Stevie Dickinson retained his Long Distance Comet Race title with yet another dominant and flawless display yesterday.

The East End Mini Yacht skipper won the offshore dinghy race from the Great Sound to St George’s Harbour for the third consecutive year to bring up his eighteenth win, sailing with seasoned crew Sarah Lane Adderley.

The pair took early control of the race and made the most of the light-air conditions before crossing the upwind finish line on starboard tack with the chasing pack well behind their boat’s transom.

Taking second was teenage skipper Benn Smith and crew Peter Dill sailing out of the Mid Atlantic Sail Boat Club, while rounding out the podium was Dickinson’s East End Mini Yacht Club stablemate Maxwell Curtis Jr and crew Stefan Furbert.

Dickinson was first to the fresher breeze exiting the Great Sound and his gamble not to stray far from the rhumbline once out in open seas worked to his advantage.

After establishing a comfortable lead, Dickinson and Adderley maintained good speed as they worked the shifts reaching down the North Shore uncontested the rest of the way.

“Sarah and I were really, really fast,” Dickinson said. “All praise to Sarah. She sailed well and did an excellent job on the jib and we communicated very well the whole time. It’s always special to win this race because you have the spectators out there supporting you and it feels so good to get the hat-trick.”

Smith, who won the race a few years ago as crew for Rockal Evans, was pleased with his best performance to date as a skipper.

“I feel good,” the son of World Sunfish champion Malcolm Smith said.

“Conditions were light and really shifty, especially coming off the start because we were so close to land, but overall I’m pleased with my showing.”

Curtis was overwhelmed to earn a place on the podium, the 29-year old skipper’s best showing in the race.

“It is definitely very pleasing to come third but also very exhausting,” he said. “Stefan and I have put a lot of hard work in this boat and hard work has paid off.”

Dickinson heaped praise on clubmate Curtis.

“Maxwell has so much talent,” he said. “I expected him to be up there because he’s becoming a fast sailor and I told him I’m going to take him under my wing this year.”

Dickinson also hailed youngsters Smith and Dill.

“I actually trained Peter once,” he said. “Peter is a really good sailor.

“These guys are up and coming and they are only going to get better and better.”