Sailing: Red faces all round for English crew

England Red had faces to match after the opening race of the Commodores' Cup yesterday. Not only were they fifth of the 11 three-boat teams, the top places went to the two late entries, the Commonwealth and Ireland's second string, Orange. To make matters worse, the Commonwealth's big boat is Peter Harrison's 52ft Chernikeeff 2, which had been at loggerheads all last week in Cowes with Bear of Britain, the sister ship of the England Red captain, Kit Hobday.

Two of the Irish boats are wellknown Solent campaigners, all of which had moved Hobday to complain that he had been assured there would be no pseudo "ghost" teams and that their inclusion would be "disgraceful, because it devalues the event." The ghosts, it would seem, had muscles under their shrouds.

In glorious conditions it was then the turn of the France Red team to take the lead after a second race which saw the Commonwealth slip to second, Ireland Orange to third and England Red pull a place back to fourth.

It was difficult to keep up with the names of the boats, some of which bore last week's as well as this week's sponsors, as well as their names.

One even asked to change its name between leaving the dock in the morning and returning in the afternoon because the skipper's father had become a grandfather and wanted to rename the boat after the new baby. Such is the villagey nature of international yacht racing.

Another yacht due to change its name soon, the 110ft catamaran Orange, which used to race as Commodore Explorer for Loic Peyron, changed its mind and set off clockwise from the Isle of Wight, skippered by brother Bruno, in a bid to set a new record for sailing round Britain and Ireland. She will become Kingfisher when taken over by Ellen MacArthur.