Salcombe Gin Merlin Rocket Week - Day 1 by Tim Fells 4 Jul 21:24 BST 4-9 July 2021 Two years have passed since the Merlin fleet last descended on Salcombe for the Salcombe Gin sponsored Merlin Week, so it was with much excitement that the morning fleet set about the ritual of crossing the estuary to Mill Bay to prepare for the morning race. Unfortunately, the weather gods were not in the same mood and delivered rain and little to no wind for the start. RACE 1: RED v GREEN Flights, COURSE 1,7,1,3 With random bits of breeze from all points of the compass and a flood tide against, the start was always going to have a high degree of difficulty about it. With quite a scrum near the Portlemouth beach, defending champions Richard Whitworth and Jemima Scroggie carried on where they had ended in 2019, timing a perfect start 10 boats out from the beach in their own bit of pressure to steel away from the pack. They navigated the vagaries of the beat/reach/run to Blackstone to round well ahead and set off down tide on the long leg to Gerston. Duncan and Harriet Salmon along with Antony and Jo Gifford found some pressure by Biddle Rocks to round second and third.