Pictures of Spirit of the Sea powerboat racing in Falmouth

The event, 'Spirit of the Sea', was organised and managed by the Eastwood Racing team alongside Falmouth Harbour Commissioners.

Eastwood is a local racing team, owned and piloted by Gary Aldington from Eastwood Garage in Penryn. Its boat, Vintage Torque, is a class-1 boat which can exceed 100mph on a good day.

As an ambassador of the sport, Gary, in discussions with Falmouth Harbour Commissioners, was able to gain agreement for a pre-cursor event, ahead of a big festival to be held next year.

The race was run under World Powerboat Events, sanctioned by UKOPRA, both of which are racer owned.

Team 25 Life Racing class-3 boat Picture: Malc Attrill Photography (Image: Malc Attrill Photography)

Spectators were able to watch the start of the race in Falmouth as they sped through Carrick Roads between Black Rock and Pendennis Point and watch them go offshore.

There was also Zapcat/Thundercat racing on the Saturday, which took closer to shore.

The event saw a total of 16 boats competing in four separate classes.

The class-1 racing saw Silverline, crewed by Drew Langdon and Miles Jennings, coming first, with Team 25 Dragon. Made up of Rob Lockyer and Scott Younger in second, and Falmouth’s own Vintage Torque, raced by Gary Aldington and Tom Gardner, coming third. There was just 20 seconds between the three class-1 boats as they came through the finish line.

Speeds were lower than sometimes, due to the adverse weather conditions, with the fastest boats averaging just under 60pmh. On a flat day they can be in excess of 100mph.

Racing was followed by a prizegiving and awards ceremony held at Events Square, where racers were awarded trophies for first, second and third in their respective classes.

All the racers at Events Square Picture: Malc Attrill Photography (Image: Malc Attrill Photography)

The event proved even more popular than expected, with a large number of spectators watching from the shore. A spokesperson for Eastwood said: “It was very busy up at Pendennis Point where spectators could view the starts and the Thundercat racing – we send our apologies to anyone who got caught up in the traffic.”

She added: “We’ve been overwhelmed by positive feedback from the teams and local public.

“We’re now looking ahead to organising a larger event for next year with more benefit to the town, local people and harbour.”

The event was sponsored by 11 local businesses and on Friday evening, the night before the racing, the UKOPRA (UK Offshore Powerboat Racing Association) forum took place at the Windjammer, with a post-event meal then taking place at the Chainlocker.

Class-1 boat Silverline Picture: Malc Attrill Photography (Image: Malc Attrill Photography)