Peter Miller and crew of Contest III extended one of the longest win streaks in local sports during the traditional Bermuda Day fitted dinghy season opener in St George’s Harbour.

Competing in 15-18 knot south west breezes with their No 3 rig, The Royal Bermuda Yacht Club entry won two of the day’s three titles up for grabs, including the prestigious Heritage Trophy for the thirteenth straight year.

“We kept the streak alive,” Miller, the Contest III skipper, said. “We put ourselves under pressure every time to extend it and in recent years I think the other teams have had extra motivation just to try and take it off of us.

“The Heritage Trophy is definitely one of the most coveted trophies awarded during the season, and it’s special because it’s the first race of the season. It’s Bermuda Day and it is the only trophy to be presented immediately after the race and by the Governor.”

Things got even better for Miller and his colleagues who also won the day’s third and final race for the Leon D Fox Cup to cap a brilliant start to the 2016 campaign.

“It was definitely a good start to the season,” Miller said. “It was some good breeze and nice weather for the No 3 rig. It was a little out of control at times, but it was good to shake the rust off with a little bit of breeze.”

Rockal Evans, Butch Agnew, Dimitri Stevens, Julian Lines, Tim Steinhoff and Roger Mello were the remaining crew aboard Contest III, which was built in Gloucester, Massachusetts in 1990.

“We had a pretty similar crew from last year, so that obviously helped,” Miller said.

“We were a bit late getting the boat in the water this year, so I don’t think we had as much practice as the other teams.

“But having a very calm and collected crew and everyone knowing their role I think were all of the main factors.”

The regatta was hosted by the St George’s Dinghy and Sports Club whose representatives aboard Victory IV endured mixed fortunes sailing with their No 2 rig, the largest in the four-boat racing fleet.

With skipper Damian Payne at the helm, Victory IV won the race for the Anniversary Cup in between sinking in the first race for the Heritage Cup and third for the Leon Fox Cup.