October 27, 2010
Rising To The Challenge
Saturday 2nd October saw host to the 2010 Lymington Challenge, an end of season opportunity for both experienced and new RIB enthusiasts to race head to head in the Solent.
The three lap race, with a range of classes, attracted some familiar faces and previous winners with several boats entering capable of speeds in excess of 60 knots. Ice Marine saw this as an excellent excuse to show exactly what the Bladerunner RIB was capable of to their target audience.
The event was run in conjunction with the fifth and final round of the P1 SuperStock Championship, who kindly provided sponsorship for this event, hosted by The Royal Lymington Yacht Club and BIBOA. 15 RIB’s entered joining the P1 craft on the start line to battle the 42.5Nm course in teh day’s offshore conditions.
Strong winds and rough seas saw the P1 SuperStock morning race cancelled and the start of the afternoon racing moved to 13.30pm. This just added to all the excitement of the event, held in the westen extremities of the Solent and extending right out into the exposed open water around the Needles, with many spectators gathering off and around Hurst Castle. The wind, tide, swell, and solent coastline delivered a nice mixe of rough and calm across the course providing opportunities for everyone and a great show for those on the shoreline in spectator boats.
All in all 12 of the Challenge TIB’s finished the race with one non-starter and two boats retiring from the original starting line-up, The Bladerunner RIB 35X, powered by twin Mercury Verado 300′s, went in fighting taking 3rd place in the first lap and pushing up into second place behind last year’s winner.
As they took on the final lap Jeremy Watts of Ice marine pulled out the stops seeing him and Navigator Tony Jenvey push ahead of the leader and gain a substantial lead with Ocean Blade crossing the line in first place!
The Bladerunner RIB 35 in an air entrapment monohull with the X model boasting a carbon fibre structure, both stiffening the hulls and providing a significant reduction in weight. The console has been lowered and Ullman jockey seats exchanged for their newest development, the Ullman Daytona race style bucket seat, benefiting from their suspension and shock absorbing technology. Combine these reduces wind drag and increases ride comfort.