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Bloody Mary 2010Annual Pursuit for all classes at Queen Mary SC |
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61 boats took to the water for the 37th Bloody Mary in what can only be
described as Arctic conditions. With temperatures well below zero and a
shifty force 4 wind (with gusts up to 25 knots) the Merlin Rocket class
was again well represented by 5 boats. Staring some 33 minutes into the
race, the first short beat saw Richard Whitworth and Ollie Turner into
the lead closely followed by Simon Blake and Alex Jackson. Jon Steward
and Nick Yannakoyorgos rounded third followed by Rien Zilvold and Julie
Nutall and Charlie Morgan with Stuart Colley.
The runs were superb, Rien and Julie overtaking Jon and Nick. With the exception of Richard and Ollie, the rest had at least one swim (the water didn't seem to be any colder than the spray and the freezing north easterly wind). Richard and Ollie sailing a conservative race took the lead fairly early on to hold it up to 20 minutes before the end to finish in 3rd place. Out of the 61 entrants, only 29 finished what could only be described as an endurance race. Despite this, the Queen Mary SC organisation, assistance and race control was superb throughout - as was the restorative mini-bottle of whisky at the end! Merlin class results: 3rd 3703 Richard Whitworth and Ollie Turner 5th 3707 Simon Blake and Alex Jackson 22nd 3692 Rien Zilvold and Julie Nutall 27th 2997 Jon Steward and Nick Yannakoyorgos DNF 3579 Charlie Morgan and Stuart Colley Report: Nick Yannakoyorgos See also: Full results Photos |