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The only other skipper to take a heat win was Andy Reid, knocking off two wins in succession. However, there are plenty of others in the mix ready to pounce when someone makes the smallest of errors.

From B Rigs to C , to C2 the wind strength kept everyone on their toes as it built at times. Getting caught out with the wrong rig was a huge handicap. There were puffs which were putting bows in and under on the downwind legs - even the small rigs.

The other thing which tested skippers was the chop which built up. There was an art to tacking at the right time - especially problematic was if you tacked and slammed the bow into the next wave. This photo gives you an idea of the chop:

Any fleet of Marbleheads makes a great picture coming off a starting line. The speed of these things is phenomenal. Small errors in steering or hitting waves makes such a massive difference to your boat speed. It take precision to keep them travelling fast.

Above: Ray Joyce powering his Grunge to windward.

With another day and a half to go, it's anyone's guess who'll take the crown. Lots of sailing to log into the books. Here's hoping the wind and weed gods smile kindly on the Marbles.

Credit to Tristan Price for the terrific photos. Anyone who has attempted to take photos of radio boats will knowhow hard it is to make them look any good. Normally - all you see are white dots on the water!