Crews from Weymouth, Portland Swanage and Sidmouth joined forces with Lyme Regis Gig club to travel to their twin town of St Georges in Bermuda.

Thirty members of the Jurassic coast Gig Clubs formed ‘Team Jurassic ‘to take part in the Bermuda Invitational Gig Regatta.

They entered four crews to race against the Bermudians and visitors from Cornwall, Devon, USA and the Netherlands.

At the post-Regatta awards ceremony, after the final race at St Georges, Phil Hayward on behalf of Lyme Regis Gig Club, presented the Bermudians with a model wooden gig, built by the Lyme Regis boat building academy.

Phil paid tribute to the organisers, saying: “This was the best sporting experience of my life. The hospitality, warmth and friendliness shown towards us all was simply outstanding. The organisation and attention to detail was superb and I think many of us learned some lessons on how to put on a successful regatta. We were treated as though we were visiting royalty,”

Pilot gigs were as important in Bermuda as they were off of the Cornish coast before nautical maps were charted.

The local knowledge would provide passage to ships safely into harbour around treacherous reefs and rocks. A living was only gained by the fastest gig to reach the ship needing assistance.

To this day the tradition lives on in the gig races across the south west region and now internationally.

Cornish Pilot Gig rowing is the fastest growing rowing sport in the UK and with clubs now opening in Bermuda and as far as Kuwait the sport looks to continue to grow across the globe.

If you would like any information about Lyme Regis Gig Club then visit www.lymeregisgigclub.com