Matt Dear Memorial Trophy at Alexandra Yacht Club

by Jimmy Kebbell 22 Jul 2010 15:19 BST 17 July 2010

There was an excellent turn out at the Alexandra Yacht Club for the Matt Dear Memorial Trophy. Organised and sponsored by the parents of 17-year old Matt, who died of steroid drug abuse whilst trying to get into the Marines, the yacht race for cadets of 17 and under was attended by members of several clubs.

Josh Rae led the field in his Dart 16 catamaran to finish first but was beaten into third place on handicap. The first two had a close race all the way round finishing seconds apart with Alex Farrall just pipping Alex Hadley, both sailing Laser Radial dinghies and both from Thorpe Bay YC.

First young lady home was Robyn Murdoch sailing a Pico, also from Thorpe Bay, and who was fifth overall.

Held alongside was the Alexandra Yacht Club’s 1878 “Bob Sealey” Cup for adults, which was run by Philip Parker in a Pico. A total of 15 dinghies completed both races in tricky conditions around a 2-lap triangular course. Both races will now be held as annual events.

Overall Results:

Pos	Helm	Boat	Club	Corrected time	Lap 1	Lap 2
1	Alex Farrall	Laser Radial	Thorpe Bay YC	1782	1653	3242
2	Alex Hadley	Laser Radial	Thorpe Bay YC	1790	1714	3251
3	Josh Rae	Dart 14	Thames Estuary YC	2184	2425	4542
4	Robyn Murdoch	Pico	Thorpe Bay YC	2226	2215	4641
5	Reece Ferguson	Topper	Southend Sea Cadets	3633	4919	7800
6	Henry Saunders	Topper	Southend Sea Cadets	3781	4221	8110
7	Peter Dear	Pico	Southend Sea Cadets	RTD	-	-
7	Matisse Matchett	Pico	Southend Sea Cadets	RTD	-	-

MATTHEW DEAR

Matt Dear died on 20th April 2009 after taking steroids to help him bulk up so he could join the Royal Marines. He was 17. The two men who supplied the steroids were charged with drugs offences and given community service.

Chris and Tina Dear now actively campaign about the risks of steroids and against their illegal supply : www.matt-dear.vpweb.co.uk