Rudy Bailey retained his title at the Comet International Championship Regatta in Oxford, Maryland, at the weekend.

The West End Sail Boat Club stalwart produced his fourth straight win at the event after pipping perennial rival Talbot Ingram and his crew Lee Ingram, representing Shrewsbury Sailing & Yacht Club, by a solitary point.

“It was a test of moral fortitude,” Bailey said.

The experienced sailor posted two firsts and a third in the seven-race series competing with 15-year-old grandson Corey Bean as crew.

“It was a very, very tough regatta,” Bailey added.

“It was supposed to be a light air regatta, but ended up being very strong breezes and I had a 92lb crew so it did not go exactly as planned. However, we persevered with good teamwork and got better with each race.

“We were lucky enough where we won two races and stayed up there to get the job done; what we went up there to do.”

Bean, a CedarBridge Academy student, was making his competitive debut in a regatta.

“My grandson has sailed with me twice in the Long Distance Comet Race and this is actually his first regatta ever,” Bailey said.

“He has never sailed in a series and this was seven races up here. He is gung-ho and wants to race.”

Bean thoroughly enjoyed the experience and is looking forward to competing again at the Comet Class Yacht Racing Association sanctioned regatta.

“Sailing is fun and I will definitely do it again,” he said.

Pat Curran and crew Hartley Cooper, of the Riverton Yacht Club, rounded off the top three on the podium a further four points adrift of the leader.

The Comet International Championship Regatta, which was hosted by Tred Avon Yacht Club and held from August 23 to 25, featured sailors from the 13 Comet fleets based at five mid-Atlantic states on the US East Coast and Bermuda.