Posted: June 27, 2007

Multisport: Vlad victorious against weather and tides at the PowerBar Three Peaks Yacht Race!

Team Vlad the Impaler, stormed to an impressive victory at the PowerBar Three Peaks Yacht Race finishing almost a day ahead of their nearest competition! This years race was won in 3days 8hrs and 37minutes. Vlad, are led by skippers Greg Marsh and Ric Searle, with Keith Read, Will Appleby and Adam Marcinowicz rounding out this highly successful team. This is the second time Vlad the Impaler has won the race. In 2005 Greg Marsh, the Skipper and owner of Vlad, won the race at the first attempt. Next year he came second, and now he’s a winner again, as is Keith Read, who competed with him in all 3 events. Ric Searle and Will Appleby have also both raced for the last 2 years (on Abbeydale Moonshine), and this is their first win. “It’s a relief to win it!” said Appleby. “We’ve put so much training and preparation into this race, and now we’ve won it we don’t have to do it again!” But that’s what Greg Marsh said in 2005 … He explained the crew had been out sailing and training together, and that the runners had completed recce’s on all the mountains, which Read knows well in any case. “Our practise raising the Spinnaker paid off going round Bardsey Head,” he said, “and we took the lead then. Then our runners did a good time on Snowdon and that helped us to just beat the tide in the Menai Strait. It was like that all the way – a real team effort.” “Then we pushed hard all the way to Whitehaven. It was just a matter of keeping concentration and not letting our concentration dip. When the wind dropped we could see our estimated arrival time on the GPS getting later and later. It was horrible knowing we could miss the tide and might get stuck outside the lock gate, but we kept going and just got in. As we went into the lock it was absolutely silent on board as we listened for the keel to scrape the bottom.” “Going up to Fort William was pretty horrible, beating into the wind all the time and all through the night. Then when the main ripped we thought it might be all over. Greg woke Ric up and said he needed help with the main, and we managed to repair it roughly and keep it reefed. It was OK for the final sail up Loch Linnhe and got us here!” The crew celebrated by opening some champagne in the dark and the rain on the finish line, and will now have a couple of days to rest and recover before the race party. The PowerBar Barmouth to Fort William Three Peaks Yacht Race combines yachting and mountain running (and a little bit of cycling) into one of the greatest adventure challenges in British sport. The race is now in it’s 30th year and it’s sail/run format has been copied in similar races as far away Hong Kong and Tasmania. Teams comprise 3 sailors and 2 runners, and their aim is to sail from Barmouth on the Welsh coast to Fort William in Scotland, via Caernarfon and Whitehaven, climbing to the summits of Snowdon, Scafell Pike and Ben Nevis on the way. (The athletes cycle from Whitehaven into Ennerdale and run up and down Scafell Pike from there.) In total this is 389 miles of difficult coastal sailing, 18 miles of cycling and 72 miles of running, with 14,000 feet of ascent to reach the highest points in Wales, England and Scotland. The race is open to monohull yachts only and engine power can only be used close to port, but yachts can be rowed, or even pulled along by crew members on the shore. There are no handicaps or adjustments, it’s a straight race and the first team to get their runners back to their yacht in Fort William, having completed all the mountains, wins the coveted Daily Telegraph Cup. There are other trophies to race for as well. The fastest runners over all 3 tops are the ‘Kings of the Mountains’, and there are cups for the fastest run on each peak too. Equally prestigious is the ‘Tilman Trophy’, named after the great mountaineer and sailor who inspired the race. This is for all round performance and is for the fastest yacht which has put 4 team members onto a summit. The race attracts some of the world's best sailors and runners, as well as teams who hope just to complete the course, which is a considerable achievement in its own right. Spectators can follow the race live at www.threepeaksyachtrace.co.uk, where there will be leader board updates and new for 2007, will be a live online tracker linked to each boat, making the race easier to follow than ever before. Subscribe to the Runner's Web Weekly Digest