A small contingent of Dart Gig Club rowers travelled to Mount Batten, Plymouth, on Saturday to take part in a racing event hosted by Cattewater Gig club and attended by eleven clubs. The racing takes place in an exposed area of open sea outside the breakwater. Conditions were challenging for the rowers, with south-westerlies whipping up the sea and strong cross winds pushing the gigs towards the rocks. The first race for Dart was the ladies' B and the crew of three supervets and three vets needed all their experience to handle the waves. Dart worked hard on the first leg to round the mark in second place behind Fowey. Dart made up ground on the last leg but Fowey finished first with Teignmouth in third place and Caradon fourth. Fowey then declared that they were an A crew and their result was withdrawn. So, in fact, Dart came away winners. The second race for the ladies was the vets, by which time the course had been shortened. By the first mark Dart and Teign had pulled away from the rest of the fleet. Dart got the water on the first mark, but Teign overtook them on the outside and stayed ahead until the last straight. Paul, Dart's cox, decided to steer Smudger to the other side of Morgan, Teign's boat, to get some shelter from the wind. This turned out to be a clever move as Dart gradually made headway and came level. Teign then came across and oars clashed. The Dart three oar was taken out of its pins and then Teign's four rower lost her oar. Dart recovered quickly and Paul delivered strong words of encouragement, motivating the crew to find an extra gear. Dart powered on to finish two lengths clear and got a second well-deserved win. The men didn't figure so well in the results and met with stiff opposition. They competed in the men's B and had a good battle with Cattewater all the way round, finishing in eighth place. The vets race was very competitive, but Dart put in a courageous effort, coming in at the back of the pack. All involved with the club would like to thank Kevin Pyne for towing the boat and for his wonderful support on the day. Dart ladies: Peta Chivers, Jilly Hampton, Kate Cooke, Katharine Money, Carol Squire, Wendy Jones, coxed by Paul Kunert. Dart men: Paul Kunert, Tony Doidge, Rupert Kempley, Michael Bryant-Mole, Stan Bray and Will Atkins, coxed by Cattewater members.