Drew Langdon and Miles Jennings celebrated the 60th anniversary of offshore powerboat racing from Cowes in style last Sunday when they steered their boat, Silverline (pictured above by Malc Attrill), to a new speed record.
Cowes Torquay Cowes
The crew from Devon completed the 193.50 nm Cowes-Torquay-Cowes (CTC) race in just over 2 hours and 25 minutes, giving them an astonishing average speed of 94.70 mph.
Langdon and Jennings beat the existing record set in 2015 by just .15 mph.
Completing the course for the first time ever and second overall were the Tommy One team, an Italian entry crewed by Maurizio Schepici, Giampaolo Montavoci and Fabio Magnani.
Third overall were Team 25 Dragon crewed by Rob Lockyer and Scott Younger, who also enjoyed their first time on the CTC podium.
Oldest and youngest
Francis Whitley (pictured below) at 79 was the oldest competitor to finish the race, while 23-year-old Cole McGowan from Florida was the youngest.
McGowan was racing with Dorian Griffith, whose mother sadly passed away in Cowes the day before the race.
Sue Griffith was a veteran racer of the event and her son summoned the courage to pay tribute to her life finishing fifth overall in a race that she cherished.
Yarmouth based John Caulcutt enjoyed becoming 2021’s lowest powered finisher, a feat he last achieved in 1969, an incredible 52 years ago.
Cowes Poole Cowes
While the larger craft were headed to Torquay, 15 other raceboats were tackling an equally strenuous 93.70 nm offshore challenge in the Cowes Poole Cowes race.
Local racers Adam Younger and Amy Rickards took the win in Northstar RIBs UK, averaging 72.39 mph, Lee Ornsby and Ross Mcgreggor were second overall in Top Banana and Rob Lister and Nick Crouch steered Madcrab Racing to the third step of the podium.
Former decorated firefighter Barry Culver needed the help of the water borne services when he and Stuart Unwin turned Motorvated Racing upside down, both of the crew were unharmed and the stricken hull was towed into Poole.
The Team: Royal Yacht Squadron entered H400 Thunderstreak’, crewed by Hugo Peel, Johnny Raymond and James Gaggero, took the historic class plaudits, a worthy performance after their vintage Bertram hull had suffered extensive damage at the Poole Bay 100 race held earlier in the summer.
The event that was first run from Cowes in 1961 certainly added a welcome sparkle to the town in 2021.
For more information about the Cowes Torquay Cowes Powerboat Race, visit the official Website.
News shared by John Moore on behalf of the Cowes Torquay Cowes Powerboat Race. Ed
