THE TIREE WAVE CLASSIC
in association with Corona Extra
Saturday 14 – Saturday 21 October 2006
http://www.tireewaveclassic.com

NEWS RELEASE : Tuesday 17 October 2006

HIBBARD FIRST PAST THE POST IN SPRINT FINISH
Day Three at The Tiree Wave Classic in association with Corona Extra

Although the conditions for windsurfing were not ideal yesterday 
(17/10/06) at The Tiree Wave Classic in association with Corona 
Extra, 10 sailors, from the 42 strong fleet, took to the water for an 
adrenaline and fun packed long distance race.

The race format involved a run down the beach, windsufing a mile long 
course to a buoy and back to the beach.  Competitors then had to pick 
up their boards and sprint to the finish line under the Corona Extra 
inflatable arch. All challengers used equipment to the same spec to 
make it an even as possible contest.

Although this was not an official part of the competition (that 
involves wave sailing, supercross and freestyle disciplines) a 
mixture of Pro Men, Juniors, Youths and Amateurs made the most of the 
one design equipment – F2 stokes (sails) and North rigs (boards) – 
that had been supplied by Boardwise.

Very gusty winds meant that sailors had to pump quite hard to get on 
the plane and stay on the plane giving them enough speed to race 
effectively in the difficult conditions.

John Hibbard whizzed off the starting line on his Saltire Board, 
presented to him by EventScotland, to take an early lead. Graham Wood 
caught him up early when John slowed down due to a drop in the wind 
leaving the rest of the fleet lagging far behind.  On the return leg 
the two sailors fighting it out for a win, John Hibbard and Graham 
Wood, realised that in order get to the Corona Extra arch fastest it 
was necessary to beach their boards as early as possible and sprint 
over a longer distance to the finish line.

It was John Hibbard who won the race, being a more skilled beach 
sprinter.  Graham Wood came a close second with the rest of the field 
trailing well behind.

John was pleased with the win saying: ‘It was great to get out there 
and stretch my legs while we’re waiting for the winds to pick up 
consistently. I’m hoping I can translate this racing form into a good 
result in the Supercross later in the week.’

Due to poor sailing conditions today Tuesday (16/10/06) official 
events have been replaced by a number of beach activities including a 
Zap Cat relay, Blo karting, Beach Volleyball and Coasteering and 
Cliff Jumping The weather forecast for the week ahead is predicting 
an increase in wind strength from 8 knots (9mph) on Tuesday morning 
(16/10/06) to winds of 26 knots (30mph) on Thursday. These conditions 
will ensure a keenly contested competition with the likelihood of a 
wave sailing round on Thursday (19/10/06) to wow the 150 plus crowds 
visiting the island on the special Caledonian MacBrayne return ferry 
package.

ENDS