The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Clayton Bain has every reason to boast and brag. For the third consecutive year, he has emerged as the Sands Beer ‘Man in the Boat’ sculling champion.

Bain, who had predicted that he was ready to take on all comers, powered through in the final of the two-day Sands Sculling and E-Class Regatta in Montagu Bay on Sunday by holding off a stiff challenge from Dennis Fox of Long Island, who was back in town after winning the St Valentine’s Day Massacre and Clayton Moxey, the Grand Bahama champion.

“You have to put God first and everything else comes behind,” said a confident Bain about his victory. “These fellows don’t realise that if you brag, you won’t get anything out of it. You have to go out there and prove yourself and I have already proven myself three times by beating them.”

Bain, a building contractor by profession, said he cautiously picks what events he competes in to make sure that he’s properly prepared for the national championship.

“I told them, I don’t care where you go, you have to meet me. If you don’t beat me, I will beat you, so it’s best if you just settle for what you get. Now they are saying that they don’t want me to compete in the championship again. But I told them, I’m still the champion and you have to beat me.

“But I would be happy to let them race among themselves to see who is the boss and I will come back and still beat that person. I’m not going to hide from this. I born doing this. These fellows is be in the boat everyday. I am on the roof, mixing and toting cement. I am cutting wood, lifting heavy wood. I build houses with my brothers. So I am always ready to compete.”

At the end of the competition, Bain celebrated as he was awarded 20 cases of Sands Beer and a championship trophy for his efforts. Fox got 15 cases and a trophy and Moxey ended up with 12 cases and a trophy for coming in second and third respectively.

The competition started with eight competitors, including Danny Knowles, also from Long Island, Steven Rolle, the National Family Island champion in Exuma, Skeeter Rolle, the Abaco champion and both Richard Ross and veteran Reuben Knowles from New Providence.

In the first heat, Ross and Fox emerged as the first two winners and Bain and Moxey were first and second in the second heat to set the stage for the final.

Lynden Johnson, the marketing manager at Bahamian Brewery, the producers of Sands Beer, said the regatta was a success with thousands of Bahamians on the shoreline for both days to watch the competition.

“We knew that Clayton is a very powerful sculler, but we were looking for some of the scullers who were not as muscular with the technique to do it, but Clayton proved once again that power prevailed over technique,” Johnson said. “He performed very well and is now the three-time champion, having won all three championships that we have held so far.”

In other competitions during the regatta, the team of Charles, Jason Robinson and Dianne Dewitt took first place in the High Rock Scramble Relay on Saturday.

On Sunday in the Sands E-Class sailing competition, legendary skipper Lundy Robinson, sailing the Bahamas Hot Mix sloop, won the three races to clinch the title. He was followed by Kyle Darville on the High Rock boat and Steven Rolle on the Blue Bird boat.

The evening ended late Sunday night with a Bahamian concert, featuring Veronica Bishop, D Mac, Geno D and The Spank band.