Al Zeeb wins Dubai Traditional 22ft Dhow race

Ebrahim Ismail Al Marzouqi and his crew on Al Zeeb won the Dubai Traditional 22ft Dhow Sailing race in front of The Walk at Jumeirah Beach Residence on Saturday but it wasn’t easy.

The team really struggled to sail the boat through the line to finish the race as the wind died and left the 56 dhow fleet floundering in the calm conditions.

Second was Salik, skippered by Juma Suhail Salim Adidi, and third was Al Wasf with Mohammed Hamad Al Ghashaih and crew.

Only one of the two scheduled races in the finale of the Majid Bin Mohammed Watersports Championship could be completed as the Dubai International Marine Club (DIMC) were forced to postpone the second race to a later date.

The race started in about eight knots of wind on a 4.5 nautical mile course, but the light wind mixed with a choppy sea swell made the already hot and humid conditions tricky for the crews.

“The start line for the race was quite disorderly and some of the skippers were taking too long to get in a straight line,” said Marwan Al Tayer from the DIMC Sports Committee. “We set a time limit for the boats to be ready but some boats were over the line at the start and it resulted in 12 of the teams being disqualified.”

The DIMC Sports Committee are just completing their first season of events at the club and have been working with the staff to update rules and regulations and enforcing them on the water.

“The development of the traditional fleets has been so successful,” said Huraiz Al Mur Bin Huraiz, the committee chairman. “The interest is there and we are seeing an increased demand for the sport and with that comes the need for tighter regulations.”

The race ended in very difficult conditions, which stretched the teams to their limits as the wind, dropped away just before the finish.

“The finish was so tricky,” said the winning skipper Al Marzouqi. “We were all sitting as far forward as possible in the boat to try and move forward after the wind had died. The waves were pushing us but it was so frustrating, but luckily we managed to cross the line to win.”

The date for the postponed race will be decided next week but the focus at DIMC now turns to the biggest race of the season, the Al Gaffal long distance 60ft traditional dhow race next Saturday May 28 from Sur Bu Na’air Island, 50 nautical miles west of Dubai.

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