A MIGHTY MULE
Beating 1,210 other boats in extreme light, shifty conditions aboard Eeyore, the smallest boat in the fleet, a 55-year-old, 18ft modified bilge keel Alacrity, to win the coveted Gold Roman Bowl, will undoubtedly go down in the history books as one of the finest Round the Island Race achievements.
Yves Le Blevec’s 100ft Grand Prix racing multihull, Actual Leader – the largest boat in the fleet – was the favourite for a stab at outright record, but with the light to moderate forecast, and the wind set to veer from east to west later in the day, record-breaking opportunities for the 88th edition of Island Sailing Club’s headline event diminished soon after the start.
Le Blevec and team however, did take overall line honours with a time of 7hrs, 33mins, 36secs. The first monohull to cross the finish line, taking 9hrs 28secs, was Sir Peter Ogden’s well-sailed Judel
