Not satisfied with just winning the male veterans’ race on Friday, Falmouth crews have proven that they were strong competitors on Sunday when they beat the defending champions in both mens’ and ladies’ events.
Scilly’s Tregarthen’s ladies, despite looking strong in the final race, were beaten by the Idas crew, a result which few had expected before the championships began.
Everyone thought that it would be Caradon’s year again, but in a ?battle-of-battles’, the Idas crew in the Irene beat the Mary Newman by little more than a length, after a thrilling ?endurance testing? sprint from Nut Rock.
Nathan Woodcock (top right on main image), a Scillonian originating crewmember in the Irene, commented “we were so close our paddles were hitting.”
The crew were also awarded a crate of beer for crossing the line first in the Punchbowl trophy race on Friday night.
Local crews compete in mens’ round one.
The award ceremony saw displays of rapturous cheering and stage-diving. Mr Woodcock earned the greatest cheer when he was the last to dive off the stage.
There were some impressive recoveries during the mens’ championships, two gigs improving 27 positions from round one until the final - Charlestown’s Tormentor and Dart’s Volante. Speedwell and Wolf improved 26 positions. The most disasterous performance after round one was Brisons who fell 25 places. In the ladies’ event Looe’s Ryder and Par Bay’s Zeus improved 14 positions.
Pictures courtesy of Sandra Gibson; WPGC Photos are now on display in Gibson - Kyne, St. Marys.