The day of the 2020 RS JAPAN OPEN, November 1st, was a calm day with gentle winds.

Various RS Sailing dinghies gathered at Morito Beach in Hayama for the All Japan Championships.

A variety of boats participated: 12 RSaero, 3 RSQuba, 3 RSTera, 2 RS500, 2 RS700, 2 RSVareo, 2 RSZest, 1 RS100, 1 RS200, and 1 RSFeva. A total of 29 boats participated and competed using a rating system.

Elementary and junior high school students participated in RSTera, and junior high school students participated in RSQuba.

Although I have only had a few racing experiences, I did my best together with the adults.

The RSFeva women's team will be competing in the race as a pair for the first time.

In the first race, the RSaero fleet got off to a good start from the bottom line. Washiyama (center: Shimizu YA) in RSaero7 took advantage of the lightness of the hull to lead the fleet with speed and course, finishing in first place.

The spectator boats for watching the race were anchored in the middle of the course, giving a perfect view of the start and allowing parents to watch the race from up close.

The second race also started quickly while the northeasterly wind was still lingering. Kamo-san on the RS700 had good speed even in the light wind.

The RS500 tangent was also a sight to behold!

If the RSTera children run well, they have a chance at the ratings!

After the last boat finished safely, there was no wind as predicted. It looked like it would take a long time to wait for the southerly wind, so we started to head back to the beach, but as the southerly wind started to come in, we hurried to start the third race.

The race was held in a light breeze, but Mr. K came out on top.

It was an all-around top win. Congratulations!

There was no party, just the award ceremony on the beach. The awards were presented by high school student S, who helped out on the organizing side.

The winner, Mr. K from Shimizu Yacht Club, was presented with a handmade cloisonné trophy by the maker, Hitomi!

In second place was N-san from Shimizu with RSaero7, and in third place was K-san from hsc with RSVareo. In the one lap section, the I and T pair from RSFeva ran well in their first combination and won the RS Cube.

I wish there was a bit more wind, but we had fun completing the three races. Thank you to all the organizing volunteers who attended the numerous organizing meetings!