Over the Mid-Autumn Festival, Senior Associate Alistair Skinner proved that he is not only at the top of Austen Morris Associates’ team. As a team member and starting helmsman of ‘Pirate Parts,’ he assisted in their overall victory in the “NOAH & SYC 24hr Charity Regatta” on Dianshan Lake.
“About an hour into the race we were rounding a mark alongside a much faster boat that had to give us time on handicap, so I knew we were already in good shape and it was a matter of keep doing what we were doing.”
The weather for the race was perfect with the wind holding up right through the night, clear skies and a mid-autumn moon.
“We were back on the boat for the graveyard shift: 0300-0600. It was magical; full moon glistening on a 70sq km stretch of water with minimal light pollution and a display of stars that you would never see downtown Shanghai. My crew, Richard and I were on autopilot. Each maneuver went just right and we were taking about 2 minutes a lap out of our main rival and as a bonus, the sun came up over the trees to the east.”
With good sailing and great team spirit, the victory was almost incidental.
Next week, during the National Holiday, Alistair will be on the ‘other side of the fence’ when he is umpire and judge at the China Club Challenge Match in Xiamen, the premier Chinese keelboat regatta.
