The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

TREASURE CAY, Abaco — Clayton Bain didn’t waste anytime in proving why he was the defending champion of the Sands Beer ‘Man in the Boat’ National Sculling Championships.

The Mars Bay, South Andros, native took control of both his heat and final races from start to finish as he powered across the finish line at Treasure Cay beach to retain his title in grand style on Saturday night.

“The competition was good, but I could have beaten them by more. I was in the sun all day. Nobody expected me to win this. They bragged and bragged, but I told them to put their money where their mouth is. I didn’t come here to talk,” he said.

Bain had to compete against the six champions from the sculling events put on by the Bahamian Brewery and Beverage Company around the Family Islands this year. An extra competitor, called the “chairman’s pick,” was added by the company’s president James ‘Jimmy’ Sands.

The eight competitors drew the heat and boat they would compete in for both the preliminary heats and the final.

Bain, who selected Strong Back, went up against the chairman’s pick Stephen Rolle in Sands Light, All-For-One Regatta champion Donnie Bastian in Strong Back and St Valentine’s Massacre champion Sheldon Gibson in Sands.

As soon as race coordinator George Kelly blew the starting whistle, Bain got out front and he was never challenged as the rest of the fleet followed in that order. Bain advanced to the final with Rolle as the runner-up.

The second heat turned out to be more competitive, but in the end, Exuma champion Clay Moxey in Sands Light held off Long Island’s champion Dennis Fox in Strong Back. Third went to Grand Bahama champion Clayton Cooper in Sands and Abaco’s champion Finley Cox in High Rock had to settle for fourth.

In the final, Bain again set the pace on High Rock and was able to pull away from the field to easily secure the title, inking his name on the floating trophy for the second consecutive year, leaving Fox on Sands to hold off Moxey on Sands Light and Rolle on Strong Back for second place.

“I would like to go for 10 straight,” said Bain, who was already looking ahead to next year’s championship.

Bain credited his victory to Sands for bringing the sport back.

“Sculling only been around because of crawfish and the guys didn’t have any engine to work with,” he said. “I repeated this in Freeport (last year) and I will do it again: Respect to Jimmy Sands. I’m glad that it happened here. He brought a lot more people out. But the blacker the berry, the sweeter the juice.”

For Fox, coming in second wasn’t bad.

“If I had a better oar, I would have given him a better run,” said Fox of the stick that the sailors used to steer their boat. “But in all, I’m still satisfied. The competition was pretty stiff. That was the best of the best. I think this is the great thing they are doing to bring back sculling.”

Sands, who decided two years ago to try and revive the sport of sculling by employing Gibson to construct the four boats used in the competition, said he was extremely pleased with what he saw.

“What a fabulous, fabulous night or evening that we had,” he said. “The weather was perfect, the attendance was tremendous and naturally the great scullers from around the Bahamas were here to demonstrate the fine skills of sculling.

“We had eight of the best scullers so far compete in the championships, which was a highly competitive event.”

At the beginning when the thought ran through his mind, Sands said he was just toying with the idea, but he never knew that it would have taken off in the manner that it has. He said he’s more inspired to continue the competition as he and his staff, led by marketing manager Lynden Johnson, will have to sit down and chart the course for 2014.

At the end of the championship, Johnson and members of Sands Beer presented the participants with their trophies, t-shirts and cases of the Sands Beer products.