Rob Greenhalgh laid down a marker during yesterday’s opening day of the Amlin International Moth Regatta in the Great Sound.

The British sailor coped best in the variable and shifty breezes, posting two bullets, to return to the clubhouse perched atop the pecking order, if only just.

Yet rather than get carried away with the day’s performance, Greenhalgh choose instead to keep things in perspective.

“It’s day one with three races of fifteen done, and so you can’t read too much into it,” the reigning European champion said. “It’s just about chipping away and trying to be consistent over the next several days, and then try and seal it off towards the end. But if you can build up a little points gap it is useful.”

With better fortune in the second race, Greenhalgh might have completed the sweep.

The pre-regatta favourite led heading up the first beat, before his fortunes took a turn for the worst when the breeze died out after a rain squall swept across the 1.3 mile windward-leeward course.

Getting up on the foils is by no means an easy task in gentler breeze, particularly for heavier sailors such as Greenhalgh, who virtually sat still with his parking brake on as some of his rivals surged ahead of his bow.

Greenhalgh finished fourth in the second race, giving him six points for the day.

“There was this big right wind up first beat, and then it all went a bit wacky and all sorts of stuff was going on, and then as the clouds went away it went very light and it just got away from me unfortunately,” Greenhalgh said.

That proved to be the only real setback on an otherwise fruitful day for Greenhalgh, who managed to stay up on the foils for the most part, while executing gybes and tacks at both ends of the course to maintain good boat speed.

Greenhalgh is one of three British sailors who occupy the top three spots on the leaderboard.

A point off the leader in second is Paul Goodison, of Artemis Racing, followed by Chris Rashley a further two points adrift.

Also representing Great Britain is Ben Paton, the Royal Bermuda Yacht Club sailing coach, who would have been satisfied to end the day sitting in fifth.

Further down the pecking order is James Doughty, Bermuda’s sole representative, who ended the day in 42nd among the 54-boat fleet.

Doughty had finishes of 48, 35, and 38 to finish the day on 121 points, although he fared better than Tom Slingsby, the Oracle Team USA’s team manager, who failed to finish the first two races, before posting a fifth-place finish in the last race of the day.

“It was a very good day,” said Doughty, who is competing in the high-performance dinghy for the first time. “I had brilliant starts in the second and third race, and so I am happy with my performance.

“I was a little shaky getting used to what it’s like racing in a fleet and gauging myself against other people in the first race. But I got better throughout the day, and was definitely up in the mix with some of the Oracle boys.”

Among those suffering the misfortune of breakdowns was Slingsby, who damaged his primary foil while leading the first race.

The regatta continues today.