Despite a smaller number of boats entering this year and the enduring memory of the tragic fatality that blighted the event in 2002, Bermuda Powerboat Association (BPBA) commodore Chris Roque remains convinced that tomorrow's Round the Island Powerboat Race will be a great success.

The race, which involves a 46-mile circumnavigation of the Island from Ferry Reach in a westward direction, has only 12 boats registered to compete this time round - well down on the average participation at previous events.

Although Roque admits that last year's accident, in which navigator Stuart Smith was killed, may have had some sort of influence on the diminished numbers, he argues that this will not affect the overall quality of the race.

"The accident was a tragic freak," he said, "and everybody who competes in this sport knows that accidents like that can happen.

"But I think it would be stupid of me not to admit that it probably has had an affect on the number of entries this year."

"Everything is shaping up beautifully for the weekend," he continued, "even if we are a little light on boats. The weather looks like it may be good and the seas will hopefully be calm."

In response to questions about what steps had been taken to ensure that accidents could be avoided in future, Roque pointed out that with boats travelling at such high speeds in open water, there was very little that organisers could do differently. Danger and the threat of physical injury, Roque conceded, were "part of the sport's very nature."

He did reveal, however, that a number of new safety procedures had been introduced this year, but stressed that these had been "in the pipeline" ever since he took charge two years ago and were not a direct response to the fatality.

"We are implementing a whole bunch of new safety guidelines this year but contrary to what I have been hearing, these were already planned well before the accident took place.

"Nobody was at fault last year and there was very little we could have done."

Asked who he felt the favourite was to win the race, Roque went against the grain by predicting that Andy Stoneham, who has won the event a number of times and holds the overall record for elapsed time of 36 minutes, 19 seconds, would not emerge victorious.

"Andy has obviously done very well in the past but I think people who back him have misread the situation.

"The water looks like it is going to be nice and calm and I favour Clive Hook in the A-class in those conditions. On flat waters, he is going to be flaming on Sunday. But I could be wrong."