Lady Judy Mcalpine- Saving The Trad

The Henley Trad was a well-loved institution in great trouble, when an unlikely saviour stepped in

The ‘Henley Trad’, if you’ve never been, is not only the largest gathering of traditional river craft in Europe, perhaps the world, but one of the longest-lived, dating back to 1978, nearly a decade before the restorations of the big-class yachts Endeavour and Altair, and the founding of this magazine. It is also the epicentre of a microcosm of upper Thames boatbuilders and boat-owners, all of whom want to win the coveted concours prizes, and many of whom feel quite strongly about how it is judged, and who should win it – just as it always is when something matters and people care about it. It’s miles from the billionaires’ pzazz of events like Voiles de Saint-Tropez and Monaco Classic. The Trad represents something else: a gloriously English idea of style and leisure, seemingly unchanged since the fi rst half of the 20th century, when most of the participating boats were designed and built.

Judges cycle around on vintage bicycles and warm beer is consumed at the Crooked Billet pub, which has a pop-up satellite bar at the show. The commentary – with expressions like “Just the sort of family we approve of” – as the boats parade up and down this lovely, and famous, stretch of the Thames is straight out of a rom-com... or at least the last century. If you were the right sort of overseas visitor, you might think you’d died and gone to heaven at the Henley Trad. You would at least be convinced that you had found a slice of England never mentioned in the guide books. And you’d be right.