race, last year's winner Rudy Bailey said this week the victory was merely "an early Christmas gift''.

Bailey had boasted last week that he was the "firm favourite'' and would win this year.

But it was Dickinson who had the last laugh, winning comfortably after Bailey had suffered a premature start and was forced to turn back, losing valuable time. The win enabled Dickinson, sailing in Alton Millett's boat Kitty Hawk , to tie Millett's record of 11 long distance wins.

Bailey was quick to point out that it was largely through his mistake that Dickinson won the title. his first since 1995.

"Christmas came early for Mr. Dickinson and he should be a happy fellow,'' said Bailey, who attributed defeat to his own stupidity at the start.

"I did a silly thing, I miscalculated the starting sequence by some five seconds and had to go back ... it was human error. It wasn't my crew, it wasn't my boat, it was me,'' he said.

"It was plain catch-up on a day that wasn't suited for catch-up. I made significant inroads but every time I would come up the wind would drop and the leaders would slip away again. It wasn't like I was side by side and close by, I was side by side but I was about half a mile inshore.

"Once we hit Fort St. Catherine that's when you separate the men from the boys. If anybody is close to me I am going to eat them and I passed a few but couldn't do it.

"I am still kicking myself for making the initial mistake knowing that I had a boat and a team that could have won the race easily if I had not made that five-second mistake. I wish I had it to do all over again, the result wouldn't be the same.'' Refuting claims that he failed to stick around after the finish in St.

George's Harbour in fear of being ridiculed, Bailey said it wasn't a custom for him to congregate at the clubhouse yard area at the East End Mini Yacht Club after the race.

"I certainly didn't run and hide like they claimed,'' he said.

"After being flogged three years in a row by me, and flogged handily last year, I guess the Lord felt sorry for him (Dickinson) and gave him the break.

That's what happened, I don't think I have had to eat my words. If I didn't make that mistake, I would have won that race. If Stevie was honest with himself, he would admit it.

"Being thrashed three years in a row probably gave Stevie added motivation to sail very well. But it's not like I am 70 or 80, there is still plenty more of me to go around and he will see me again.''