Gavin Colby and Mike Coburn made the longest journey of any pair in the history of the 13th East Coast Piers Race, around 10,000 miles, but on Sunday it paid off with a stunning victory in the annual catamaran championship organised by Marconi Sailing Club.

The professional duo from Western Australia, who are on a European tour to promote a new craft, the Hobie Fox, swept to victory on corrected time, which should give them great confidence for the forthcoming 2000 European Championships in Italy.

Tim Reid and Trevor Hewitt, of Mudeford, the reigning champions, were second in a Tornado, and third was Dutchman John De Vries, the 1998 winner, who has won the event three times before.

This time he was crewed by Diedenih Allesie, in a Storm.

The highest placed local crew were Paul Harrison and Michelle Austin, from Marconi, in a Dart Hawk, who finished 12th.

Line honours went to Will Sunnocks, of Harwich, for the fifth successive year, this time crewed by Mark Self, who crewed Andy Webb to overall victory in 1993.

In May, the new Sunnocks-Self partnership became the first crew from Britain to compete in the gruelling Rorrell 1000-mile race in Florida, were they finished a creditable fifth.

Marconi have over the years raised nearly £50,000 for various charities and last year grossed over £6,000 for the sailing charity, the Cirdan Trust, in Maldon.

Because of the strong winds, only 37 of the 56 craft finished the event, but there were no serious incidents, apart from one broken mast.

Though entries were well down on previous years, the club remain confident the event was worthwhile.

Ross Perkins and Asti, from Maylandsea, won the East Coast Old Gaffers Trophy on Saturday, hosted by West Mersea Yacht Club.

Seventy boats took part in the event, the major race in the Old Gaffers calendar, and Perkins now becomes commodore of the association.

Classic Marine, of Woodbridge, Suffolk, donated the pennants and prizes were purchased at Friars Pottery, Maldon, who made the mugs and plaques specially.

The Britannia Cup, awarded to the first gaff boat across the line, went to Laura (Gayle Heard), from Tollesbury.

Laura completed the 21-mile course that started from the Nass beacon, West Mersea, and stretched out as far as the to the Spitway, in four and a half hours.

Primrose won Class 1, Dram took Class 2 and Ula won Class 3.

It was as you were as far as the Buxey Ashes was concerned at the weekend: same weather; same change of venue; same result.

The annual cricket match between Maldon Little Ship Club and Tollesbury Cruising Club, started in 1988, is scheduled each year on the Buxey Sands, a sandbank a few miles off Colne Point.

It can rain buckets, but that will not worry the intrepid Blackwater sailors.

But too much wind, especially an easterly, makes it dangerous to anchor off at low water when play is due to start.

For the second year running, the organisers decided to switch the venue to Stone Point, East Mersea, and Maldon Little Ship Club took the honours , for the third successive year, 53 runs to 49.

But Tollesbury retained the ladies trophy, six runs against three.

Stone Sailing Club juniors are in Menorca this week as guests of Mahon Sailing Club, who visited the Blackwater last summer.

The party is led by Stone's Cadet fleet captain, Helen Kimber, and is due to return to England on Monday.

Next week, from August 7 to 11, Stone stage their Cadet Week.

Results

Burnham SC Wednesday Evening series - Class 2: Trudi (C Aldred). Class 3: Eclipse (C Cherry). Squibs: Vindex (A Reynolds).

RCYC/RBYC Saturday Dragons: Delilah (M Rankin). Squibs: Nenuphar (A Carley). Sunday Etchells: Her Outdoors (R Melville). Squibs: Spoof (S Griffin).

Crouch YC Summer series, Race 4: Scaramouche (R Tubbs).

Maldon YC Saturday Scratch series, Race 8: 1 A and J Denniss (420), 2 B Clarke (Int Canoe), 3 I Marshall and R Taylor (Snipe). Sunday Scratch series, Race 3: 1 A and J Denniss, 2 I Marshall (Laser), 3 M Hedgecock (Laser).

Marconi SC East Coast Piers Race: 1 G Colby and M Coburn (Australia), 2 T Reid and T Hewitt (Mudeford), 3 J De Vries and D Allesie (Holland).

Other placings: 12 P Harrison and M Austin (Marconi), 13 G Piggott and S Smith (Burnham), 18 T Wallace and C Hutt (Marconi), 22 M Wallace and I Chaplin (Marconi), 23 L Harrison and D Page (Marconi), 25 D Onyons and R Garford (Marconi), 26 P Longhurst and R Anderson (Marconi), 28 M Jones and M Booth (Brandy Hole), 33 E Evans (Marconi), 34 C Harrison and J Ashby (Marconi), 36 R Davies and A Jeffries (Marconi), 37 I and A Caruth (Marconi).

East Coast Old Gaffers Race - ECOG Trophy: Asti V (R Perkins, Maylandsea). Britannia Trophy: Laura (G Heard, Tollesbury). Tom Bolton Cup: Laura. Sheave Trophy: Ethel Alice (B Tester, Faversham). Stone Trophy: Nooderzon (J and R Walker, Althorne). Davey Trophy: Lizzie Annie (R Fawkes, Maldon).

The Boat World Rose Bowl: Chittabob V (R Moffat, Rochester). Pusser's Rum Trophy: Rainbow (W Butler, Brightlingsea). Hunt Trophy: Maryll (J Wainright, Mistley).

Cruiser Trophy: Airlie (R Berk, Pebmarsh). Austin Edge Trophy: Nivana. Titheridge Trophy: Snippet (K Bushell (St Ives).

Privateer Trophy: Rainbow. Dan Webb and Feesey Trophy: Molly Cobbler (B Patrick,Witham). Old Harry Trophy: Mud Skipper (R Phillips). Plodders Pot: Swallow (J Krejsa, Woodbridge). Class 1: Primrose (E Bracken, Upper Norwood). Class 2: Dram (N Mordey). Class 3 Open Boats, Zetland Trophy: Ula (A Graham, London SE21).

Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.