during Bermuda Offshore Cruising Association's Mount Gay Rum Regatta on Sunday, finishing three-and-a-half minutes ahead of the rest of the fleet.

Predictions of winds up to 30 knots didn't prevent 11 boats from turning out for the race.

Only four entered the IMS class racing with spinnakers, all of them leaving Hamilton Harbour via Two Rock Passage with Tsunami (Budy Rego) evoking admiring cheers from the Monkeyshines crew as she just skimmed by the northern rocks of the exit.

By the rounding at the 102 marker, Monkeyshines was leading the class and maintained her lead all the way to marker 23 at Shelly Bay and back to Hamilton.

Reaching speeds of up to 14 knots, she completed the 16-mile course in two hours, 23 minutes, 49 seconds, more than three minutes ahead of the J24 Sadiiqi (Sheelagh Tasker) who achieved her personal fastest speed of 11 knots.

Tsunami finished third.

BOCA welcomed the new owner of J92 Fat Tuesday , Mark Stephenson, to his inaugural race.

The seven-boat PHRF fleet sailed a 12-mile course from the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club to the yellow and black Elbow marker and back. An indication of the wide variety of participating boats was evident in the length of their races.

Silver Spur (Ed Faries) finished in one hour, 58 minutes while Cranberry (Wil Webber) sailed for three hours and seven minutes.

Along the way Faries fought a duel with Martin Purser's Alexis with the lead changing three times during the race. In the end Alexis crossed the line only 25 seconds ahead of Silver Spur , but on corrected time both boats were out of the winner's circle as Swift of Paget (Tom Wadson), Bermuda Oyster (Gary Venning) and Lullaby (David Roblin) finished first, second and third.