MARK Dagge made the perfect start to his racing career aboard the new Skysong in the annual DHL-Aberdeen Boat Club regatta yesterday, narrowly taking top honours on corrected time.
A J-35 like the old Skysong (now renamed Fast Company), Dagge and his crew finished a mere one minute and 17 seconds clear of Dr Ian Nicholson's Banner 40, Intrigue, in the Channel Handicap System (CHS) Division.
Third home was Frank Pong's Farr-design, Millenium, only another minute off the pace.
Millenium, a radically designed boat that features shifting water ballast, decisively took line honours around 30 minutes clear of Intrigue.
The new Skysong rounded off her debut in a major regatta with a fine third place on corrected time in Portsmouth Yard Stick (PYS) behind the quick 33-footer, Tru-Luv II (Li Fook-hing) and F. C. Bart (B. Phipps).
While Dagge and his crew had plenty to celebrate, it was a dark day for Keith Jacobs and his crew aboard Bimblegumbie.