A beautiful day greeted our international guests for the start of Race Week. Just after 10am the boat draw was made. Julian Inglis arrived sans luggage from Nova Scotia to make the draw for Brien and Jamie Storey. Stuart Jardine from the UK then made his draw, and the remaining boats were drawn on behalf of the arriving crews by the J24 executive. The results of the boat draw were:
- Carla Dale > Papillon
- Stuart Jardine > Gripper
- Caroline Muselet > Cyclone
- Dale Roberston > Solaise
- Jamie Storey > Erin
- Brien Storey > Shogun
Stuart Jardine then proceeded to drill new holes in Gripper, and as the rest of the overseas crews arrived they weighed in and started checking their boats (or drinking at the bar). The crew of Brien Storey from Shediac New Brunswick managed to come in slightly over weight so have donated a crew member to a local boat, Jezebel.
Some of the local crews of Siren (John Nicholls), Sadiiqi (Pete Ramsdale), Jezebel (Gavin Collery) and New Wave (Trevor Boyce) also decided to venture out into the Great Sound to practice with their various crew combinations.
Then it was off to the opening cocktail party at Bacardi for some well-earned liquid refreshment and a chance to relax before the start of racing. Judging by the form of the J24 crews grabbing food from the passing trays at Bacardi, the start line will be an interesting place to be on Sunday morning at 11am.
- Photos can be seen on the Bermuda J24 Flickr Site
At the Bacardi party:
The Canadian J crews showed great tactical form by cornering all the food waiters - the Bermuda teams showed better experience by cornering all the bar staff. The Brits were caught between - the middle never pays!