Contest III claimed the Coronation Cup at Mangrove Bay in last weekend's Bermuda Fitted Dinghies racing, hosted by The Sandys Boat Club.

The first race got under way after a long delay for the C.T. Fowle Cup. Contest III helmed by Somers Kempe flew their number two suit, as was Elizabeth II helmed by John Nicholls.

Victory II helmed by Michael Oatley was playing conservative by flying the number three rig, while Martin Siese on Challenger II was aggressive flying their large number one rig.

The first race was a 5/4 course and Contest leapt out to the lead, while Elizabeth trailed in second at the top mark, followed by Victory and Challenger.

By the second mark Contest had a 30-second lead and would continue to extend throughout the race.

The fight for second place would soon heat up as Challenger started to find its legs in the slightly lighter breeze.

They soon overtook Victory who was struggling for speed with their smallest suit of sails. Elizabeth and Challenger had a battle to the finish with Elizabeth just claiming second place over the Challenger crew.

Race number two for the 50th Anniversary Cup started on time in the same wind conditions and course configuration. Elizabeth and Contest battled up the left hand side of the course. On one exchange Elizabeth was slightly overeager as they tacked too quickly and sank, leaving Challenger, Contest and Victory at the first mark rounding.

Contest performed its manoeuvre quicker then the rest. At the bottom mark all the boats rounded with 40-seconds of each other but Contest got around Challenger by sailing up the right hand side.

Contest was forced to match race Challenger and was able to gain a four-boat length lead at the top mark. The fleet finished with Contest taking the gun, followed by Challenger and Victory.

The final race of the day was for the B.M.M. Trophy, and Governor Sir John Vereker for his first fitted dinghy race joined Contest. An able sailor, the Contest crew was happy to give him a first hand taste of a Bermudian tradition.

On the first upwind Elizabeth quickly went to the right hand side of the course, and gained a healthy lead over Contest who sailed the left, followed by Challenger and Victory.

Over the course of the race Contest and Challenger would slowly reel Elizabeth in while Victory struggled with their smaller suit of sails. Elizabeth continued to use the right hand side of the course effectively while Contest went left to try and find a small shift to allow them to close and overtake.

At the finish Elizabeth took the gun one-second ahead of Contest in a close fought battle. Challenger sailed home to third followed by Victory.

Contest III took the overall Coronation Cup for the season with 79.50 points. Victory IV was second with 50.75 points, Challenger II third at 49.50, and Elizabeth II in fourth with 48.00 points.