unique: it’s likely the only Royal trophy ever granted to an inland sailing club for perpetual competitionraterassociation.co.uk.) Other historic trophies at BEW include the Thames Champion Cup (1887) and various individual race prizes, some of which (like the Ruby Salver) honour 19th-century winners and were re-introduced to competition in recent years raterassociation.co.uk. UTSC has usually had a smaller Rater fleet than TSC – at times none at all – but it has seen a resurgence. In the 2000s, UTSC sailors acquired boats like Tara and Dainty Too, and today about a quarter of the active Raters are based at Bourne End raterassociation.co.uk. This ensures that when BEW comes, the hometown crowd has local favourites to cheer. Culturally, UTSC’s contribution is also in keeping the festival atmosphere of A-Rater sailing alive. Bourne End Week is not just races; it’s riverside camping, club dinners, and the famous “Sin City” parties for sailors – a tradition stretching right back to the class’s Victorian roots of mixing sport with society.
Tamesis Club (Teddington) – Established in 1885 by members of TSC who lived further upriver, Tamesis Club (often called Tamesis SC) made its mark by fostering small-boat sailing around Teddington and Hampton. While primarily known for other classes (like National 18s and Merlins today), Tamesis has long hosted A-Rater events on the middle Thames. Notably, the Braganza Bowl (a sterling silver trophy from 1904) is raced for at Tamesis by visiting Ratersraterassociation.co.uk. The club also holds the Yates Cup, another historic prize that typically sees Raters compete in Teddington’s tricky tidal stream. Tamesis doesn’t maintain a resident fleet of A-Raters, but its contribution is significant in extending the class’s presence beyond its main hubs. In modern times, Tamesis’s events often attract 6–8 Raters, which race on a shorter stretch – a spectacular if nerve-wracking sight, as the big boats tack and gybe in close quarters on that narrow reach. Historically, Tamesis was also where Tara was built (its boatshed hosted Steve Neal’s construction in 2000–01)raterassociation.co.uk. And interestingly, Tamesis’s founding locale was at Burgoine’s yard in Hampton Wick (Tamesis’s first clubhouse was above Alfred Burgoine’s workshop)thames-sailingclub-history.thecomputerguy-it.co.uk, bringing the story full circle to the class’s origins.
Together, these clubs and their interlocking events have sustained a friendly rivalry and a calendar that keeps the A-Raters busy from spring to autumn. A typical season might begin with an invitational regatta at Tamesis (Braganza Bowl in early spring), weekly evening races at TSC through summer, the big Bourne End Week at UTSC in late May, occasional travels (some Rater crews venture to open water on reservoirs or to the Broads for fun), and then an autumn finale back at Tamesis or TSC. This network ensures the class isn’t isolated to one spot and showcases the boats to a wider audience on the Thames.
